Martinsville Bulletin, Inc.
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Brenda Campbell of Ridgeway, president of the Virginia Federation of Republican Women, watches returns at the Dutch Inn. (Bulletin photos) |
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
By DEBBIE HALL - Bulletin Staff Writer
With Republican gains possible in the House of Delegates, the membership might change but the issues won’t, local delegates said Tuesday night.
“Balancing the budget is always a priority,” said incumbent 14th District Del. Danny Marshall, R-Danville, who defeated Seward Anderson, a former Danville mayor, in Tuesday’s election.
Marshall said Tuesday night he is working to draft bills aimed at helping “this part of the state” and considering ways to balance the budget.
“We don’t have the option of borrowing” funds, as national politicians do, or passing a budget that is not balanced, Marshall said.
He attributed his victory Tuesday to the groundwork laid in 2007. With that victory, “we started working hard, anticipating this night,” Marshall said. “We did a lot of things to try and get support.”
He was assigned to committees that help further economic development in Southside and also serves on the Tobacco Commission. In those posts, Marshall said he has worked to ensure local projects receive funding.
Adding to those accomplishments, “we ran a positive campaign outlining what we wanted to do,” Marshall said. Voters took that message to heart and responded by believing in him and casting a ballot for him, he said.
Anderson declined telephone interviews. In a prepared statement, he congratulated Marshall “on his successful campaign.”
Anderson stated that his own campaign “appropriately centered on our economy in Southside, and how we are going to best bring jobs and new industry to our area. The debate was spirited at times, and rightfully so.
“These are trying times, and Southside will need a partner in Richmond now more than ever if we are to create new jobs that will allow our families to pursue their dreams. It is my sincere hope that this campaign has served to elevate the expectations of our community,” Anderson wrote, and he urged residents to “expect that our state government be as committed to bringing new jobs to Southside as we are and we must demand that policy going forward reflect that.”
Anderson also urged Marshall “to pursue the responsible investments in education and economic development we so badly need in Southside.”
Incumbent 16th district Del. Don Merricks, R-Danville, who ran unopposed, said that while the state leadership has shifted, “the issues will be the same. What will make it different” will be Republicans in the top slots in the state.
Bob McDonnell won the gubernatorial contest, soundly defeating Creigh Deeds, a Bath County Democrat, while incumbent Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling successfully defended his post against Democratic challenger Jody Wagner.
“It’s one thing to win and another thing to perform,” Merricks said, but he anticipates many bills aimed at economic development will be introduced in January.
“The hot topics are jobs and economic development, and one thing that impresses me is” McDonnell’s plan to either visit, or have Bolling visit, an economically depressed area each month, Merricks said. Either will help underscore the problem and ensure Southside is not forgotten, he added.
He was not surprised by the sweeping GOP gains Tuesday.
“Government is supposed to be of the people, by the people and for the people,” Merricks said. When the voting populace feels they are not being adequately represented, change is imminent, he said. |
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