"Nelson County vineyard owner Al Weed is getting an early start on the 2004 race for Congress in Virginia’s 5th District.

Weed, a Democrat, is renting office space this week in downtown Charlottesville and setting up a paid and volunteer campaign organization to challenge Rep. Virgil H. Goode Jr., R-Rocky Mount.

“I’m very enthusiastic about it,” said Dave Sagarin, a Fluvanna Democrat hired this month as Weed’s campaign coordinator. “I think it’s important for the Democrats to maintain a positive presence in District No. 5,” which stretches from Greene County to the North Carolina line south of Danville and Martinsville.

Sagarin, who worked last year for then congressional nominee Meredith Richards, a Democrat, said that Weed, 61, “has a very fine group of advisers and people doing various tasks and volunteers.”

Richards, 62, said Monday that she has not yet decided whether to challenge Goode again next year or run instead for another term on Charlottesville’s City Council.

“I feel like I’ve earned the opportunity to lead the council,” Richards said. “I couldn’t be elected to council in 2004 in May and then turn around and run for Congress in November.”

Richards, who spoke Saturday to Martinsville and Henry County Democrats, said she is likely to decide which race to pursue by Christmas. “Why should I foreclose my options?” she asked.

Richards received 53,983 votes in November, or 36.5 percent, to Goode’s 94,597 votes, or 63.5 percent.

Goode, 56, said Monday that he had no comment on whether he would rather face Richards again on next year’s ballot or a challenge from Weed, who owns and operates Mountain Cove Vineyard.

“I saw Al Weed yesterday at the softball game,” Goode said of his active potential opponent, who watched as Charlottesville-area Democrats beat a GOP softball team 20-15 in Region Ten’s 10th annual softball fund-raiser. “I don’t have any comment on either one of them.”

Weed says he is spending up to four days a week on the campaign already. “I’m running because I think we need an effective congressman. I think Virgil’s record has been pretty weak.”

Goode left little doubt about his own campaign in 2004.

“I haven’t made a formal announcement, but I’ve got my pencils and my fans and I am out there fund raising,” Goode said.

The Republican said he has raised “around $300,000” for his re-election effort next year.

Richards is not raising money for a campaign next year, but Weed is.

Harry Landers, Weed’s campaign treasurer, said the Democrat raised $7,155 for his campaign by June 30 from 24 contributors.

Waldo Jaquith, Landers’ son and a Web site creator, said he plans to work on Weed’s campaign as a political science student at Virginia Tech.

Jaquith, 24, said Weed “is a hell of a smart guy. He’s of the 5th District. Nobody could ever accuse him of being a Charlottesville liberal.”

“Al’s dead serious about this,” said Jaquith, who is helping design Weed’s campaign Web site and hopes to have it up and running next month.

“Al’s a farmer. Al’s a soldier and a statesman,” Jaquith said.

Richards said she welcomes Weed to the race, whether she runs or not.

“I certainly wish him well, and am not doing anything to impede his progress,” she said.

Del. Mitchell Van Yahres, D-Charlottesville, called Weed a good candidate. Weed, a Nelson farmer, has degrees from Yale and Princeton universities and an Army background.

“I think they are both good candidates,” Van Yahres said, calling himself neutral in any potential Richards-Weed nomination contest.

As for Weed, “Al is very serious about it,” Van Yahres said. “He is going full bore for it.” " (Bob Gibson, The Daily Progress, July 22, 2003)

Contact Bob Gibson at (434) 978-7243 or bgibson@dailyprogress.com.