Breakthrough In Virginia Dougas Wilder

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For his part, Wilder seems doggedly determined not to discover any larger morals in his victory. Having adroitly kept Jackson out of the state -- except to catch planes at Washington National Airport -- Wilder clearly does not want to risk being drawn into the morass of national black politics. At a Wednesday press conference, the victorious candidate went so far as to insist, "There isn't any lesson to learn from what we did in Virginia, as a prototype relative to being a black candidate." While there are few similarities other than race between him and Atlanta Mayor Andrew Young, who is planning a 1990 race for Georgia Governor, Wilder's entire career can be viewed as a political primer for other crossover black candidates trying to win in a largely white world. Some of its lessons:

Remember, black politics is minority politics. Today Wilder can say, with almost perverse pride, "I've never been identified as an activist." Even during the turbulent 1960s, Wilder was far more concerned with amassing wealth (he is now a millionaire) as a trial lawyer than with civil rights protest. In his successful bid for state senate in 1969, he shrewdly outmaneuvered the would-be candidate of the Richmond black establishment, pointedly set up his headquarters in the downtown business district and won an estimated 18% of the white vote.

As the only black in the state senate, Wilder was destined to stand out, even if he had not in those days worn his hair in a bushy Afro and favored flashy suits. His initial speech was an eloquent, albeit quixotic, lament over the racist lyrics in the official state anthem, Carry Me Back to Old Virginia. Even his friends chastised Wilder for such an impolitic gesture, but he explained that the song "got under my skin so bad that I just couldn't resist it." (Now largely ignored, the song is unlikely to be featured at Wilder's inaugural.)

But Wilder soon began learning how to be a political insider, not a lonely crusader. He bridged centuries of Virginia history by forging personal alliances with rural conservatives and deflected racially insensitive comments with wit and humor. Even as he waged a long and ultimately successful fight to establish a state holiday in honor of Martin Luther King Jr., Wilder's legislative priorities reflected the interests of trial lawyers and the Richmond business community. In back-room bargaining, Wilder was a tough, unyielding adversary. "A lot of people don't like him," says J.T. ("Jay") Shropshire, the clerk of the state senate who became a Wilder confidant. "But they respect him because he won't back down."

Take the slow train to the mountaintop. In 1982 Wilder convincingly demonstrated his power, not only as the state's pre-eminent black politician but also as a force to reckon with in the Virginia Democratic Party. Just months after Robb became the state's first Democratic Governor in over a decade, Wilder single-handedly blocked his choice for the U.S. Senate nomination. His pretext was that the would-be nominee had been too prolix in his praise of the Byrd dynasty that had dominated the state in the segregationist era. Wilder's gambit was to threaten to run for the Senate himself as an independent and split the party's vote. The result: Robb backed down, and the party, with Wilder's blessing, nominated a compromise candidate.