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National and Virginia News Headlines: Wednesday Morning

By
lowkell
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2

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Wednesday, June 3. As for the graphic, see this Wonkblog story for more, including this demolition of any equivalency between the “two sides” (as lazy/irresponsible “journalists” and politicians often claim): “in the most recent Congress nearly 90 percent of Republican House members are not politically moderate. By contrast, 90 percent of Democratic members are moderates.” That’s right, almost every Democratic politician these days is politically “moderate” (e.g., where the majority of Americans are on issue after issue), while almost every Republican politician is NOT politically “moderate” (e.g., they are NOT where the majority of Americans are on issue after issue). Case closed. This is also why Congress can’t get stuff done, not because “both sides” are “bickering” with each other, “both sides” are “too partisan,” blah blah blah. Nope, it’s only ONE side – the Republican Party – that’s gone off the deep end – while Democrats have stayed right down the middle. Anyone who says differently either knows nothing about American politics, circa 2015, or is flat-out lying.

*Congress rolls back a post-9/11 spy program (“The USA Freedom Act, which President Obama signed into law late Tuesday, will end the NSA’s bulk collection of phone data after a six-month transition period and retool other surveillance policies.”)

*FIFA president resigns, but remains focus of probe

*Republican senators hold Congress hostage to their ambition (“It is no small irony that Republicans are running for president by proving that their party can’t govern.”)

*This astonishing chart shows how moderate Republicans are an endangered species (“Political scientists have known for years that political polarization is largely a one-sided phenomenon: in recent decades the Republican Party has moved to the right much faster than Democrats have moved to the left. “)

*DNC’s Mo Elleithee to step down, head new Georgetown politics institute (Good luck to Mo!)

*How Mitch McConnell Tried-and Failed-to Weaken NSA Reform

*Virginia justices to hear execution secrecy case

*Virginia, Ancestry, digitize 16 million records

*Incumbents enjoy donations’ edge; cash doesn’t stop when they’re unopposed (“In one of the few states with no limit on campaign finance donations, even incumbents without challengers can roll in the dough”)

*Va. GOP meets fundraising goal but remains in debt amid infighting (“The party is in rebuilding mode after former House majority leader Eric Cantor’s loss last year.”)

*Governor’s office announces appointments to Virginia Tech, Radford University boards

*Clean Water Rule benefits the bay

*McMurtrie, Gecker boost their own coffers ahead of June 9 primary

*Arlington: 45th District Candidates Struggle To Out-Democrat Each Other (“Democratic primary candidates find differences on education and environment”)

*Schapiro: Voice of racial reconciliation stilled in Southside — for now

*Environmental group pushes for air monitoring in Southeast Community

*Land swap in Fairfax: Regional thirst for water trumps residents’ concerns

*Alexandria mayoral candidates outline priorities at debate

*Norfolk council late to learn of changes to school plans

*At 11th hour, D.C. United considers ditching Washington for Virginia

*Squirrels face “uncertain” future because of ballpark situation

*D.C. area forecast: Damp and dreary with summer gone missing; warmer this weekend

DPVA: Strong Fundraising Numbers Show Growing Democratic Momentum in Key State Races

By
lowkell
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0

From DPVA:

June 2, 2015

TO: Reporters, interested parties
FROM: Morgan Finklelstein, Democratic Party of Virginia
RE:Strong Fundraising Numbers Show Growing Democratic Momentum in Key State Races

Democratic efforts to re-take the Senate and make gains in the House of Delegates were bolstered by strong fundraising numbers posted in the latest pre-primary filing report. As we approach the June 9th primary and look ahead to the general election, there is clear support for the Democratic message of creating good jobs, protecting our children’s education, and supporting critical transportation investments. The Republican strategy — extreme attacks on women’s rights, restricting access to voting and denying quality healthcare to hundreds of thousands of Virginians — is falling behind. 


Here's a few key takeaways from last night's reports.


