[Posted Feb. 6, 2008]

Incumbents, Challengers
Gear Up For Local Races

Leonard E. Colvin
Chief Reporter
New Journal & Guide
 
       With all the clamor caused by the national political race for president, very little attention is being directed at the upcoming regional races for city council and school board members.
       With the exception of Virginia Beach, all of the Hampton Roads communities seem to have contracted council mania. School board elections will be held May 6. Officials at the Beach, noting low-voter turnout, switched its election to the general election date in November, hoping that the contest for the presidency will spur more interest among local voters.
       Election officials in Norfolk, Chesapeake and other communities say they have been readying application packets for challengers and incumbents who are interested in running for the council and school board. Norfolk is the only community in Hampton Roads which still appoints its school board members.
       Politicians, especially those seeking to unseat incumbents up for reelection in the spring, want to drum up as much interest in the council and school board elections as possible to increase turnout.
       But for a brief period next week,  the council mania races may take a backseat to Virginia Democratic and the Republican primary contests.

Virginia Beach

       In Virginia Beach, details of how the stars will align for the three incumbents on council and anyone who seeks to unseat them,  will have time since the election is going to be held in November and not in May.
       Four  seats are up for reelection in the Beach: an at-large seat, Centerville, Kempsville and the Mayor.  Already  there are signals that all three of the incumbents, including Mayor Meyera Oberndorf will have a challenger.
       Carl Wright, the chair of the African American Political Action Committee (AAPAC), says that his organization is anxious to apply a formula it has devised which may help it elect an African American to the Virginia Beach City Council for the first time in a decade.
       Last November Wright said the AAPAC had a hand in helping to elect newly elected Congressman  Democratic  Joseph  Bouchard in the 83rd District

   “We are carefully interviewing and looking at a number of candidates our group could support for one of those seats,” said Mr. Wright. “We are going to work not only on looking at the candidate who can best support our community. We want to get the community out to vote  in large  numbers.”
       Of the 433,033 people who live in the state’s largest city, there are some 100,000 African Americans who call Virginia Beach home.  Blacks make up about 30 percent of the voting age population and Wright says that his organization will be exerting a full court press to register people to vote in all of the contested districts among African Americans and other communities who want to support their cause.
       “There are a lot  of whites who sympathize with the fact that there is no minority representation on city council,” said Wright. “I think we have a lot of allies who will work to help us change that this fall.”

Portsmouth

       Two years ago,  Charles Whitehurst abruptly halted his reelection bid for council. Whitehurst said he regretted that move and is seeking to reclaim his political career by seeking election to council this spring. Whitehurst said he has been talking to voters and getting a feel for their discontent with the current leadership on the governing panel of the city.
       “I have been listening and people are saying that the current council does not listen to them or talk to them,” said Whitehurst.  “Running this city should be a partnership between the council and the people. That is not happening.”

       Mayor James Holley has been on council for 12 years and is seeking reelection.  So is first-term Ray Smith and Elizabeth M. Psimas. As the time gets closer to the filing deadline, there will be a clearer list of candidates who will seek to unseat the incumbents.
       One political watcher, who asked to remain unidentified, said there are a number of people who may be “timidly” contemplating running in hope of ousting Mayor Holley and Ray Smith. Mayor Holley has a powerful political machine in the city and may be the hardest to oust.

Norfolk

       In Norfolk only two members of council are up for  reelection this spring; Super ward representatives Barclay Winn (6) and Daun Hester (7).  A spokesman for the  Norfolk City Registrar’s office says that no one has filed to challenge either of the incumbents. But underneath the quiet surface of Norfolk political waters is a very nervous undercurrent of intrigue centered around who will emerge to challenge Councilwoman Hester.
       Reportedly, incumbents have their ear low to the ground to compare rumors with facts.
        During the course of 2007  Mrs. Hester weathered an almost constant barrage of media reports which reported she knew about misused funds set aside for the Huntersville Community Development Corporation; underutilized profitability efforts at the Attucks Theater; and encountered a conflict of interest related to a consulting group she ran that was connected to Norfolk Public Schools.
       Hester’s supporters, even Councilman Paul Riddick, say all of the negative media reports may have been engineered by fellow council members bent on making her damaged political goods.
       Further, Hester says the negative press and other efforts to destroy her political standing are aimed not only at her political goals this year, but down the road.
       It is no secret that Hester may run for Mayor in 2010.
       “There are some people who do not want me to achieve that goal,” she told the New Journal and Guide recently. “So if they can ruin my reputation and my ability to raise money and support in the community, they can hurt my chances of being the first black female mayor.”
       But Hester says she feels confident about her chance of securing her seat this May, and working to build a city-wide coalition for a winning mayoral campaign in 2010.  She said she can tout the increase in housing in Wards 3 and 5 which together make up Super Ward 7.
       “Look at what is going on in Church Street with the new office complexes and housing,” she said. “There are a lot of other projects in our community I can talk about. I think I have a very solid record on council. But the bottom line is what the voters think. I think I have a lot of support.”     

Franklin

       Down in Franklin, Virginia, four seats are up for reelection: Mayor James P. Councill III, who will run at large; Joseph J. Scislowicz from Ward 1;  Charles  A. Wrenn  from Ward 2; and Vice Mayor Raystine  D. Johnson from Ward 4.
       The only challenger to step forward, Greg McLemore, a Franklin businessman, is going to take on seven-term Mayor Council, who McLemore says it is time for the incumbent to be replaced.
       “It’s like a dynasty,” he said.  “The city has not progressed at all since he has been in office.  I am running on economic empowerment,  improving our schools, affordable housing and crime prevention.”
       McLemore said the issue which prods him to run most is the cost of utilities. He said that the city-owned utility company is unable to provide affordable electric rates to residents
       “There are people paying more for their utilities than their mortgages,” said McLemore, who hasn’t run for political office before.  “I think we need new leadership starting at the top.”
 

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