the 2000 election, Republican Ralph K. Smith and in the 2004 election Nelson Harris won with less than 40% of the vote in competitive three-way races. In the May 2008 council elections, Democrats Court Rosen, Anita Price, and Sherman Lea defeated a slate of loosely allied independent city council candidates including incumbent Brian Wishneff. In the May 2006 council elections, a slate of three former Democrats running on an independent slate backed by Harris defeated the candidates of the Democratic and Republican parties. This election ended the city's long-running debate about the fate of Victory Stadium. On June 27, 2016, Sherman P. Lea, Sr. took the office of mayor. Roanoke is represented by two members of the Virginia House of Delegates, Sam Rasoul (D-11th) and Chris Head (R-17th), and one member of the Virginia Senate, John Edwards (D-21st). Former Roanoke mayor Ralph Smith won the 2007 election in the neighboring 22nd Senate district after defeating incumbent Brandon Bell for the Republican nomination in the primary election and Democrat Michael Breiner in the general election. The City of Roanoke lies within , which also includes Lynchburg and much of the Shenandoah Valley and is represented by Republican Ben Cline. , represented by Republican Morgan Griffith of neighboring Salem, has traditionally covered southwest Virginia but has expanded into parts of Salem, Roanoke County and counties to the north of Roanoke to make up for population losses in the rest of the district. Republican Bob Good represents much of the area to south and east of Roanoke, including nearby Franklin County, in which also stretches north to Charlottesville. Roanoke is one of the few Democratic pockets in heavily Republican southwestern Virginia. It has supported the Democratic Party nominee in every election since 1988, and in all but one election since 1976. In statewide elections, Roanoke is often one of the few areas west of Charlottesville to vote Democratic. Education The local public school division is Roanoke City Public Schools. The two general enrollment public high schools in Roanoke City are Patrick Henry High School, located in the Raleigh Court area, and William Fleming High School, located in Northwest Roanoke. The six public middle schools in Roanoke City are Woodrow Wilson, James Madison Middle School and John P. Fishwick that feed into Patrick Henry High School, and Lucy Addison, William Ruffner and James Breckinridge, that feed into William Fleming High School. The Noel C.