Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, May 2, 1990 TAG: 9005020484
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-10 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
In municipal elections throughout Western Virginia, candidates in many communities ran unopposed.
In Roanoke, there at least was competition. Six candidates vied for three at-large City Council seats. The quality of the competition, however, was less than ducky.
The three Roanokers who were elected - the Democratic ticket of Howard Musser, James Harvey and William White - are to be congratulated. But the bigger story of the night was how so few people seemed to care.
The winners were chosen by an electorate consisting of roughly 15 percent of the city's adult population. That's pathetic.
Perhaps it's unsurprising that Americans disdain what Eastern Europeans cherish. Maybe political freedom is more precious to people long denied it than to those for whom it is an everyday fact of life.
But if American elections aren't about establishing new democracies, they're still about something, including the fate of specific policies and programs.
In Roanoke, the referendum on the $15.2-million bond issue may have been more important, if less glitzy, than the contest for City Council.
The proposal followed the city's tradition of incorporating a variety of capital projects into one package, and was backed by all major council candidates.
The voters, too, followed Roanoke tradition by approving the bond issue. By a 3-1 margin, they demonstrated their faith in the city's future and their understanding that improving its infrastructure is a continuing task.
With veteran Councilman Robert Garland's decision not to run for re-election, it was inevitable that council would get at least one new face.
It got two.
White, who finished third, comes to council after an impressively level-headed performance as a School Board member. His training and skills as a certified public accountant also should prove useful in monitoring municipal affairs.
White is a potentially excellent councilman; Roanokers were wise to see the potential.
Harvey's is more a recycled face than a new one: He's a former councilman who narrowly lost his seat two The three Roanokers who were elected - the Democratic ticket of Howard Musser, James Harvey and William White - are to be congratulated. But the bigger story of the night was how so few people seemed to care. The winners were chosen by an electorate consisting of roughly 15 percent of the city's adult population. That's pathetic. years ago.
For Harvey, the only one of the three winners whom we did not editorially endorse, the second-place finish is sweet. From the day of his 24-vote loss in 1988, he's made no secret of his desire to regain the seat.
Now that Harvey has redeemed himself, the question is: To what end will his popularity be put?
By leading the field, incumbent Musser will become vice mayor. During his eight years on council, he has risen from his tax-protest roots to become a generally sound voice and a hard worker on such issues as the proposed plan for city-county consolidation.
His experience is needed on council, and his return to office is welcome.
Incumbent James Trout, to whom we had given our nod over Harvey, now will be leaving council after a long run. He's lost and come back before; perhaps he'll do so again.
Trout had made economic development his specialty, an area in which the city has made considerable strides. In that, Trout can take pride.
by CNB