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By Rob Seal / rseal@dailyprogress.com | 978-7265
November 6, 2007

Albemarle County will have a new top prosecutor for the first time in 16 years.

Democratic challenger and local defense attorney Denise Lunsford unseated four-term incumbent Republican Jim Camblos by about 1,400 votes, taking 53 percent of the ballots, according to unofficial results posted Tuesday night.

Reached by telephone at the Aberdeen Barn after the results were in, Lunsford said the win "felt great."

"This is really an affirmation of all the work my team and I have done over the past nine months," she said.

Camblos could not be reached as of press time.

The race between the two had been heated, with Lunsford questioning her opponent's competency and ability to fairly and consistently prosecute cases.

On Tuesday night, she said her first order of business in transitioning into her new role as the county's top prosecutor would be to analyze how the office currently runs, observing court cases and talking to current staff members.

"I want to start sitting in court and seeing how they are handling things," Lunsford said. "I want to start talking to the staff and see where they think things needs to change."

She said she hopes to keep the existing assistant prosecutors, many of whom she said she has known for years.

"There's an excellent staff of existing prosecutors and I would like to work with them as long as they are willing to work with me," Lunsford said. "These are people that I've known for a long time that I know and respect as attorneys."

Camblos first took office in 1992 and was last opposed in the 1995 election. Lunsford said he called to concede Tuesday night around 9 p.m.

"He wished me luck," Lunsford said.