THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, May 4, 1995 TAG: 9505040359
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TONY WHARTON AND ALEX MARSHALL, STAFF WRITERS
LENGTH: Long : 150 lines
With the entire General Assembly up for grabs this fall, and the Republicans looking to grab it, contests are starting to shape up in Hampton Roads for the House of Delegates and the state Senate.
Statewide, the GOP wants to follow up its success in the governor's office by winning control of the legislature. Locally, several Republicans want to be part of that by defeating veteran Democrats.
To get there, however, Republicans in four Senate districts across the state face a primary first. In Virginia Beach, retired naval officer Ed Schrock announced he is running for the 7th District seat. He'll face Wallace ``Wally'' Erb on June 13 for the chance to run against against state Sen. Clarence A. ``Clancy'' Holland.
In two other primaries this spring, Democratic challengers will face sitting delegates. Levi Willis Jr. will challenge Del. Jerrauld C. Jones in the 89th District.
Others are gearing up for the fall:
In Norfolk, motel owner James W. ``Jay'' Sherrill Jr. is aiming at the top Democrat, Thomas W. Moss Jr., speaker of the House of Delegates. Realtor Thelma S. Drake is running once more against Del. Howard E. Copeland, D-87th District.
When Ed Schrock announced his campaign for Holland's 7th District state Senate seat, he mostly ignored the fact that he has a Republican rival for the nomination.
``I think if we can do this thing right, and we are, we ought to be able to take this seat,'' said Schrock, 54, who has retired from the Navy and a stock brokerage and is devoting all his time to the campaign.
Schrock must first win a Republican primary against Wallace ``Wally'' Erb, 50, a systems engineer for Unisys. Schrock believes he will have no trouble doing that.
In his announcement rally at the Clarion Hotel on Bonney Road, Schrock immediately began campaigning against Holland.
``I think I'm a vote for change,'' Schrock said. ``Clancy Holland will say things in an election year that he will renege on when he goes back to his liberal ways. When I say I'm going to do something, I will do it.''
The 7th Senate District, entirely within Virginia Beach, runs north and east from Providence Road in Kempsville to include Pembroke and Bayside.
Schrock said he has an extensive record of community service in Virginia Beach, working on behalf of public libraries, civic leagues, the schools and the Chamber of Commerce.
He voiced the same conservative themes that have put many other Republicans from Virginia Beach into the legislature in recent years. .
``My opponent voted for the $17 million lottery building,'' he said. ``I don't know why they need that. He clearly wants to keep lottery money in Richmond under the control of himself and the bureaucrats.''
Schrock's wife, Judy, is a kindergarten teacher in Norfolk public schools. They have one son, Randy.
Holland, who does not face a primary, emphasized health care, education and state finances when he began his campaign for a fourth term.
The Virginia Beach family physician, 65, is a former city councilman and mayor in Virginia Beach, and was first elected to the state Senate in 1983.
In this year's session, Holland helped negotiate a compromise bill on welfare reform, and sponsored a bill to lift the tolls on the Virginia Beach-Norfolk Expressway by July 1. Gov. George Allen later amended the bill to lift the tolls June 1.
That episode and others, Holland said, indicate the polarized relations between the Democrat-controlled legislature and Allen, a Republican.
``The atmosphere just in the last two years has come to where there seem to be lines drawn between the executive branch and the legislative branch, where before there always seemed to be a working relationship,'' he said.
That sort of relationship, he said, jeopardizes efforts to confront critical issues, particularly college budgets and tuition. Surveys show that Virginia's colleges and universities are among the most expensive in the nation to attend, Holland said, and the state's contributions to its schools rank it near the bottom of the states.
``You know, that plays into attracting businesses to Virginia,'' Holland said.
Jay Sherrill, a businessman and past candidate for the Norfolk City Council, is opposing one of the most powerful figures in the legislature, 88th District incumbent Tom Moss.
Sherrill, 38, is one of the principal organizers of the Old Dominion Merchants and Business Association, and also is involved with the Norfolk Federation of Business Districts, the Wards Corner Optimist Club and several other organizations.
The 88th District is entirely within Norfolk. It runs from Ghent and downtown, northeast through Colonial Place, Lafayette and Little Creek, to just east of Chesapeake Boulevard.
Sherrill's campaign argues that Moss' power benefits special interests more than regular neighborhoods.
``It's a matter of someone who has been there for too long and has grown out of touch with the grass roots,'' said Rick Sanford, Sherrill's campaign manager. ``That's where we'll get our support.''
This is the second time Sherrill has opposed a powerful incumbent. Last year, Sherrill unsuccessfully opposed Paul Fraim, now mayor, for the City Council.
Sherrill owns the Old Dominion Inn. He is a graduate of North Carolina State University. The Republican nomination Sherrill seeks will be decided at a mass meeting May 20 at Granby High School.
If elected, Sherrill promises to work to reduce crime, reform welfare and improve schools.
He also supports eliminating the ``BPOL,'' a tax levied by localities on businesses, saying it stifles growth.
In 1993, Thelma Drake came within 500 votes of capturing Howard Copeland's 87th District seat in the House of Delegates. This year, she vows, those votes will be hers.
``I did too well last time not to run again,'' said Drake, 45, who will kick off her campaign Friday. ``It was very, very close for a first run. We're going to run a better organized campaign this time, still grass roots, but with a bit more polish to it.''
The 87th District covers large parts of Bayview and Ocean View in Norfolk and a small slice of northwestern Virginia Beach.
Drake said she is already hearing voices of support from people who did not vote for her last time. She gained attention in 1993 with her professional, aggressive campaign against Copeland.
``I think the issues are pretty much the same this time - crime, education, taxes and spending, and reducing the size of government,'' Drake said. Since the last election, she said, Copeland has cast several votes she intends to bring up in the campaign.
``I certainly would have supported returning the lottery funds to the localities,'' Drake said. ``Howard did not do that. It was pretty much a party-line vote.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photos
Schrock
Erb
Holland
Sherrill
Moss
Drake
Copeland
KEYWORDS: HOUSE OF DELEGATES RACE VIRGINIA SENATE RACE CANDIDATE
PRIMARY by CNB