Matthews vying for Howell's seat - Fredericksburg man, a democrat, challenges, stafford's lontime Republican delegate

Paper: Free Lance-Star, The ( Fredericksburg, VA)

Date: July 7, 2007

Abstract: Clyde Matthews running against Howell

BY CHELYEN DAVIS

RICHMOND- House Speaker Bill Howell now has two opponents in the November election.

Democrat Clyde Matthews, 71, of Fredericksburg, filed to oppose the Republican from Stafford County.

Independent Green candidate Craig Ennis is also running against Howell.

Matthews, a part-time history professor at Germanna Community College, said he filed as a "placeholder" candidate while Democrats searched for someone to run against Howell.

But no one else was interested, so Matthews says he's going to run.

"We looked very hard for somebody to run against Bill Howell," Matthews said. "I'm not a placeholder, nobody else is going to come forward."

Matthews, a retired federal government employee, said he tired of urging students to go vote, and then hearing them complain that there was only one name on the ballot. He believes more political races should be competitive. He hopes his involvement in the race will get more people interested in it.

Matthews also said he feels that Howell, as speaker of the House, has wielded that position's large influence to dampen bipartisan compromise in the House of Delegates. He noted that in 2004, when then-Gov. Mark Warner was working with Senate Democrats, and many Senate Republicans to push through a tax package, several Republicans crossed over and provided key votes to get it through. That kind of bipartisanship has not happened much since, Matthews said.

Matthews supports the idea of a nonpartisan redistricting commission to redraw legislative district lines after each 10-year census-it's currently done by the legislators themselves, and they draw as many "safe" districts as possible, which cuts down on competitive seats.

More competition, Matthews believes, would lead to more compromise and less contention in the General Assembly.

While Howell has two opponents, most other delegates in the area have none.

The filing deadline was last month, and the State Board of Elections still does not have a list of candidates on its Web site.

However, the Virginia Public Access Project, a Web site that also tracks political candidates and donations, lists Del. Bobby Orrock, R-Caroline, Del. Ed Scott, R-Culpeper, and Del. Rob Wittman, R-Westmoreland, all as being unopposed.

Del. Mark Cole, R-Spotsylvania, is being challenged by Democrat Carlos Del Toro.

Both of the area's state Senate seats are contested; Sen. Edd Houck, D-Spotsylvania, is being challenged by Republican county Supervisor Chris Yakabouski, and in the 28th District, where Sen. John Chichester is retiring, former Del. Albert Pollard Jr. is a Democrat running against Republican Richard Stuart.

Chelyen Davis: 804/782-9362cdavis@freelancestar.com

Caption:
Matthews