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

DATE: WEDNESDAY, January 11, 1995                   TAG: 9501130020
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV1   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: BRIAN KELLEY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG                                LENGTH: Medium

GENERAL ASSEMBLY BIDS COMING SOON

On the same day his colleagues voted him another year as Montgomery County Board of Supervisors chairman, Larry Linkous confirmed he will not seek re-election.

Linkous said Monday he is considering a challenge to state Del. Jim Shuler, D-Blacksburg, but isn't ready to announce plans. He will not seek a second term as the District F member of the Board of Supervisors.

This will be Linkous' second year as chairman. The board also chose its oldest member, Supervisor Joe Stewart of Elliston, who turns 80 later this month, to be vice chairman.

A former Democrat turned Republican, Linkous first said in October he was considering a challenge to Shuler, a veterinarian and House freshman.

Linkous, 41, is a Montgomery County native whom Hethwood-area voters elected to the Board of Supervisors in 1991 over two-term Republican incumbent Todd Solberg. Linkous is an auctioneer and owns a catering business with his wife, Charlotte.

Solberg said Tuesday he would not seek his old seat.

Meanwhile, another key New River Valley General Assembly race is about to heat up.

Gary Weddle, a Radford clothing store owner, and Jimmy Turk, a Radford lawyer, both have set news conferences to announce their bids for the Republican nomination to challenge state Sen. Madison Marye, D-Shawsville, in November.

Weddle, a former Radford City Council member and unsuccessful congressional candidate, is to announce Thursday; Turk, who has never held elected office, is to announce on Tuesday. Both have been laying the groundwork for their campaigns for months.

Another New River Valley Republican, real-estate broker Pat Cupp of Blacksburg, also is considering a run for the nomination.

Marye, 69, has said he will not announce his intentions until after the General Assembly adjourns Feb. 25. He is serving his fifth four-year term and enjoys good health after recovering from a serious heart attack in late 1992.

The 39th Senate District includes Montgomery, Grayson, Smyth and parts of Pulaski and Carroll counties.

Keywords:
POLITICS

by CNB