ROBB PUTS CAMPAIGN IN GEAR FUND-RAISING EVENT HIS FIRST IN YEARS

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, January 24, 1993                   TAG: 9301240155
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: D8   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                                LENGTH: Medium
ROBB PUTS CAMPAIGN IN GEAR FUND-RAISING EVENT HIS FIRST IN YEARS
Sen. Charles Robb is planning a full schedule of activities to begin his 1994 re-election campaign, including his first fund-raising event in years, his chief of staff said.
Robb will kick off fund-raising knowing he could face tough opponents for both the nomination and the general election, Roland McElroy said Friday.
Two weeks ago, a grand jury refused to indict Robb in a political eavesdropping case involving former staff members and associates and Gov. Douglas Wilder.
Among the events Robb has planned to regain voters' trust following his legal difficulties are a women's-health forum and hearings on conversion in the defense industry, McElroy said.
Next month, Robb will hold a small fund-raising event with perhaps 20 or 25 guests, each probably giving $1,000, McElroy said.
The guests will be people who said during Robb's recent troubles that they wanted to help regardless of the outcome of a federal grand jury investigation, he said.
"The [campaign] coffers are virtually empty," McElroy said.
Former White House aide Oliver North is regarded by many as the front-runner among Republicans looking at a possible bid for the GOP nomination next year.
North has developed a large list of donors through his own political action committee and has campaigned for conservative candidates nationwide.
During 1991 and 1992, when he headed the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, Robb held off any fund raising on his own behalf. He didn't want to compete with candidates running in 1992 and was following a tradition for DSCC chairmen, he said.
Wilder and Northern Virginia businessman Mark Warner are mentioned as possible challengers to Robb for the Democratic nomination. Neither has indicated his intentions.
Keywords:
POLITICS

by Bhavesh Jinadra by CNB