Robert F. Horan, Jr., who’s held the post of Commonwealth’s Attorney for 40 years will not run for re-election:
Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Robert F. Horan Jr. said this morning that he will not run for an 11th term as the county’s top prosecutor, ending a 40-year career in which he handled some of the most notorious criminal cases in the nation.
Horan, 74, phoned the chair of the Fairfax County Democratic Committee at 8:30 a.m. and said he would not be seeking reelection, then notified Fairfax Chief Circuit Court Judge Michael P. McWeeny.
“It’s time to go,” Horan said, noting that he agonized over it for the last month. “One day I was up, one day I was no. It’s been a hard decision.”
Horan said that his declining hearing troubled him, particularly when he was in bench conferences in the courtroom. He also said he wasn’t positive he was prepared to spend another four years in the job, even though he likely would have been unopposed for reelection this fall.
“To me, there’s no sense doing it unless I’m prepared to serve four years,” Horan said.
The decision suddenly creates a scramble for an elected position that Democrats have owned for decades. Both the Democratic and Republican parties have declared that the commonwealth’s attorney job would be open to primaries in June, and the filing deadline for those elections is this Friday at 5 p.m.
Horan’s chief deputy, Raymond F. Morrogh, said last week he would seek the Democratic nomination if Horan decided to step down. He resumed his search today for signatures on petitions to formalize his candidacy. He needs 125 registered voters to qualify.
The Republican party does not have a candidate yet, Fairfax Republican committee executive director Christian Curto said today. But even if they do not meet the Friday deadline for the primary, the party can still choose a candidate by other means, such as a convention or “firehouse primary.”
One wonders if it will matter. Morrough’s time as chief deputy will mean alot in November to the point where it may not matter who the Republicans put up for the spot.
