Warner Launches Senate Bid,Vows 'Virginia Thinking'

ROANOKE, Va., May 5 -- Democrat Mark R. Warner brought his kickoff U.S. Senate campaign tour here Monday morning, pledging to invest in new energy sources, expand access to health care and rebuild the state's sagging infrastructure.

"If there is ever a time for a little bit of Virginia thinking in Washington, it's now," Warner told more than 200 supporters gathered in Roanoke at a fire station plastered with red-white-and-blue signs.

Six months before the November election, the popular former governor is widely considered the front-runner to replace retiring Sen. John W. Warner in a race that could help further solidify Virginia's gradual shift toward becoming a more Democratic state. The Republican incumbent is of no relation to the Democrat.

Even Republicans acknowledge that Mark R. Warner is considered the heavy favorite. But, they say, he could still lose.

He could make a mistake the way then-Sen. George Allen did two years ago when he lost to a virtual unknown. He could be hurt by problems in the Democratic Party nationally in the coming months. He could be dragged down by his party's presidential nominee in a state that has voted for a Republican president for more than four decades.

"It can be done," said J. Kenneth Klinge, a prominent Northern Virginia Republican. "But it's going to take some luck."

Warner, 53, began his four-day tour of the state Sunday night in Abingdon in southwest Virginia, where he explained why he will be a better choice than his Republican counterpart -- either former governor James S. Gilmore III or Del. Robert G. Marshall of Prince William County -- for a seat that will help determine whether Democrats keep control of the U.S. Senate.

"If you hire me as your next United States senator, we'll prove that even in Washington we can bring Virginia independence that will provide real results," Warner said in a 20-minute speech.

Warner will be joined on some of his 11 stops on the tour by the state's two top Democrats, Gov. Timothy M. Kaine and U.S. Sen. James Webb, Republican supporters and Virginians helped by programs he launched while in the governor's mansion. He will appear at the Carlyle Club in Alexandria at 7.m Monday night.

The tour launched in Abingdon, a small town nestled in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, as recognition of the power base he built in rural Virginia during his run for governor in 2001.

More than 250 supporters greeted Warner, his wife, Lisa, and their two youngest daughters at E.B. Stanley Middle School for an early dinner of barbecue, coleslaw and pickles. A band played bluegrass music, including a song about Warner.

"He's just done so much for everyone here," said Shirley Hall, who came to the dinner with her husband, Jim, from Castlewood, 25 miles away. "He don't forget us."