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The General Assembly elections produced a predictable result with some stunning surprises along the way. As someone who worked for a lobbyist at the last session of the General Assembly, the surprises involved legislators I knew. Sen. Jane Woods of Fairfax lost her seat by 38 votes. The difference was a right wing independent that siphoned off voters who might have normally voted for Woods. There will be a recount, but the result is likely to be the same. Sen. Woods will be leaving the Senate after eight years. This is a victory for Democrats in that they took a Republican seat. It is a loss for Virginia, however, when a voice of moderation is lost in the majority party. Sen. Woods was a feisty, down-to-earth woman who actually read and studied legislation. She was the resident expert in health care issues for Republicans and was poised to take the chairmanship of the Joint Commission on Health Care. With Sen. Woods, you always knew that when health care was involved, she would carefully weigh all sides, searching for a common sense solution that solved people's problems. The problem with the current administration is not that it does not care. Gov. Gilmore cares very much about improving the lot of all Virginians. He tries to keep it secret from the powerful right wing of his party, but he is a "compassionate conservative" in the vein of G.W. The problem is that the administration (and the Republican Party in general) tends to be knee jerk pro-business conservative. I firmly believe that health care cannot be treated like a business since it deals with the very welfare and quality of life for citizens. However, the goal of universal access to health care is not contrary to Republican principles. It is a challenge to explain this to people who do not understand the concept. Jane Woods was a person who understood this concept and had the ability to explain it to fellow legislators in a way that they would understand. Who will take the mantle of the Joint Commission now remains to be seen, but no one will be able to match Sen. Woods' qualifications. Senator Stanley Walker of Norfolk also received a stinging defeat at the polls. He has been in the Senate since 1971 and before that, he spent eight years in the House. He was the Senator with the most seniority, and he was an old-time Democrat. I met him during the HMO reform fight last year, and I admired his passion for the subject even if it was politically designed to embarrass Republicans. He was a likeable old man, but he also appeared to be drunk on power. As Senate President Pro Tempore and Chairman of the Finance Committee, which writes the budget, he had reason to be. Walker spent $58,000 of campaign funds on office expenses, did not pay his business tax, and used campaign funds to rent a Mercedes. Even in defeat, Sen. Walker saw nothing wrong with using campaign funds for those reasons. It was not illegal, but it certainly flunked the smell test. Combined with his age of 76, the voters told Sen. Walker to retire. In the House, the biggest surprise has to be the defeat of Del. Gladys Keating who has been in the legislature since 1977. Her challenger had tried to oust her twice before and failed. For him, the third time was the charm. I had the pleasure of dining with Del. Keating and her husband during the session. She was known as "Grandma Gladys" among Delegates and lobbyists for her grandma-esque demeanor that hid a lady with nerves of steel. She was the chairwoman of the House Committee on Corporations, Institutions, and Banking. She figured that she had beaten her opponent twice before and would do so again, but the voters had another idea. They wanted "Grandma Gladys" to stay at home. Many incumbents survived strong challenges. Sen. John Edwards of Roanoke was reelected to a seat that has seen a new occupant four times in twenty years. House Minority Leader Dick Cranwell of Roanoke also survived a repeat challenge from a Republican who nearly unseated him in 1997. Sen. John Watkins of Chesterfield triumphed against a very negative campaign by an independent. A rising star within the Republican Party, Del. McDonnell of Virginia Beach, fought off a challenge by popular Democratic sheriff Frank Drew. Also surviving was Del. Bob Marshall of Prince William County. If anyone remembers the fight in 1998 pitting the governor against Michelle Finn who was trying to follow her husband's wishes by removing life support. Del. Marshall was the person who took up the Crusade to "save" Hugh Finn from being "murdered" by his wife. Privately, legislators and lobbyists view Marshall as an embarrassment and a nut. Luckily, his ideas received scant attention, even from Republicans who tend to let him spout off so that they can vote him down and move on. That his district returned him to Richmond with 61% of the vote makes you wonder what kind of people lives in Prince William County. Another closely watched race concerned an open seat in the 99th district, which covers the Northern Neck region around the Chesapeake. A sleepy, conservative region known for its fishermen was certain to fall into the Republican column. Or so thought Henry Lane Hull, age 57, who felt that voters would elect him for simply being one of the anointed of the GOP. Democrat Albert Pollard, age 32, had other plans as he crisscrossed the district for months, meeting voters, and sharing his ideas on representation in Richmond. He rarely mentioned his party affiliation, and he left Election Day with a 53% majority. Despite Governor Gilmore's cries of "Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last of Democratic obstruction!" the result was not the earth-shattering revelation the press made it out to be. If the Democrats had regained complete control, that would have been a shock. After all, the Republicans merely kept the status quo in the Senate. All is not lost for the humbled Democrats. They need to regroup and remember what they are all about as a party, and then go back before the people of Virginia not for the sake of power but for a little known thing called ideas. |
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