Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, May 13, 1993 TAG: 9305130245
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Again, David Anderson and Marsha Fielder are fighting for the Democratic nomination for commissioner of revenue in Roanoke.
When they squared off four years ago, fewer than 200 people attended the mass meeting to choose the party's candidate.
When they battle again Saturday, insiders predict that up to 1,000 might attend the meeting at William Fleming High School.
A crowd that large would be unprecedented for a mass meeting to choose nominees for the city's constitutional offices.
In 1989, Anderson beat Fielder for the party's nomination in a contest that attracted little attention because Jerome Howard, a Republican who had been commissioner for 24 years, was heavily favored to win a new term.
Anderson, deputy city treasurer, lost to Howard by 4,000 votes. But Howard is retiring this year and the Democratic nominee will be favored to win in November.
Democrats usually run well in races for constitutional offices in the city. Howard is the only Republican to hold one of the five offices.
At this point, there are no announced candidates for the Republican nomination for the commissioner's post, which has a $52,000 salary. So the contest between Anderson and Fielder could be tantamount to election in November.
Fielder, the daughter of Roanoke County Commissioner of Revenue Wayne Compton, has married since she ran for the party nomination four years ago. She has worked in the county commissioner's office for 13 years.
Anderson, 49, and Fielder, 32, are working quietly to get their supporters to Saturday's mass meeting. The candidate with the most supporters wins the nomination.
Each candidate has hired a campaign manager to oversee strategy and try to make sure their supporters turn out.
Anderson's manager is Dan Frei, who helped run Mayor David Bowers' campaign last year. Anderson has paid $1,700 to Frei for campaign services.
Fielder's manager is Tim Shock, a political consultant from Kentucky who helped run John Fishwick's campaign for Congress last year. Fielder has paid Shock $5,650.
Both candidates have used their own money to help finance their campaigns.
Fielder has spent $7,700 of her money. She lists only one contribution over $100 - and that came from her father.
Anderson has spent $1,200 of his money. He has received a $150 contribution from Sheriff Alvin Hudson, the only one over $100.
Both candidates have won the endorsement of individuals and groups that could help their chances to win the nomination.
The Roanoke United Central Labor Council has endorsed Fielder. The Rev. Charles Green, president of the Roanoke chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, and Evelyn Bethel, president of Historic Gainsboro, are also backing Fielder.
Anderson has the support of nearly a dozen party leaders, including several council members. But Mayor David Bowers has remained neutral.
The Roanoke Firefighters Association also has remained neutral, but the firefighters are free to work for either candidate.
Behind the scenes, the campaign has focused on the qualifications and the experience of the candidates - and where they live and work.
Anderson and his supporters have portrayed Fielder as an outsider, a Roanoke County employee who wants one of the top jobs in the nity.
He has sent a campaign card to some voters that says Fielder has lived in the city only six months, compared to his 29 years as a city resident.
It is the first time the residency issue has been raised publicly during the campaign, although some Anderson supporters raised it privately earlier.
Fielder has disputed the claim.
Fielder said she lived on Lela Avenue Northeast for nearly a dozen years. She said she put the house up for rent last year and moved in temporarily with her mother outside the city.
But she called this a "transition period" leading up to her marriage last December and said it was never her intention to move her permanent residence out of the city.
Fielder moved into a house on Hillcrest Avenue Northwest with her husband after they were married. Her husband owns a house at Smith Mountain Lake in Bedford County, but "I never intended to change my residence to Smith Mountain Lake and I have have not," she said.
Although she works for the county, she can run for the city office. The only requirement was that she be a registered voter and reside in the city on the date she became a candidate.
Shock, Fielder's campaign manager, said Fielder has been a registered voter in the city and cast ballots in every election since 1981.
Shock said Anderson's campaign has misrepresented Fielder's position on the tax-exempt status for the real estate of charitable and nonprofit community organizations.
In the campaign card mailed to voters, Anderson said he wants to continue the tax exemption for these groups, but Fielder does not.
Shock said Fielder has not taken a position on the issue.
Fielder has stressed both her experience and youth in the campaign. She said she would bring "new ideas and new energy" to the post at a time when localities are facing financial pressures.
"With my energy, we can assure that the commissioner of revenue serves the citizens and does the job," she said.
Anderson has cited his experience in city government, saying it has given him a full understanding of the duties required of the commissioner of revenue.
Anderson has worked for the city 24 years, including the past 16 as deputy city treasurer.
The commissioner of revenue levies business, personal property and real estate taxes and processes applications for business, professional and occupational licenses. The commissioner also administers the real-estate tax freeze for elderly homeowners.
Three Democratic officeholders will be unopposed Saturday for the party's nomination for new terms. They are Treasurer Gordon Peters, Sheriff Hudson and Commonwealth's Attorney Don Caldwell. (Elections are held every eight years for the fifth constitutional office, Circuit Court clerk.)
Voters must register between 8:30 a.m. and 10 a.m. Saturday at William Fleming High to participate in the meeting, which begins at 10.
Keywords:
POLITICS
by CNB