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

DATE: TUESDAY, November 15, 1994                   TAG: 9411150102
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B-1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: TODD JACKSON STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: ROCKY MOUNT                                LENGTH: Medium

'95 WILL BE BUSY VOTING YEAR IN FRANKLIN

If Franklin County voters thought this year's U.S. Senate and 5th District congressional races were overkill, just wait till next year.

Unless something changes soon, the county will elect all Board of Supervisors and School Board members in 1995.

That's a total of 15 people.

Throw in races for four constitutional officers (sheriff, treasurer, commissioner of revenue and commonwealth's attorney), and three General Assembly seats (held by Sen. Virgil Goode and Dels. Allen Dudley and Ward Armstrong) and Franklin County residents will elect 22 people next November.

Sheriff W.Q. "Quint" Overton, who hasn't made a decision on whether he'll seek another term in 1995, started counting up all the races and joked: "I think I'll retire and run for the School Board."

Voters approved a referendum calling for elected school boards last week.

The Board of Supervisors, foreseeing the situation with elected school boards, adopted an ordinance in September calling for staggered terms in the election districts of the seven supervisors. However, the staggering will start after the 1995 election, according to County Attorney Jim Jefferson and Registrar Peggy Allman.

Jefferson said the board has not approved a specific timetable, but the Franklin County Electoral Board will draw lots to decide which supervisors will serve two-year terms and which will serve four years. The Electoral Board's drawing of the staggered terms can take place prior to the 1995 election, but it would not take effect until 1997, Jefferson said.

The process for electing the eight-member School Board is less clear to Jefferson and Allman, but a Virginia School Boards Association synopsis of state law reads: "At the first election for members of the school board, so many members shall be elected as there are members to be elected at the regular elections for the governing body."

"The whole intent of the [state] statute is to parallel the schedule with the Board of Supervisors," said Roanoke County Attorney Paul Mahoney.

Roanoke County sought and received special legislation to allow the election of three School Board members last week in a year when no supervisor terms were up.

by CNB