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Wittman |
Del. Rob Wittman of Westmoreland County announced yesterday that he will run for the 1st congressional seat.
Wittman, a Republican who has served one term in the House of Delegates as the 99th District representative, is also running for re-election in that seat. He is unopposed in the election Nov. 6, which is before Republicans plan to nominate a candidate for the 1st District.
Wittman said he would step down from his House seat and help find a Republican candidate to fill it, if he wins the congressional seat. He is already taking leave from his job with the Department of Health, with plans to retire soon.
Wittman said he has been encouraged to run for the 1st District seat, which was left vacant when Rep. Jo Ann Davis died of breast cancer a few weeks ago.
"I believe that my dedication to my district, my service in both local and state elected office, and my reputation as a fair and thoughtful legislator will persuade the voters of this congressional district to send me to Washington," Wittman wrote in a news release. "If they do, I pledge to serve them faithfully."
He added, in a telephone interview, that he thinks his experience as an elected official is unique among the numerous candidates vying for the seat.
Wittman is far from the only Republican interested in the seat.
Yesterday Gloucester resident Catesby Jones, who founded the Peace Frogs sportswear stores in Charlottesville, said he will run. Jones' press release said he's active in community as a trustee for the Ware Episcopal Church, a member of the Gloucester Community Foundation, and is involved with the Virginia Historical Society and Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities.
Spotsylvania resident Dave Caprara has already said he's running, and he made a formal announcement yesterday.
Caprara said his own experience makes him a unique candidate.
He was executive director of the Governor's Commission on Citizen Empowerment under former Gov. George Allen. He has been active in faith-based and housing issues, serving with both Presidents Bush in various capacities and volunteering at Fredericksburg's Bragg Hill, a low-income community, as well as being involved with a variety of faith- and housing-oriented groups in the area.
"I stand up with a leadership track record at the local level, state level, and federal level, where I worked in Congress already and I built bipartisan alliances," Caprara said.
Caprara said many in the Fredericksburg region want the seat to go to someone from this area, rather than from the other end of the district, which stretches all the way to Newport News.
But there are a number of contenders from that end of the district as well.
Jim Bowden--who just stepped down as 1st District Republican chairman--is in the race, and Williamsburg businessman Paul Jost--a conservative activist who lost the nomination to Davis back in 2001--is going to announce his candidacy today.
Chuck Davis, Jo Ann Davis' husband, is running as well, and has the backing of several delegates and state senators from the Tidewater region.
Wittman said he has the backing of all the county Republican unit chairmen in the 99th District.
Gloucester resident Sherwood Bowditch, who is director of the Virginia Alliance of Boys and Girls Clubs, is also running, as is former House of Delegates member Dick Black, who has rented a house in Fredericksburg to be in the district.
Gov. Tim Kaine has not yet set a date for a special election to fill the 1st District seat, but the most likely date is Dec. 11.
Republicans are expected to choose a candidate through a convention next month.
A few Democratic names have been floated, but no one has announced.
Chelyen Davis: 804/782-9362