1. Democratic incumbents are in good shape.

  • Senator Lynwood Lewis has a 3-to-1 cash advantage over his challenger, both for this filing period and overall cash-on-hand.

  • Senator John Edwards erased the gains made by his challenger in Q1, outraising her by over $32,000 for this report.
  • In SD-1, challenger Mark Matney continued to be a non-factor as Senator John Miller easily outraised him.

2. Democratic challengers are performing in crucial races that will determine control of the Senate.

  • In SD-13, Leesburg pediatrician Dr. Jill McCabe outraised Dick Black for the second report in a row, pulling in nearly $100,000 in the two-month reporting period.

  • In Virginia Beach, Gary McCollum continues to be the top performing challenger in the Commonwealth from any party, easily clearing $100,000 on top of last quarter's incredible $250,000 haul.
  • Mayor Kim Adkins, running in SD-20, outraised Senator Bill Stanley this quarter by almost $10,000 and is keeping pace in cash-on-hand.

3. Virginia Republicans are missing crucial opportunities in seats with contested Democratic primaries.
As Democratic primaries take place in Senate Districts 10 and 29, the Republicans' chosen candidates are falling behind and already stumbling out of the gate for the general election.

  • Hal Parrish, after taking center stage in a bizarre anti-choice zoning debacle in Manassas, spent more than he raised this period.
  • Glen Sturtevant only has $72,000 cash on hand, far below expectations.

4. Democratic House contenders are contending.
It's not just good news in the Senate — strong House of Delegates candidates have built an impressive foundation heading into the general election. Some noteworthy House numbers:

  • Delegate Kathleen Murphy (HD-34) raised $66,016, more than $24,000 ahead of her opponent. She was also recently endorsed by the Fairfax Chamber of Commerce’s Political Action Committee.
  • Jennifer Boysko (HD-86 candidate) raised $56,834, bringing her total to nearly five times that of her opponent with significantly more of it from small donors.
  • John Bell (HD-87 candidate) turned heads with a resounding entrance into the race, pulling in over $50,000 in less than three weeks. 

Across the board, Democratic legislators and candidates are in a strong position heading into the general election. 

Video: “Not Larry Sabato” Virginia Primary Predictions

By
lowkell
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2

(UPDATE: I contacted Ben because they didn’t talk about the 29th State Senate District Democratic primary, which is super important. Ben says Atif Qarni has the edge, but that turnout will be SUPER low (“lowest of all the races by far”) and “anything can happen if turnout is that low.” I agree. – promoted by lowkell)

Ben “Not Larry Sabato” Tribbett’s makes his predictions for next Tuesday on “The Inside Scoop” with Catherine S. Read.

Arlington County Board Democratic primary: “Really four very credible candidates”: Katie Cristol – “only woman who’s running…endorsed by the Washington Post;” Peter Fallon – has “put together a real campaign organization,” also got the Washington Post endorsement and backed my major Arlington legislators; Andrew Schneider – “ran for House of Delegates last year unsuccessfully”;  Christian Dorsey – “part of the Libby Garvey coalition, but…has his own following that’s very deep in the community.” Will be “very close four-way finish for two spots.”

45th House of Delegates Democratic primary: Will probably come down to either Julie Jakopic or Craig Fifer, “with maybe Clarence [Tong] still being in the game because of the amount of money he spent,” but Tong’s campaign “has been underwhelming.” Ben also says the perception is that Fifer is now the favorite because of the Washington Post endorsement. There’s also the Alexandria Mayor’s primary will drive turnout that will be “persuadable” for the delegates’ candidates.

Mt. Vernon District Democratic primary: In Ben’s view, there are two “credible candidates” – Tim Sargeant and Dan Storck. Neither Jack Dobbyn or Candice Bennett (“will probably finish in last place”), in Ben’s view, have run “much of a campaign.” In the closing days of this race, “most people are going to rally behind one of the two candidates” (Storck or Sargeant) who can win. “Major fissures in the Democratic Party” are playing out in this race, which in Ben’s view will be a “very competitive race down to election day.” In the end, Ben thinks Storck will pull it out, in part due to Del. Scott Surovell’s endorsement.

