Nolo Contendere

Next Thursday’s Shelby County ballot is long on names and short on suspense.

by Jackson Baker

ackaways, there was a feeling that this year’s August 6th ballot in Shelby County – the hugest in history, consisting of most countywide offices, all county judicial positions, and primaries for statewide offices – might also be the most suspenseful.

That was then. This is now, when, at the statewide level, Governor Don Sundquist has only Shirley Beck-Vosse, a nominal candidate, to contend with in the GOP primary, and Covington lawyer Mike Whitaker and Nashville lawyer John Jay Hooker predominate (if that’s the word) in a large and relatively feckless Democratic field vying for the dubious privilege of taking on Sundquist and his $6 million campaign war chest. No contest, thought most observers. The only statewide drama to speak of focused on the struggle of state Supreme Court Justice A.A. Birch to ride out what may be a waning wave of popular discontent with the judiciary. (See story on page 20.)

Shelby County Mayor Jim Rout, with a half-million dollars in his kitty early on, was sitting as pretty on the local scene as Sundquist was statewide. Even perennials like Willie Jacox were absent without leave. (See stories on pages 18 and 21.) Of course, there was always Mongo. (Stifle yawn.)

Among the countywide contests that attracted the most interest were the race for sheriff, in which incumbent A.C. Gilless, running as a Republican this year, seemed in fairly good shape to repel a challenge from former Memphis police director Melvin Burgess, the Democratic nominee. (Not to mention one from independent Floyd Allen.)

Sheriff’s candidate Melvin Burgess

Burgess (the casualty of a power struggle with Memphis Mayor Willie Herenton in 1994) was not bashful about vaunting his experience with community policing nor about citing Gilless’ problems with internal corruption (former Chief Deputy Ray Mills was under indictment for job-selling). And The Commercial Appeal had done a number on Gilless for his use of off-duty deputies in campaign work. But the CA went on to endorse the incumbent, and that summed up the situation. For all his problems, the laid-back Gilless still seemed to possess – and to inspire – confidence.

Most Shelby County commissioners, Democrat or Republican, were being returned to office without opposition, but the District 1, Position 1 seat left open by retiring Commissioner Pete Sisson became the focal point of an ideological showdown. The Republican nominee was Marilyn Loeffel, former president of the conservative action group FLARE and Governor Sundquist’s rejected nominee in 1997 for the state Board of Education. Democratic nominee Irma Merrill was running an ambitious and energetic campaign, looking for crossovers and labeling Loeffel’s conservative social positions as “extremist.”

Late in the game, Merrill was making an issue of the Republican’s apparent support of a roadway through Shelby Farms. Most observers, however, saw the likely winner to be Loeffel, who had a strong base in the Bartlett-Cordova area and who discounted her private convictions as having little to no bearing on commission business. Besides, Loeffel was nowhere near as naive about public relations as her adversaries kept hoping she would be.

The race for county register, a normally nondescript job, became a cynosure of sorts in Shelby County – as it had in Nashville’s Davidson County, where veteran pol Bill Boner took an unsuccessful shot at it. Memphis’ celebrity contestant (destined perhaps for the same fate) was former University of Memphis basketball coach Larry Finch, the Democrats’ nominee. Finch, no better at political gladhandling than he had been at charming sportswriters, appeared to be getting less support from his friends (and from within himself) than was needed to turn out wily veteran Guy Bates, who had waxed some upstart opponents in the Republican primary and seemed ready to do it again.

Commission candidate Irma Merrill

In primary races for the legislature: State Rep. Joe Kent (R-District 83, Southeast Shelby) seemed in good shape against nominal primary opponent Bill Patterson; incumbent Joe Towns would probably outlast challenger Joseph Kyles in a tighter Democratic primary race in House District 84 (Whitehaven); first-term State Rep. Barbara Cooper (D-District 85, inner Memphis) was favored over Berlin Boyd in her primary, while George T. Edwards and C. Calvin Walk, two Republicans, vied for the right to oppose her in November. Jim Jamieson was favored over Randy Capps in the Republican primary for District 89 (Midtown) – winner to take on Democratic incumbent Carol Chumney.

State Rep. John DeBerry (D-District 90, inner-city Memphis) was favored over primary opponent Ricky Lee Watson, as was Rep. Ulysses Jones (D-District 97, North Memphis, Raleigh, Frayser) over Teddy King. Two Republican contests had some sparks: Governor Sundquist was boosting incumbent State Rep. Larry Scroggs over former Rep. David Shirley in District 94 (Germantown, Southeast Shelby), and Curry Todd seemed well ahead of two opponents (Danny Davila and Ricky Sulcer, in the GOP primary for the District 95 (North Shelby County) seat left vacant by the retiring Ed Haley.

School Board Races

Although the situation was recently clouded by the pending annexation into Memphis of the suburban Hickory Hill area, elections for seven district positions of the Shelby County School Board will go forward on August 6th.

The field, with endorsees of the Shelby County Republican Party indicated with an R, and those of two major Democratic clubs (Midtown and Germantown) indicated with a D:

DISTRICT 1 (North Shelby County): Chris Harrell; Virginia Harvell; Robert Springfield; Rick Wells (R); James F. Yancey (D).

DISTRICT 2 (Cordova and environs): Frank Conti; Christopher P. Couch; Ron Lollar (R,D); Rembert Williams.

DISTRICT 3 (Bartlett and environs): Anne Edmiston (R); Lynn Smith (D).

DISTRICT 4 (Northeast Shelby County): Barbara Bomprezzi; Joseph Clayton (R,D).

DISTRICT 5 (Germantown and environs): David L.Hale; David Pickler (R,D); Martha Wright.

DISTRICT 6 (Southeast Shelby County): Homer S. Bunker (R,D).

DISTRICT 7 (Southeast Shelby County, Hickory Hill): Yvonne K. Chapman (D); Karen Hill (R); John Tilman; George Valentine.

One position on the Memphis School Board is also up for election, the District 4 seat formerly held by the late Peggy Prater Harvey and, on an interim basis, by Archie Willis. Candidates are: Roscoe Overton; Michael Hooks III; Wanda Halbert; and Bill Wood.