Two big retirement announcements today by hard-right Virginia Republicans: 1) Del. Steve Landes (R-HD25; see tweet by @JFair_reports, below); and 2) State Sen. Bill Carrico (R-SD40). Also note that Del. Todd Pillion (R-HD04) has announced (see press release, below) that he’s running for Sen. Carrico’s seat.
Per Project Vote Smart, Landes is hard-right (e.g., mostly zero ratings from NARAL and Planned Parenthood, 87% lifetime score from the American Conservative Union, 100% score from the extremist Family Foundation of Virginia), as are Carrico (again, zeroes from NARAL and Planned Parenthood, 100% from the Virginia Citizens Defense League, 100% from the Family Foundation of Virginia; also see Video: Far-Right VA State Senator Sponsors Bible Study Bill, Says He Wouldn’t Want Koran Taught, Walks Out on Muslim Prayer) and Pillion (mostly zeroes from NARAL, 100% from the Virginia Citizens Defense League, 83% from the American Conservative Union).
Unfortunately, these folks all represent bright-“red” districts: Carrico’s was won by Ed Gillespie 77%-22% and by Donald Trump 78%-19%; Landes’ was won by Gillespie 57%-41% and by Trump 59%-35%; and Pillion’s was won by Gillespie 75%-24% and by Trump 77%-20%. Which is why I agree with @ChazNuttycombe’s analysis: “With that, ANOTHER retirement in the House of Delegates today as Todd Pillion runs for State Senate to replace Bill Carrico. Both are Safe R races.”
P.S. Even though the two retirements are both in deep-“red” districts, it’s possible that the potential loss of the State Senate and House of Delegates to Democrats this November could have factored into the thinking of these two guys. I mean, if they were considering getting out of Dodge anyway, the prospect of being in the minority next year might have been just another nudge for them to bolt. We’ll see if other Republicans, such as State Sen. Frank Wagner, also decide to head for the exits…
P.P.S. Check this out from @cvillenews_desk: “Del. Steve Landes will not seek a 13th term representing the 25th District. He’s running for Augusta County clerk of circuit court, which pays $138K compared to $17,640 for part-time job in General Assembly.” Can we say “much bigger pension?”
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Julia Fair @JFair_reports 4 minutes ago
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