In the education-related races for seats in the U.S. Senate next month, three key Republican members of the Labor and Human Resources Committee face tough re-election challenges, while the three Democratic members of that committee facing reelection hold what are considered to be safe seats.
In the House, because of Congressional redistricting, numerous education\committee members face uncertain futures. The House also is losing an education-committee member, Representative Millicent H. Fenwick, a Republican who is favored to win the New Jersey Senate seat.
The Republican chairman of the Senate’s education committee, Orrin G. Hatch of Utah, holds a slight edge over his Democratic opponent, Ted Wilson, the mayor of Salt Lake City.
Both candidates are Mormons and both are popular figures throughout the state. Mr. Wilson has charged that Senator Hatch spends too much time promoting conservative causes and not enough time on issues related to the state. The Senator, however, has strong support in the anti-union, anti-abortion state, and efforts by national labor unions against him have largely failed there.
Senator Robert T. Stafford of Vermont won the Republican nomination by an unimpressive margin, and his support among voters of both parties has been diluted by a challenge from James A. Guest, a former Vermont secretary of state and the national president of Consumers Union.
As chairman of the Subcommittee on Education, the Arts, and the Humanities, Senator Stafford opposed the Reagan Administration’s proposed budget cuts in student-aid programs, a position that won him the support of the state’s branch of the National Education Association. The state a.f.l.0i.o., however, gave its endorsement to the Democrat.
The two candidates agree on several issues, including the nuclear freeze and strong laws to protect the environment, and they are considered to be seeking support from the same bloc of moderate-to-liberal voters.
The Senate race in Connecticut includes similar elements, with the Republican incumbent, Lowell P. Weicker Jr., facing a Democratic representative who holds many of the same political views.
The independent-minded Senator Weicker often votes against Republican proposals in the Congress, and he has gained national attention for his strong stand against legislation that would limit busing for desegregation and permit organized prayer in public schools.
Last summer, and during the summer of 1981, Senator Weicker, along with Senator Daniel P. Moynihan, Democrat of New York, joined in filibustering conservatives’ proposals on such social issues. (Senator Moynihan, also facing re-election, is expected to defeat Florence Sullivan, a Republican state assemblywoman.)
Senator Weicker’s challenger, U.S. Representative Toby Moffett, has focused on the liberal incumbent’s affiliation with the Republican party, which Mr. Moffett contends prevents Mr. Weicker from forming the coalitions necessary to pass legislation. The Senator nevertheless enjoys strong endorsements from labor organizations and the Jewish community, two constituencies that might otherwise support a Democratic candidate.
The Senate Democrats who sit on the Labor and Human Resources Committee are all considered to be candidates for easy re-election. Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts faces little opposition from Republican Raymond Shamie, the president of an electronics firm. Donald W. Riegle Jr. is a likely victor over former Representative Philip E. Ruppe in Michigan, a state with one of the nation’s highest unemployment rates.
In Ohio, Senator Howard M. Metzenbaum, a liberal Democrat, had been considered a vulnerable candidate, but the death last April of his challenger, Representative John M. Ashbrook, left the Republicans without an established nominee. Paul E. Pfeifer, a state senator, is the Republican candidate.
Redistricting could turn out to be the deciding factor in several key races involving members of the House Education and Labor Committee.
In New York’s new 22nd District, the five-term Democratic incumbent, Peter Peyser, has been forced to face off against another five-term incumbent, Representative Benjamin A. Gilman, a Republican. Recent polls give Mr. Gilman a slight edge.
In California, 10-term Representative Phillip Burton faces a strong challenge from a Republican state Senator, Milton Marks, in the state’s newly-constituted 5th District, which encompasses much of San Francisco.
Representative Dennis E. Eckart, a Democrat, squares off against Republican challenger Glen W. Warner, a businessman, in Ohio’s new 11th District. The new district contains only 15 percent of Mr. Eckart’s former constituents.
In Minnesota, the three-term Republican incumbent, Arlen Erdahl, faces a strong challenge from state Senator Gerry Sikorski, a Democrat, in the race for the state’s new 6th District. Mr. Erdahl and Mr. Sikorski ran against each other in the state’s old 1st District in 1976. Recent polls indicate that the race between them this year is too close to call.
Redistricting has forced two incumbent representatives to challenge each other in Missouri. Wendell Bailey, a Republican member of the House Education and Labor Committee, is running against Representative Ike Skelton in the state’s new 4th District. Tenure in the House may be a factor in this race as well; Mr. Skelton claims three terms to Mr. Bailey’s one, and the polls indicate that Mr. Skelton has pulled ahead.
In another House race of interest to the education community, David Armor, a policy analyst for the Rand Corporation whose research on “white flight” has often been cited in support of legislation to limit school-desegregation efforts, is challenging Representative Anthony C. Beilenson, a Democrat, in California’s 23rd District.
Below is a listing of other races involving members of the House Education and Labor Committee.
Key:
- denotes membership on Elementary, Secondary, and Vocational Education Subcommittee, membership on Postsecondary Education Subcommittee, and membership on Select Education Subcommittee.
Democrats
Carl D. Perkins, Ky., chairman of the full committee, no opponent.
Ike F. Andrews, N.C.
- , opponent is William Cobey Jr., former athletic director at the University of North Carolina.
Mario Biaggi, N.Y.
- , no opponent.
William L. Clay, Mo., opponent William E. White, radio-station manager.
William D. Ford, Mich.
- , opponent is Mitchell Moran, automotive engineering supervisor.
Joseph M. Gaydos, Pa. , opponent is Terry R. Ray, attorney.
Augustus F. Hawkins, Calif.
- , opponent is Milton R. MacKaig, a city councilman.
Dale E. Kildee, Mich.
- , opponent is George R. Darrah, attorney.
Raymond P. Kogovsek, Colo., opponent is Tom Weins, businessman.
George Miller, Calif.
- , opponent is Paul E. Vallely, investment advisor.
Austin J. Murphy, Pa.
- , opponent is Frank J. Paterra, steelworker.
Paul Simon, Ill.
- , opponent is Peter G. Prineas, engineer.
Harold Washington, Ill.
- , no opponent.
Ted S. Weiss, N.Y.
- , opponent is Louis S. Antonelli, college administrator.
Pat Williams, Mont.
- , opponent is Bob Davies, electrical engineer.
Republicans
John N. Erlenborn, Ill., ranking minority member of the full committee, opponent is Robert Bily, businessman.
E. Thomas Coleman, Mo.
- , opponent is Jim Russell, state representative.
Larry E. Craig, Idaho, opponent is Larry LaRocco, marketing executive.
Lawrence J. DeNardis, Conn.
- , opponent is Bruce A. Morrison, former legal-aid service director.
Millicent H. Fenwick, N.J.
- , is running for the U.S. Senate.
William F. Goodling, Pa.
- , opponent is Larry Becker, industrial inspector.
James M. Jeffords, Vt.
- , opponent is Mark A. Kaplan, state senator.
W. Eugene Johnston 3rd, N.C., opponent is Charles R. Britt, attorney.
Kenneth B. Kramer, Colo., opponent is Tom Cronin, college professor.
Thomas E. Petri, Wisc.
- , opponent is Gordon E. Loehr.
Marge Roukema, N.J.
- , opponent is Fritz Cammerzell, attorney.
