You wouldn’t have known it around here, but there were primary elections in Virginia today, the most important one being the Democratic primary between James Webb and Harris Miller to decide who will face George Allen in the fall. And, it turns out it will be Allen vs. Webb:
Virginia Democrats yesterday chose Vietnam War hero James Webb to challenge Sen. George Allen (R), siding with their party’s national leadership, which had declared the former Republican to be the only candidate with a chance to beat Allen in November.
Webb’s support from Democratic senators such as 2004 presidential nominee John F. Kerry (Mass.) swamped the textbook campaign of his opponent, former lobbyist Harris Miller, who used $1 million of his own money to question Webb’s commitment to the Democratic Party’s core principles.
(…)
Webb tapped into national anger over the Iraq war and a desire among Democrats to reach out to moderates who have drifted to the Republican Party over social issues and national security. Webb captured almost two-thirds of the vote across the populous suburban counties in Northern Virginia.
Of course, it was success in Northern Virginia that put Tim Kaine in the statehouse last November, so, of course, there are those who would conclude that this could be bad news for George Allen in the fall. Including, apparently, the Blogfather himself.
I’m not so sure, especially after reading this:
The springtime squabble between Democrats produced a near-record low turnout that a state election official described as “dismal.” Polling places across Virginia reported being empty for long stretches, even though voting was open to all of the state’s 4.5 million registered voters.
In other words, Webb’s apparent success in Northern Virginia is meaningless because it isn’t nearly representative of the region as a whole. NoVa may be more liberal than the rest of the Commonwealth, but George Allen remains popular statewide, and its going to be hard to unseat him.
Webb now faces the challenge of raising millions of dollars in an attempt to oust Allen, a popular ex-governor who is considering a bid for the presidency in 2008. Allen has more than $7.5 million in the bank and a long history of winning in a state that usually votes for Republicans in federal contests.
It will, no doubt, be a contest, but I’d still put my money on George Allen.
June 14th, 2006 at 9:08 am
My wife and I didn’t vote in yesterday’s primary, KNOWING we’ll be voting for whoever runs against Allen in November. Here’s hoping Allen gets to spend his full time on his quixotic 08 campaign–not that I wouldn’t LOVE for him to be the 08 GOP candidate.
June 14th, 2006 at 12:42 pm
[...] In the wake of yesterday’s victory by James Webb in the Virginia Democratic primary, several people have weighed in with comments and speculation on what could become the race to watch in 2006. [...]