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GOP Congressman Declines Debate Over Alleged Bias

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NORFOLK, Va. (AP) - A Republican congressman in Virginia has pulled out of a debate with his Democratic challenger because he says the public radio station hosting the forum is biased.

U.S. Rep. Scott Taylor said Tuesday that he looks forward to debating Democrat Elaine Luria sometime this fall. But he said it won't be on Norfolk-based WHRO-TV or its sister news station WHRV-FM.

WHRV-FM broke the story that Taylor's campaign staff gathered signatures to help put independent candidate Shaun Brown on the ballot. The effort is viewed as a strategy to split the Democratic vote in Virginia's 2nd Congressional District.

A criminal investigation began last week into possibly forged signatures submitted by Taylor's staff on Brown's behalf. Democrats filed a lawsuit on Monday to remove Brown from the race.

Don Rush is the News Director and Senior Producer of News and Public Affairs at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.