THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, May 19, 1996 TAG: 9605180107
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 06 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Editorial
SOURCE: John Pruitt
LENGTH: Medium: 72 lines
If I'd been a voter in the Nansemond Borough, I'd have cast my ballots for Richard R. Harris for City Council and Arthur D. Smith for School Board.
If I'd been voting in the Sleepy Hole Borough, my votes would have gone to Marian ``Bea'' Rogers for City Council and Robert M. Brooks for School Board.
As it turned out, neither Harris, nor Smith, nor Brooks won. Winners in the Nansemond Borough were Leroy Bennett for City Council and John R. Riddick Sr. for School Board.
In the Sleepy Hole Borough, Rogers was returned to office, and James E. Perkinson won the School Board seat.
The question raised - actually, just fortified - by this election is: Who cares? Here we had elections in the two boroughs leading - or expected to lead - city growth, and an amazingly low number of registered voters turned out to have their say.
What does that say, not only about the apparent lack of interest in these elections, but about the interest of residents in their city in general?
It says: despite all the moaning and groaning about how ``they'' run the city and the schools, a great number of voters are willing to leave the choices to others.
But be certain of one thing: those same people are unlikely to diminish their complaining.
Just a couple years back, all the buzz was that Suffolk voters - not just members of City Council - should be involved in selecting School Board members. We live in a democracy, elected-board proponents argued, and board seats should not be political favors.
Fine. Then let voters prove their agreement by voting, instead of giving less than 32 percent of the registered voters 100 percent of the say.
The great benefit of the one-person, one-vote concept is that no one's vote is more valuable than any other's. That formula changes only when the vote is forfeited, when the owner decides not to act.
The election results are not disastrous, though some are certainly puzzling.
Mr. Harris, reacting to his loss, cited his ``abrasive'' manner. ``I rub some people the wrong way,'' he said.
Make that a lot of people. So many, indeed, that he just couldn't muster enough people to come out in his support.
To his credit, Mr. Harris never fudges where he stands. But he's about as diplomatic as radio shock-jock Howard Stern, and Mr. Harris too often gives the impression that he calls 'em as he sees 'em, voter concerns aside.
Don't look for him to retreat quietly on July 1. He shouldn't. Mr. Harris has the city at heart, and his experience on council should make him an even better advocate for responsible and responsive government.
Who knows? The humbling loss could even round some rough edges.
It'll be interesting to see how Mr. Bennett, now chairman of the ineffective Redevelopment and Housing Authority, functions on council. Pray that he brings ideas about how to fix the SRHA.
As for Mr. Riddick, suffice it to say his defeat of School Board Chairman Arthur D. Smith is about as regressive as replacing school buses with horse-drawn wagons.
Mr. Smith, a leader with a clear vision for Suffolk schools, lost because he's white. The Nansemond Borough was created to give blacks a strong voice, and it's clear that voting was along racial lines. The loss, however, goes far beyond borough boundaries.
Mr. Perkinson is certainly qualified to be on the School Board. The choice between him and Robert M. Brooks was, in my view, a tossup.
There is no question that Ms. Rogers merited re-election.
I hope the newcomers to the campaign process stay involved. They offered a lot of good ideas that shouldn't die with their election hopes. by CNB