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

DATE: SUNDAY, June 11, 1995                   TAG: 9506120077
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: C-1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: RICHARD FOSTER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

VOTERS GET NO CHOICE

Unless their nominating committee can find a candidate to oppose Republican Del. Steve Newman before 5 p.m. Tuesday - the deadline to get on the fall ballot - voters will have no choice and Republicans hoping for a majority in the Senate this year will have a free seat.

Ray Perkins, chairman of the Lynchburg Democratic Party, said one person was expected to run, but at the last minute, "For reasons beyond our control they were unwilling to pursue it."

He's confident a candidate will come forward before the deadline, but other area Democrats didn't sound as hopeful.

Bedford County Democratic Party Chairman Michael Mays, who is a member of the nominating committee, said, "We're still talking to people, but as time runs out, [the pool of candidates] is shrinking down. Most people are deciding not to run."

Mays chalks up the party's difficulties in finding a candidate to longtime Democratic Sen. Elliot Schewel's surprise retirement this year. "When Schewel decided not to re-run, we hadn't really prepared anybody else to run," he said.

Even if Democrats can't find anyone to oppose Newman, it won't be a tragedy to give one free seat to the Republicans, he said. "We've got several other contested [Senate] seats [statewide] and I'm confident we're going to take those back."

Newman could not be reached for comment Saturday, but he and other state Republicans have said that, in the heavily conservative areas of Bedford County and Lynchburg, they could easily defeat most any Democratic opponent.

The Republicans have 18 senators in the General Assembly and need 21 for a majority.