DATE: Thursday, June 12, 1997               TAG: 9706120512

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B5   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY WARREN FISKE AND MATTHEW DOLAN, STAFF WRITERS 

                                            LENGTH:   74 lines

DEMOCRATS WASTE NO TIME IN BLASTING GOP'S EARLEY THE ATTORNEY GENERAL CANDIDATE IS BEING CALLED ``A LOUD VOICE OF THE FAR RIGHT.''

Democrats allowed state Sen. Mark L. Earley one night's sleep after his victory in the Republican attorney general primary before branding him on Wednesday as the ``hand-picked candidate'' of Christian conservatives.

William G. Dolan III, Earley's opponent in this fall's general election, began a radio advertising campaign in South Hampton Roads Wednesday calling Earley ``a loud voice of the far right.''

``He's the hand-picked candidate of the narrow right wing of the Republican party,'' Dolan says on the 60-second ad, which notes Earley's opposition to abortion and the state lottery. ``. . . It's time for you and me - the silent majority of Virginians - to take back our government.''

Republicans quickly denounced the ad as an appeal to religious biases. ``It's quite obvious that the Democratic ticket is going to run the same sort of mean-spirited, bigoted campaign that they ran four years ago,'' said Chris LaCivita, executive director of the Virginia Republican Party.

Earley, a former missionary, relied on a network of Christian Conservative voters to post his victory in a four-way race for the GOP attorney general nomination.

Evangelicals have been indebted to the Chesapeake Republican for pushing through long-stalled legislation last winter that requires parents to be notified before abortions can be performed on teen-agers.

Earley, 42, received a $25,000 contribution from religious broadcaster M.G. ``Pat'' Robertson. Other influential evangelicals who endorsed his candidacy included Gary Bauer, president of the Family Research Council in Washington; and Walt Barbee, president of the Family Foundation based in Richmond.

Tying Republican candidates to the religious right has been sometimes successful for Democrats in recent statewide elections. But Earley, who has also taken a lead role in promoting welfare reform and has compiled a moderate record on labor issues, may defy easy characterization.

``It's going to be a tough sell if Dolan's going to argue Earley is owned by Pat Robertson,'' said Larry Sabato, a University of Virginia political scientist. ``Swing voters may not buy it.''

Democratic gubernatorial nominee Donald S. Beyer said his ticket will try to portray Earley as ``out of the mainstream.'' Beyer added, ``This is not about religious beliefs or faith. It is about essential questions of philosophy and leadership for years to come.''

Earley could not be contacted Wednesday afternoon to comment on the ad. He spent the day touring the state with his two Republican running mates: gubernatorial candidate James S. Gilmore III and lieutenant governor nominee John H. Hager. The trio, joined by Gov. George F. Allen, held a morning news conference at Norfolk International Airport.

``I can tell you that I can't wait to get on the battlefield and engage the Democrats for November,'' Earley told a enthusiastic crowd of 50 supporters.

Saying he now had the support from a ``tremendously unified party,'' Earley thanked several church-based supporters and financial backers again Wednesday.

Earley described his grassroots support as ``very diverse,'' acknowledging that he also received strong support from Hampton Roads' sizable Filipino-American community. As a missionary, Earley spent two years in the Philippines in the late 1970s.

The GOP ticket pledged to carry out reforms in criminal justice education that Allen has initiated over the last 3 1/2 years.

Gilmore dismissed as ``baloney'' efforts to characterize the GOP ticket as extreme and link it to the religious right.

``I think when you have all of this experience on our ticket, well name calling, it's really not going to work,'' he said. ILLUSTRATION: Photo

MOTOYA NAKAMURA/The Virginian-Pilot

Gov. George Allen, right, cheers on new Republican candidates at a

Norfolk press conference. They are, from left, John Hager (in

wheelchair), lieutenant governor aspirant; Mark Earley, running for

attorney general; and Jim Gilmore, campaigning for governor. KEYWORDS: REPUBLICAN PARTY CANDIDATE VIRGINIA ATTORNEY

GENERAL RACE

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