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Fahey has Senate run in his sights By PETER WONG GRANTS PASS -- Pat Fahey has not run for public office before, but he wants to succeed the man he helped elect state senator from parts of Jackson and Josephine counties seven years ago. He has the endorsement of Senate President Brady Adams, a Republican from Grants Pass, who represents District 25 in southwest Jackson County and most of Josephine County. Adams is barred by term limits from running again. To underscore his endorsement, Adams took part in a campaign event last week for Fahey, part owner of Southern Oregon Sanitation. "I am diabetic, so I am not here for dessert," Adams said. "Pat will do a great job." The May 16, 2000, primary for the Republican nomination is shaping up as a contest between Fahey and state Rep. Jason Atkinson of Jacksonville, who said he expects to announce his plans this week. Republicans have a registration advantage over Democrats of 11 percentage points. A majority of district voters live in Josephine County. Fahey, who managed Adams' successful primary and general election campaigns for an open Senate seat in 1992, pledged to continue Adams' moderate and personable approach. "I am a straightforward guy," Fahey said. "I am not afraid to say things that are not politically correct. But I do not take myself too seriously." He said despite social issues on which Republicans and the public are split, "first and foremost is the business of the state." His campaign co-chairmen are Bill Haden, chief executive officer of Valley of the Rogue Bank, and Giff Gates of Gates Furniture in Grants Pass. Except for seven years as an accountant in the San Francisco Bay Area, Fahey has lived in Southern Oregon. He is a fifth-generation Oregonian, his mother's ancestors having settled between Williams and Jacksonville more than a century ago. His father founded the sanitation company he is part owner and general manager of today. He graduated from Grants Pass High School in 1975 and earned a degree in accounting from Southern Oregon University in 1979. Though he has not held public office, the 42-year-old Fahey has had community involvements similar to what Adams had before his 1992 election. Fahey is on an advisory board for Rogue Community College, heads the board for Community Bank in Grants Pass, and is a past board member of the Grants Pass Rotary. He is a past president of the Oregon Refuse and Recycling Association. He and his wife, Susan, have three children -- Nick, 17; Tina, 14; and Grant, 11. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA