Virginia voters to select new governor Tuesday : NPR
Virginia voters will elect a new governor Tuesday, as the state’s Democratic lawmakers also prepare to redraw the congressional map to counter Republican redistricting efforts.
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Virginia voters choose a governor. The elections end on Tuesday. Some things are normal here. These are off-year elections, and these elections tend to tilt against the party in power at the national level. Virginia’s race also had some surprises. For example, many Virginia voters are furloughed due to the government shutdown. Text messages from the Democratic nominee for attorney general have shaken this race, and Democrats say they intend to redraw Virginia’s congressional map to counter President Trump’s bid to retain Congress. VPM News’ Jahd Khalil reports on the final week of the campaign in Richmond.
JAHD KHALIL, BYLINE: On Monday afternoon, the Virginia Capitol’s six white columns stand under a gray sky. Before them is Virginia Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears. She is the Republican candidate for governor this year.
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WINSOME EARLE-SEARS: Well, okay.
KHALIL: A small crowd holds signs, Winsome for Governor. But the Republican says it’s not a campaign event because Lt. Gov. Earle-Sears is leading the Senate proceedings.
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EARLE-SEARS: I stand here today not as a candidate, nor on the campaign trail, but as lieutenant governor, fulfilling my oath to speak for the people in our great Senate chamber and to uphold the principles that make Virginia strong.
KHALIL: Democrats who control the Legislature have called a SNAP meeting. It was a reaction to Trump’s efforts to get Republican-led states to redraw their congressional maps with a Republican advantage before the midterm elections. Earle-Sears says she prefers to talk to voters.
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EARLE-SEARS: It’s no surprise that this political takeover comes a week before the election. They want to hear from us, from our own mouths, what we do. They want to touch us and, you know, all that good stuff. And unfortunately, I can’t do it. But you know who can? Abigail Spanberger will still be able to be on the campaign trail.
KHALIL: Abigail Spanberger is a former congresswoman and the Democratic nominee. As Earle-Sears spoke, Spanberger was on a bus tour of southwest Virginia. It’s one of the reddest areas in the state and about as far from Richmond as you can get. It’s difficult to know what kind of effect the Republican’s withdrawal from the campaign trail may have had on the race.
Henry Chambers Jr. is a professor of constitutional law at the University of Richmond. He says strong candidates need to hit the ground running, with volunteers and staff knocking on doors and talking to voters.
HENRY CHAMBERS JR: I’m not sure that the candidate himself necessarily has to be there to campaign.
KHALIL: Earle-Sears isn’t the only one being removed from the campaign trail. All 100 seats in the House of Delegates are up for election, and incumbent Republicans and Democrats are in tight races.
CHAMBERS: I imagine some people will feel a little bit – they’ll feel a little bit like cats on a hot tin roof.
KHALIL: Before lawmakers announced a redistricting meeting, about a million Virginians had already voted. Republicans argue that these early voters were not given the opportunity to consider redistricting efforts when they cast their ballots.
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MORGAN GRIFFITH: I submit to you that they should have done it before the election started.
KHALIL: Congressman Morgan Griffith is one of the Republican members who could see their districts turn against them next fall.
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GRIFFITH: If they put a constitutional amendment on the table, you had the opportunity as a voter to throw the bums out.
KHALIL: A new congressional map in Virginia could give Democrats two additional seats. But it would also have to be adopted during the next legislature, then submitted to voters in the spring. Spanberger, who has a comfortable lead in the polls and a well-funded campaign, has not said she supports the redistricting effort, but a spokesperson for her campaign provided a statement to NPR. TaNisha Cameron said Spanberger thought it was prudent for lawmakers to keep all possible options open and that she looked forward to future discussions.
For NPR News, I’m Jahd Khalil in Richmond.
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