Wilder Won’t Seek Robb’s Seat in Senate, Plans to Quit Politics

Gov. L. Douglas Wilder said Wednesday that he will not challenge fellow Democrat Charles S. Robb for his U.S. Senate seat.

After completing his final State of the Commonwealth Address, Wilder announced that he was leaving politics after a two-decade career capped by a historic term as the nation’s first elected black governor.

“At this stage in my life I feel the need to take another direction,” said Wilder, who turns 63 this month.

The governor’s dramatic announcement was reminiscent of his statement two years ago that he would abandon his presidential bid after four months. Wilder also made that announcement in unscripted remarks at the end of his State of the Commonwealth Address to the General Assembly.

Wilder said in June that he intended to challenge Robb, a longtime rival. But the governor made no effort to raise money or organize a campaign staff, and rumors had been circulating that he might not run.

Robb already faces Richmond lawyer Sylvia Clute in a June 14 primary. Retired Marine Lt. Col. Oliver L. North and James C. Miller III, budget chief under former President Ronald Reagan, are vying for the Republican nomination.

Wilder devoted most of his prepared speech to the accomplishments of his term, particularly his efforts to help blacks.

“I am not retired from seeking the answers to the problems that continue to confront us, but from seeking elective office at this time,” he said.

Wilder was elected in 1989 with a bare majority. His popularity slipped during his term, partly because of his ill-fated presidential bid and his struggle to balance the state’s budget during the recession.