Crabill Visit the Photo Place

View the Westmoreland County community page

Crabill has GOP nod for election

Republicans nominate social conservative from Lancaster to vie for Virginia House seat

Date published: 5/17/2009

BY FRANK DELANO

Catherine T. Crabill, a social conservative from Lancaster County, was nominated yesterday by a Republican convention in Montross to run against Albert C. Pollard, D-Lancaster, for a Virginia House of Delegates seat.

"I hope you'll learn over time that I'm not arrogant and I'm not unteachable. God bless you all," Crabill, 52, said in thanking the 125 delegates and guests for her nomination.

In the eyes of some GOP delegates, Crabill's controversial statements and positions rendered her unfit for the 99th House District nomination.

"She has stated herself in such immoderate terms that she has made her candidacy almost a caricature," said Westmoreland GOP Chairman Robert Fountain. "Her views will appeal to the faithful, but not to enough people to give us the 51 per cent of the vote we will need to win in November."

"I'm sick of moderate things. God bless her for saying immoderate things," said Robert Barlow of King George County. "She believes in the same things we do. She speaks to what we believe. She'll stand up for it when she's elected."

All of the convention delegates from two precincts in Caroline County voted against Crabill's nomination, as did a majority of Westmoreland County delegates. Half of Richmond County delegates voted for her and half voted against her.

She won the nomination with majority votes from King George, Lancaster and Northumberland counties. All but one King George delegate voted for Crabill.

Crabill also told the convention that she had been "beaten, humiliated and ridiculed" by bloggers who discovered a 1995 newspaper article in which she blamed the Oklahoma City terrorist bombing on the federal government. At the time, Crabill lived in New Mexico.

The Washington Times quoted her as saying:

The nominee posted the following autobiography Sept. 16, 2008, at worldview times.com: I am 51 years old and I have been married for 23 years. My husband, Chris, and I have four children. Our daughter, Jessica is 20, and our three sons are Cody 18, Sam 16, and Zach 14. I homeschooled our children for many years as my husband worked very hard to make it possible for me to be a stay-at-home mother. I have been a Realtor on the Northern Neck of Virginia for the last seven years helping my husband afford some private school and college opportunities for our children. I am not college educated, but consider myself fairly well read. I love and fear God and write or speak as I feel impressed by Him to do so. It is only the conviction that He has instilled in me that has given me the courage necessary to address many of the issues that confront us today. Needless to say, it has not made me popular! When I am fearful about the repercussions of my speaking out I am continually brought back to confidence I have in the Lord to provide for me and protect my family. I understand why many remain silent, but I try to be constantly conscious of the day I stand before the Lord and imagine how I would explain myself for knowing to do the right thing and failing to do it!

Follow us on

Date published: 5/17/2009

Most recent reader comments: