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Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chair Jeff McKay publicly apologized May 19 for calling School Board member Melanie Meren a “bimbo” during an escalating dispute over the county budget.
Addressing the Board of Supervisors, McKay said his language toward Meren, who represents the Hunter Mill District, was unacceptable.
“Policy disagreements are both healthy and inevitable,” McKay said, acknowledging that he crossed a line in a message he did not realize was being sent to Meren.
“Accountability matters. This is a moment of reflection, and one I will learn from,” he added.
McKay said he apologized directly to Meren and that she accepted the apology. He also issued apologies through a public statement and social media. Supervisors did not respond to his remarks during their subsequent reports at the meeting.
The confrontation grew out of a May 7 newsletter in which Meren criticized supervisors for approving a fiscal year 2027 budget that eliminated crossing guards at county high schools and transferred the full cost of Middle School After School programs to Fairfax County Public Schools.
The exchange became public after McKay sent a screenshot of his conversation with Meren to a third person but inadvertently included Meren in the message. In that text, McKay referred to her as “the bimbo,” according to screenshots Meren released.
Meren responded by asking whether McKay was referring to her.
“Yes because you have everyone here angry as heck and it costs the schools,” McKay replied. “Did you think about that before you sent out the ridiculous newsletter? You have to stop the finger pointing all the time. It’s exhausting and harmful.”
The recipient McKay intended to send the screenshot to has not been confirmed, though the person is believed to have been County Executive Bryan Hill.
Hill’s proposed budget called for eliminating Fairfax County Police Department crossing guards at high schools and using contractors to fill vacancies at middle and elementary schools, producing an estimated $1.9 million in savings. It also shifted funding for Middle School After School programs to FCPS, with new fees planned. Supervisors approved both measures when they adopted the budget May 5.
Many Fairfax County delegates and senators in the Virginia General Assembly issued a joint statement condemning McKay’s remark. The School Board also described his language as “unacceptable and unprofessional” in a May 15 statement.
Every seat on the Board of Supervisors and School Board will be on the ballot in 2027. Meren, now serving her first four-year term, has announced that she plans to seek reelection.