Wilder declines to endorse Deeds

Former Gov. L. Douglas Wilder, despite pleas from President Barack Obama and Gov. Timothy M. Kaine, yesterday declined to endorse fellow Democrat R. Creigh Deeds for governor.

Wilder, who also is a former Richmond mayor, said he disagrees with Deeds' willingness to raise taxes and with his opposition to a gun-control law that Wilder had championed as governor.

Wilder, who never has endorsed a Republican, also declined to endorse Bob McDonnell, the GOP nominee. Wilder described both Deeds and McDonnell as "fine and honorable men" capable of governing.

Candidates have gone through elaborate courtship rituals with Wilder in recent years. He declined to endorse the Democratic nominee for governor in 1997, and he did not back Deeds in the 2005 campaign for attorney general, citing the gun-control issue. McDonnell won that race by 360 votes.

But as the nation's first elected black governor, Wilder remains a historic figure, and candidates for statewide office continue to seek his support. Whether the non-endorsement will hurt Deeds, a state senator from Bath County, was a matter of conjecture yesterday.

Steve Farnsworth, a political scientist at George Mason University, said Wilder's influence has waned over the years. Wilder was governor from 1990 to 1994.

"One of the problems of playing hard to get is that in the end, no one may want you," he said.

But in a contest that polls show tightening, each campaign continues to look for any edge.

A year after Obama carried Virginia during his historic victory, analysts say the level of Deeds' support among black voters could be a key to his chances. Deeds had the backing of 81 percent of black voters in a survey released Sept. 1 by Public Policy Polling.

Obama called Wilder personally last month asking him to back Deeds. Deeds and McDonnell spoke to Wilder this week, as did Kaine, chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

Wilder, who did not respond to an interview request, told CNN yesterday: "I'm not thinking the president is going to be pleased."

Wilder said that although he and Obama have a very good relationship, "I live in Virginia. I have to deal with the people here. This is bigger than party to me. This has to do with the future of Virginia."

In a statement e-mailed to reporters from his office at Virginia Commonwealth University, Wilder cited the struggling economy and said "this is not the time in our commonwealth to talk about any kind of tax increase, especially those that are fundamentally regressive and will hit hardest those who are struggling."

As governor, Wilder had faced a recession and coped without raising taxes.

McDonnell, a former state attorney general and a former delegate from Virginia Beach, has said he will not raise taxes. Deeds has said he would be willing to sign a tax increase for transportation, as long as it emerges from a bipartisan consensus and is related directly to transportation.

Wilder also chastised Deeds for pledging to repeal a law that limits the sale of handguns in Virginia to one a month, a signature accomplishment of Wilder's administration.

"In my conversations with the people across the state, I have not encountered anyone who has listed as their priority the need for them to have more handguns," Wilder said.

Deeds, as a member of the House of Delegates, voted against that bill, while McDonnell, as a member of the House, voted for it. McDonnell now says he has changed his mind and would sign a bill to repeal the measure.

"This in no [way] is intended to detract from Mr. Deeds in terms of character or commitment to the task of being governor," Wilder said in his statement. "I find that he, as well as Mr. McDonnell, are fine and honorable men and well suited to that task."

Jared Leopold, a spokesman for Deeds, said the campaign respects Wilder's decision.

"While Creigh and he may not agree on every issue, they share a fundamental commitment to keeping Virginia the best-managed state in the nation, as Governor Wilder first made it in 1992. As governor, Creigh intends to seek Governor Wilder's counsel often and looks forward to working with him."

Tucker Martin, communications director for McDonnell, focused on the tax issue.

He said McDonnell and Wilder "understand that during these tough economic times, public servants have to focus on the real-world situation of working families and small businesses who are struggling to make ends meet."

David Brooks, director of Kaine's political action committee, Moving Virginia Forward, said: "Governor Wilder's decision is disappointing, but it's frankly a season where there are a lot of surprise endorsements happening."

He said that while "we're sure Creigh would've appreciated Governor Wilder's endorsement," McDonnell would have liked to have "the endorsements of prominent Republican leaders" who are backing Deeds, such as former state Sen. John Chichester, R-Northumberland.

There was no comment from the White House.

On another endorsement front, McDonnell, Republican lieutenant governor nominee Bill Bolling and GOP attorney general nominee Ken Cuccinelli were endorsed by the Fraternal Order of Police of Virginia, a group of about 8,000 law-enforcement officers.

Contact Tyler Whitley at (804) 649-6780 or .