Best choices for Tuesday

It is a cliche — and a tired one — to say that any one election is more important than another. They are all important.

Consider any election in any year, and reverse the results. A different winner would have had different emphases and would have produced different policies with different results.

Every election — every one — matters, and deeply, to each city, congressional district, state and to this nation. Here’s a recap of our choices for Tuesday's:

U.S. Senate

Mark Warner’s candidacy for the U.S. Senate presents a welcome choice as Virginia faces the retirement of John Warner, the state’s most senior member of Congress and one of its wisest and most capable leaders.

Mark Warner brought a sure hand to the governor’s mansion during the state’s last brush with economic crisis. His bipartisan brand and his sharp focus on problem-solving will serve Virginia well on Capitol Hill.

While Warner’s instincts draw him to the middle of the ideological spectrum, Jim Gilmore has too often allowed politics to overshadow all else. He was a destabilizing force even when his party controlled Richmond.

There is no reason to export such problems to Washington, especially when Warner is such a superior alternative.

House

In the race for the 2nd District seat in Congress, Glenn Nye, a former foreign service officer, has great potential. He has on-the-ground experience in both Afghanistan and Iraq, and his positions reflect the moderation of a man who prefers good ideas over party loyalty.

During her four years in office, U.S. Rep. Thelma Drake has hewn far too closely to a disastrous presidential administration, in the process drifting from the mainstream of her conservative constituency.

She has long been noted for her strong attention to the needs of military, a position that prompted us to endorse her in 2006. But on the most important military vote in decades — for a new GI Bill — she initially abandoned veterans to do as the president asked. It was a bewildering vote, and it has undermined her hopes for re-election. It should.

The congressional voting record of 4th District U.S. Rep. Randy Forbes does not differ radically from Drake’s. But Forbes faces a former moveon.org coordinator from Chesterfield County, Andrea Miller. We have disagreed with some of Forbes’ positions — on an outlying landing field for the jets at Oceana Naval Air Station, for example — and we have applauded others, including his audacious proposal for a national Manhattan Project on alternative energy. He remains the obvious choice.

Virginia Beach

Virginia Beach needs a mayor who understands business, who can negotiate, advocate and lead the commonwealth’s largest city. Will Sessoms, a bank president who was the city’s vice mayor for a decade, proposes aggressive recruiting of industry and stronger relationships with neighboring cities to tackle transit and transportation needs. Most importantly, there is much to suggest he can make good on those proposals. He is the best choice to lead Virginia Beach through the complex challenges of the next four years.

For City Council, we recommend re-electing two-term member Rosemary Wilson for the at-large seat. She has worked on affordable housing, advocated for a smoking ban in restaurants and pushed the city for more recreational paths. In Kempsville, Harry Diezel deserves another four years. Diezel, the city’s retired fire chief and an expert in public safety and personnel issues, has institutional knowledge and a public servant’s heart. In Rose Hall, Glenn Davis, a young businessman with lots of ideas, offers the most promise. In Centerville, Bob Dyer is unopposed.

For School Board, we recommend incumbents Dan Edwards from Centerville and Rita Sweet Bellitto, at large. We also recommend Erika Walker-Cash, at large, and Brent McKenzie from Rose Hall. Sandra Smith-Jones from Kempsville and Bill Brunke from Princess Anne are unopposed.

Suffolk

Suffolk’s ballots will be crowded, so we’d urge voters to look for one name in the race for mayor: Mike Debranski. He stands for smart growth and has been correctly cautious on the enormous CenterPoint project on Holland Road. Currently a member of the School Board, he understands the most expensive part of a municipal budget better than any of the other candidates, a crucial difference as we head toward uncertain economic times.

For City Council from the Nansemond Borough, Leroy Bennett has provided an independent perspective at a time when Suffolk government needed one. Former Mayor Curtis Milteer has served the Whaleyville borough for decades, if not always with the rest of the city in mind. Rob Barclay, in Sleepy Hole, is unopposed.

For School Board, we choose incumbents James Perkinson from Sleepy Hole and Sharon Harris from Whaleyville, and in the Nansemond Borough, Thelma Hinton.

One last thing

These endorsements represent the opinion of The Virginian-Pilot’s editorial board. They have nothing whatever to do with the newsroom or with any reporter or editor covering news.

The goal of endorsements is not and never has been to predict winners or to boost one political party over another. Instead, we attempt to provide the most persuasive argument for the person we believe would best fill a specific office.

Our biases include competence and pragmatism and financial restraint. We have a decided prejudice for solving problems and against partisan hackery of all stripes. Experience counts, quite a bit. So does potential. We have a preference for smart people.

Last October, long before Virginia became a battleground, even before John McCain or Barack Obama were nominated, this page announced that it would no longer endorse candidates for president.

That’s not because members of this board don’t have opinions about the race at the top of the ballot, but because we ordinarily don’t know the presidential candidates better than another informed voter.

As a local newspaper, we think our time and energies are better spent sorting out the choices in races where we understand the issues and know the candidates better than any other news organization.