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Saturday, July 09, 2011

GOP to Pick Challenger for Northam Senate Seat

Questions about the Republican candidates in Virginia's 6th Senate District contest are bubbling up as GOP delegates prepare to select the party's nominee Saturday.

Joanne Lapetina, an emergency room physician, and Ben Loyola, a Navy veteran and small-business owner, are trying to secure the right to challenge incumbent Sen. Ralph Northam, D-Norfolk. Delegates selected through party units will choose the nominee at a convention beginning at 1 p.m. at Masonic Lodge No. 1, 7001 Granby St.

Both candidates have similar conservative political beliefs, and now their campaigns are dealing with ancillary issues that include where they reside.

Each had to address whether they live in the district, which includes portions of Norfolk, a sliver of Virginia Beach, and all of the Eastern Shore and Mathews County.

Lapetina bills herself as an Ocean View native with deep roots in Norfolk, though some have noted her husband works for state government in the Richmond area and her children attend school there. She works for a Norfolk hospital and the family usually spends weekends together in Norfolk, according to her campaign.

Until recently, she was registered to vote in Richmond, though a spokeswoman said she typically cast absentee ballots because of her work schedule.

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