Change in Norfolk: Challenger ousts Wright in council race

NORFOLK

Tommy Smigiel mined a mother lode of voter discontent Tuesday night and knocked off one of the city's political giants.

Smigiel upset W. Randy Wright in the Ward 5 City Council race, winning by 118 votes of nearly 6,000 cast. East Beach businessman Matt Hales finished a distant third. The defeat likely ended a 30-year political career for the 63-year-old Wright.

Smigiel became the first challenger to knock off an incumbent in a Norfolk council race in eight years.

"Tonight, the citizens said they're tired of the politics as usual and that they believe in a new type of government that is responsive to the citizens' needs first," Smigiel said to about 100 supporters at his victory party at Mona Lisa's, an East Ocean View restaurant.

Smigiel defeated a formidable opponent in Wright, a councilman since 1992 who was flush with campaign funds and powerful political allies. Smigiel, 31, had never run for elected office.

"We were the little engine that could," he said.

Wright has wielded great influence at City Hall, dictating where most city money would be spent on redevelopment in Ocean View and providing key support for downtown projects such as MacArthur Center and the cruise ship terminal. He led the successful fight to end school busing in elementary and middle schools, formed the Norfolk Tea Party anti-tax group and was instrumental in bringing the ward system and light rail to the city.

Residents complained that he stopped listening, especially more than six years ago when he supported the city's efforts to fight the Bay Oaks Park Committee in court.

The Bay Oaks group sought to set aside 21 vacant acres in East Ocean View as a park. Wright adamantly insisted that housing be built there.

Smigiel, a member of the Bay Oaks Park group, said Wright's handling of that issue was typical of how he refused to listen to his constituents. The Bay Oaks group eventually won its case in court.

Smigiel was introduced at his victory party by Bill Kerry, who led the Bay Oaks Park effort.

Smigiel took advantage of Wright's high-profile effort to bring light rail to the city, blaming him for $50 million in recently revealed cost overruns. Wright said he did not know about the overruns. Smigiel said he had to know.

"The cost overruns were the difference," Wright said. "Light rail is going to be my legacy. I didn't know about the overruns and couldn't have, but people just didn't believe that."

Wright raised more than $117,000 and outspent Smigiel more than 6-to-1. He used those funds to advertise extensively on TV and sent numerous mailings to voters. Gov. Bob McDonnell and Sen. Mark Warner both hosted fundraisers for Wright.

But in the end, it wasn't enough to overcome his high negatives.

Although the campaign rhetoric was at times harsh on both sides, Smigiel reached out to Wright.

"Randy Wright has served this city for 18 years," Smigiel said. "He's done a lot of good things for Ocean View."

Smigiel is an assistant principal at Granby High and a graduate of Norview High School and Old Dominion University, where he was the student body president. Smigiel went back to Norview to teach after college, where he was named the city and state Teacher of the Year. He was also a finalist for national Teacher of the Year. Smigiel is no newcomer to politics, having been politically active as a Democrat since his days at Norview High School. He has led several successful Democratic campaigns.

Smigiel called for more openness, saying council meetings should be televised and that the process of negotiating deals with developers behind closed doors should end. He also called for spending less money downtown and more in neighborhoods such as Bayview and Ocean View.

"We're going to make this government transparent," he said. "We're going to again start paying attention to our neighborhoods."

Wright, who will remain on council until July 1, said he had no regrets.

"I've never worked harder on a campaign than I did for this one," Wright said. "I gave it everything I had."

Harry Minium, (757) 446-2371, harry.minium@pilotonline.com