Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, June 15, 1994 TAG: 9406160029
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By MARGARET EDDS STAFF WRITER NOTE: lede
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Robb overwhelmed three opponents in the first test of his bid to salvage his battered reputation and win a second term in the Senate.
The turnout in the Democratic primary was among Virginia's lowest ever, however, leaving in doubt how much Robb's hand has been strengthened for the bruising contest this fall.
Robb will face Iran-Contra figure Oliver North, who is the GOP nominee, and two independent challengers in a November race that promises to be a political free-for-all and a national media circus. Former state Attorney General Marshall Coleman is preparing to enter the fray Thursday, and former Gov. Douglas Wilder filed petitions Tuesday to appear on the ballot. Both will run as independents.
Robb, a 54-year-old former governor, withstood allegations by opponents that he is morally unfit for office. He captured 58 percent of the approximately 267,000 votes cast.
Accompanied by his wife, his three daughters and a score of Democratic officeholders, Robb told supporters at a Fairfax County victory celebration that he is ready for a tough campaign this fall. ``We understand the challenge is enormous,'' he said.
He'll be talking about civil rights, equal rights, voting rights, human rights and reproductive rights, Robb told the cheering crowd. ``These are the kinds of issues that define us as a party.''
State Sen. Virgil Goode of Rocky Mount, who had presented himself as a scandal-free alternative to Robb, won 34 percent of the vote, much of it in rural and Western Virginia.
Conceding defeat around 8:40 p.m., Goode said: ``We were outspent 10-to-1, but we were a lot closer than 10-to-1 in the final vote ... There's no doubt in my mind that our campaign had the most spirit and the best campaign workers anyone can find.''
Richmond lawyer Sylvia Clute, who was backed by the National Organization for Women and ran a nontraditional, all-volunteer campaign, had 6 percent of the vote. Nancy Spannaus, a follower of political extremist Lyndon LaRouche, trailed with 2 percent.
Despite Robb's 2-1 victory margin, political scientists cautioned that the turnout - about 9 percent of 2.9 million registered voters - was too small to conclude that Robb has been forgiven by voters for problems involving his personal life.
The turnout was only slightly higher, percentage-wise, than in 1970, when only 7 percent of registered voters turned out for a Democratic senatorial primary, setting a century low.
``It's only a first step, and only a very tiny step, in Robb's political rehabilitation,'' said Robert Holsworth, a political scientist at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond.
And Larry Sabato, a University of Virginia political scientist, cautioned, ``If this were a regular year, he'd receive a bounce from this. But this is just the last preliminary in a four-way campaign extraordinaire.''
Even so, the win was a sweet moment for a politician who has spent much of the last three years battling allegations involving drug use and infidelity.
Robb racked up heavy margins in most of the state's urban and suburban regions. He led Goode by 4-1 in Fairfax, by better than 3-1 in Virginia Beach, and by better than 5-1 in Norfolk. Goode broke even in Roanoke County, however, and trailed by about 1,500 votes in Roanoke. He won his home county by 7,974 votes to Robb's 511.
``If character is forged in the hot furnace of adversity, then Chuck and Lynda know what it's like ... I think Virginia Democrats will rally around Chuck Robb to defeat Oliver North in November,'' predicted Lt. Gov. Don Beyer, a Democrat. Given some predictions that Robb might have won only 50 percent of the vote, ``I think he has to be pleased,'' Beyer said.
Throughout the primary contest, Robb played to his strengths - spending as much time as possible in Washington, focusing on issues and parading out a series of endorsements by prominent Democrats and Democratic interest groups.
When opponents questioned his character, he deftly turned the debate back to experience.
Countering the claims of opponents that ``you can't name three things Chuck Robb has done,'' he ran a series of fast-paced TV advertisements citing accomplishments in working for a balanced federal budget, promoting women's rights and public school education, and fighting crime.
Trailing badly in fund raising, his opponents appeared on television only sporadically.
Goode mounted the most sustained effort, accusing Robb of sexual improprieties with ``young girls'' and proximity to drugs in ads that ran in Richmond, Hampton Roads and Roanoke. The ads never appeared in the Northern Virginia television market, however, because Goode ran short of cash.
Clute's paid TV exposure was limited to a $1,500 purchase.
When she began campaigning a year ago, Clute was viewed as a potentially threatening challenger. Although she was short on political experience, her gender and her leadership in changing state inheritance and property laws involving women were in contrast to Robb's alleged dalliances with young women.
But the lack of political acumen proved too great a hurdle for Clute. Except for an occasional lapse, she refused to attack Robb on character issues.
Goode, 47, entered the race two months ago. His inexperience in statewide campaigning and his sometimes shaky grasp of national issues were telling.
Seemingly uncomfortable with negative campaigning, Goode was at first reluctant to attack Robb. By the time he changed tactics, it seemed to be too late to galvanize voters. In addition, his rural conservatism on issues ranging from gun control to women's rights was a handicap with the large mass of urban and suburban Democratic voters.
Keywords:
POLITICS
by CNB