Ex-Gov. Robb to Seek Senate Seat

Former Gov. Charles S. Robb, one of the state’s most popular Democrats and a driving force for a more moderate national platform for his party, announced Tuesday that he will run for the U.S. Senate in 1988.

Robb, 48, told reporters in a crowded news conference that he has enjoyed a two-year break from public life while working with Virginia’s largest law firm.

He said, however: “I’ve concluded that nothing provides me with the same sense of challenge and reward as public service and the formulation of public policy.”

Robb, a son-in-law of President Lyndon B. Johnson, has been touted as a potential presidential or vice presidential nominee. He said that if he wins the nomination for the Senate, which is virtually assured, he will not alter his plans if a bigger opportunity arises. So far, he is the only announced Senate candidate from either party.

Virginians had expected a contest between Robb and Republican Sen. Paul S. Trible Jr., but the 40-year-old incumbent announced in September that he would not seek a second term.

Virginia Republicans mentioned as potential Senate candidates include former Navy Secretary John F. Lehman Jr., former Secretary of State Alexander M. Haig Jr., Rep. Herbert H. Bateman, Rep. Stan Parris and Marine Lt. Col. Oliver L. North, the fired national security aide who testified in the congressional Iran-Contra hearings.