Virginia GOP aims to get back on winning track

The Republican Party is looking for more than a victory from Bob McDonnell in November.

It’s about reassurance, not only for a state party splintered by dissension but for a national party stung by a string of losses.

“It’s critical,” said Del. Steve Landes, R-Weyers Cave.

The gubernatorial race will be shaped Tuesday in the Democratic primary. Former Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe has led in most polls but state Sen. Creigh Deeds, of Bath County, has pulled ahead in one with the wire in sight. Former Del. Brian Moran, of Alexandria, trails both.

McDonnell, the former state attorney general, awaits the winner. He’s at the top of a unified GOP state ticket. Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling is seeking re-election. Ken Cuccinelli is vying to follow McDonnell as attorney general.

Republicans last won the governor’s race in 1997 and have lost both U.S. Senate seats during this decade.

The Republican National Committee and Chairman Michael Steele have thrown their weight behind McDonnell’s push to reclaim the governor’s mansion. Even before the Democratic contender has emerged from the primary, McDonnell’s campaign staff has aired television ads featuring a more relaxed McDonnell with his wife and family.

Republicans say it’s important that McDonnell didn’t have to fight for the party nomination the way Democrats have.

“There’s fire in the belly,” Landes said. “We are putting aside the differences and working for the common goal.”

A component still lacking for Republicans is a platform that will translate into victory, although McDonnell outlined part of an education reform plan on Friday.

The McDonnell reform package centers on charter schools, specialized high schools and a turnaround program for underperforming schools.

But more is needed, James Madison University political scientist Bob Roberts said.

“Republicans are not saying what the Democrats did wrong. They need to articulate that,” Roberts said.

Bolling alluded to Gov. Timothy M. Kaine’s overly optimistic budget forecasts during last week’s campaign kickoff. Those were preludes to budget gaps that had to be filled.

But McDonnell needs to say more, Roberts said.

“Where are you proposing to cut the budget?” Roberts asked. “They [Democrats] spent too much money, but what on?”

Roberts said it is clear that not enough money has been spent on Virginia’s roads.

“Both parties are in a box. Both parties won’t have enough money to do anything,” he said.

Roberts said it would be different if Republicans were running against the policies of President Barack Obama. But the state budget must be balanced each year.

“Most of the increased spending over the past two decades have been for roads and education,” Roberts said.

Even amid the struggle to mold a cogent platform, Republicans are buoyed, especially after last month’s convention in Richmond.

Landes said not only was the turnout strong, he witnessed a bigger tent of Republicans than he had seen before.

He saw Latinos, blacks and Asian-Americans at the convention.

“We’re not just a bunch of old white guys,” he said.

Waynesboro Republican Committee Chairman Chris Darden said the appeal of a statewide ticket can draw a wider range of voters.

Darden is particularly impressed with Cuccinelli, a staunch Fairfax County conservative who’s carved out a bloc of supporters in heavily Democratic Northern Virginia.

“He is going to tap into folks not on our radar, some younger voters,” Darden sid. “Here’s a guy they don’t have to question. He’s done a lot of great work with mental health issues and he will appeal to non-traditional voters.”

The question of who McDonnell will face is also important.

Both Deeds and Moran served with McDonnell in the state legislature, and would likely refrain from waging a nasty campaign.

McAuliffe, however, already has been on the attack.

He’ll need to break precedent to win. McAuliffe has never run for office, and no state governor in modern history was won without campaign experience, Landes said.

“Mark Warner and Linwood Holton had both run,” said Landes.

Holton, a Republican, was defeated in a 1965 race for governor, and won four years later. Warner lost a 1996 U.S. Senate bid against former Sen. John Warner before winning the governor’s race against Mark Earley in 2001.