Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, May 7, 1993 TAG: 9305070505
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: GREG EDWARDS STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Medium
Blacksburg businessman Pat Cupp made his candidacy for the House of Delegates official Thursday.
That set up a fight Saturday between Cupp and Montgomery County Supervisor Nick Rush of Christiansburg for the Republican nomination for the 12th District House seat.
The district mass meeting will be held Saturday at 8:30 a.m. in Christiansburg High School.
Cupp, 53, said his public policy interests include health care, education and economic development. He also favors reducing state mandates on local governments that don't come with accompanying state funding.
Roughly 50 people, including many party regulars, showed up at the Blacksburg Holiday Inn for the announcement of Cupp's candidacy. Cupp said he made up his mind to run only Wednesday morning.
Former Montgomery County GOP Chairman George Bell introduced Cupp. Bell was a candidate for the the Republican nomination for the U.S. House of Representatives last year until he was seriously injured in an automobile accident on Interstate 81.
Bell said he has known Cupp for years and that the candidate has been "an asset and source of strength to our community." Bell described Cupp as a "dynamic leader with a proven capability of bringing new life into our education and business communities."
Cupp's wife and business partner, Sandra, was at his side as he explained how he had grappled with the decision to get into the nomination race.
"I think I can make a difference," Cupp said. Cupp said he thinks he could be effective in securing support for the growth of Radford University and Virginia Tech.
Cupp said his age difference with Rush, who is 25, should not be an issue; but Cupp added that he has accumulated much experience that Rush does not have.
Born in Ironto and raised in Narrows, Cupp graduated from Virginia Tech in 1959. His primary business is Patrick D. Cupp and Associates of Blacksburg, a leasing, management and investment company. He and his wife also operate BCR Real Estate in Blacksburg.
Cupp is a former president of the Blacksburg Chamber of Commerce and president-elect of the Montgomery County Board of Realtors. He and his wife have one daughter and three grandchildren.
The 12th District includes eastern Giles County and most of Montgomery County.
Cupp acknowledged that it's going to be a tough job to wrest the GOP nomination from Rush, who officially announced his candidacy Tuesday.
"You've got to have 300 to win," Cupp said when asked how many supporters he was trying to get out to Saturday's mass meeting. He said he expected Rush to have that many.
While Bell and many other GOP regulars are backing Cupp, Rush has the support of county Treasurer Ellis Meredith and others. Meredith introduced Rush at Tuesday's news conference.
At age 23, Rush, a Federal Express driver and former Army paratrooper, engineered an upset victory over incumbent county Supervisor Ann Hess, a Democrat. He also beat back an independent bid by former county highway engineer Darrell Collins, whom he had defeated for the GOP nomination.
Meredith praised Rush's conservative spending decisions on the Board of Supervisors and said Rush's political philosophy corresponds with the prevailing attitudes of county voters. Cupp said he had talked with Rush a few days ago and found that his and Rush's political philosophies are very similar.
In that case, the primary task of county Republicans will be to choose which candidate they feel is most electable.
That will pit Rush's record as a county supervisor against Cupp's track record in business and civic affairs.
Keywords:
POLITICS
by CNB