Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, November 24, 1993 TAG: 9311240204
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
The switch from a mass meeting to a primary is designed to get more Democrats to participate in candidate selection, said the Rev. Carl Tinsley, party chairman.
A primary also will help ensure that the nominees have broad support among Democrats - not just from one interest group, Tinsley said.
The primary will be held March 1, two months before the May 3 council election.
Some party officials say privately that a primary will help neutralize the influence of labor unions and other groups in the selection process.
In the past two years, union leaders organized large turnouts at mass meetings to help Mayor David Bowers and Commissioner of Revenue-elect Marsha Fielder win the party's nomination.
In both cases, the candidates favored by party leaders - Councilman Howard Musser and Assistant Treasurer David Anderson - were defeated at the meetings.
There were complaints that some Musser and Anderson supporters left the mass meetings because of parking problems and the long delay before the voting. Musser and Anderson supporters contended they had a broad base of party support and could have won in a primary.
Bowers said he supports the party's decision.
"I think it will provide some excitement to the campaign. It's going to be a very open process," he said. "Sometimes you have to mix it up, and I think this will do that."
Bowers said he sees no incongruity between his support for a primary and his success in winning his party's nomination at a mass meeting.
"I think it is a very smart move. There was just a feeling that we needed a change," he said.
The party's executive committee made the decision. Tinsley said there was not time to wait until the party's reorganizational meeting Dec. 7. The deadline for notifying the state Democratic Party is Dec. 1.
Primary elections for city councils and other local offices are rare in Virginia now. But they were commonplace for Democrats for many years before the Republican party emerged as a viable political force.
The last Democratic primary for Roanoke City Council was in 1968.
Taxpayers will have to pay the estimated $17,000 to $19,000 cost for the primary. It will be conducted with the same rules as regular elections - except that only Democrats are suppose to vote. There is nothing, however, to bar Republicans and independents from voting.
Before the decision, Tinsley said he talked with three of the four Democratic incumbents - James Harvey, William White and Musser - and found they favor a primary or are willing to accept it if they seek new terms.
"The only way I would run again is if there is a primary," said Musser.
Musser has not decided if he will seek a new term, but he saidTuesday that a primary might make his decision easier and make him more inclined to run.
A primary could enable Musser and Harvey to return to the party and help heal the wounds of the past two years without the risk of their rejection at a mass meeting.
Musser and Harvey refused to support Bowers in the mayoral race. And Musser ran as an independent last month, opposing Fielder for commissioner of revenue.
White said he would have preferred a mass meeting because he is familiar with that method of candidate selection, but he supports the decision for a primary.
White said the winners in the primary will have to run back-to-back campaigns, but that will offer them more opportunities to get their message to voters.
Councilman John Edwards said he was not contacted by Tinsley, but he said there are pros and cons to a primary election.
Edwards said he believes it makes sense to hold a primary if there is high interest in a race and several hundred people are expected for a mass meeting.
"At certain levels of interest, you are better off with a primary. It makes it more convenient for voters," he said.
Edwards said he has not decided whether he will seek the party's nomination to run in May. He was appointed to serve until June 30, filling the vacancy created by Beverly Fitzpatrick Jr.'s resignation.
If Edwards wants to remain on council after June 30, he will have to run for the remaining two years in Fitzpatrick's term or seek one of the seats with a four-year term.
Sam Garrison, who is seeking the party chairmanship, said he supports a primary as long as it is made clear that only Democrats are welcome.
Garrison said a primary will increase the candidates' campaign costs, but it will open up the nomination process.
Tinsley said a primary will enable Democrats to avoid the logistical problems and hard feelings that often accompany mass meetings.
The party is not equipped to accommodate large crowds at mass meetings such as the one that attracted nearly 2,000 to choose the nominee for mayor last year, Tinsley said.
Keywords:
POLITICS
by CNB