Alexandria Mayor: Ben thinks Allison Silberberg will probably finish in “a distant third” (last place), while it comes down to either Bill Euille or Kerry Donley. Ben also predicts 8% voter turnout in this race.

Mason District Democratic primary: Incumbent Supervisor Penny Gross vs. community activist Jessica Swanson, “looked to me like it would be a major blowout for Penny early on,” but Swanson has come on strong with fundraising lately (although much of it’s from one group). “Penny is the overwhelming favorite, though,” where 7 Corners area is “very choppy for Penny,” but outside of that could carry 75%-80% of the vote.

10th State Senate district Democratic primary: First competitive open seat in a non-“majority minority” seat in a while in the Richmond area. Ben says Gov. McAuliffe et al. are “overreading to try to put up a more conservative southern-style Democrat like we would have 25 years ago, instead of putting up a more progressive candidate.” What will happen, in Ben’s view, is that “the governor will win the primary…voters will take the governor’s recommendation…end of game, whether or not it was the correct thing to do.”  Ben also says Francis has “not been out there online,” has not been on Blue Virginia or active on social media, hasn’t been a great campaign. (note: I hope Ben’s wrong on this race, but an very concerned he could be right; I also agree that Francis’ campaign should have been all over social media, as she’s almost THE prototypical candidate – progressive, environmentalist  – with an unappealing opponent to garner significant netroots support)

Fairfax County School Board: Could the issue of transgender nondiscrimnination policy debate cause serious problems for Democrats in November (by firing up the conservative base)? Ben thinks “it could ignite” the conservative base, but it was critically important to give transgender kids protections and support that they badly need. Ben thinks the School Board made “one big strategic error” to not have more speakers, because a lot of the people opposed to the transgender protections “were nuts…and they should have let every single one of those people walk up to the microphone and testify so the public could see who was fighting against it…you WANT them to talk.”

Very interesting perspectives and predictions from Ben “Not Larry Sabato” as always!

Top Arlington Politicos Predict County Board, 45th House of Delegates Primary Results

By
lowkell
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2

The other day, I emailed a couple dozen Arlington County elected officials and top politicos for their thoughts on who will win next Tuesday in the County Board Democratic and 45th House of Delegates Democratic primaries.  Here are the mean predictions, with a few interesting comments by the politicos. I promised everyone that I would not reveal their identities, to encourage them to respond honestly, so don’t even bother asking me. 🙂

With that, first here are the predictions for Arlington County Board. As you can see, Christian Dorsey is the consensus favorite for the top slot, with Peter Fallon and Andrew Schneider battling out for second place, and Katie Cristol barely off the pace in fourth place. The consensus is that James Lander will finish fifth, and all respondents picked Bruce Wiljanen sixth.

In terms of variability, 12 out of 19 respondents picked Dorsey either first or second; four people picked Peter Fallon first, four picked him second, six picked him third, three picked him fourth, and one picked him fifth; four people picked Andrew Schneider coming in first, five picked him second, three picked him third, five picked him fourth, and one picked him fifth; one person picked Katie Cristol first, six picked her second, four picked her third, four picked her fourth, and four picked her fifth; eleven picked James Lander fifth, five picked him fourth, and two picked him second; everyone picked Bruce Wiljanen sixth.

Here are a few interesting comments jumped out at me.

*”2-4 could be very close in the Arlington County Board race (within 5 points).”

*”The CB primary is a total crapshoot. The only thing I’m pretty confident of is Wiljanen finishing last. After that, all of these candidates could finish in any order and I wouldn’t be surprised. Having said that, this is going to be a super low turnout election which probably favors candidates with support in north Arlington a little bit.”

*”Could be wishful thinking on my part that Libby’s candidate doesn’t win. (Dorsey may be a great guy but jumping in to the Libby camp with both feet cuts both ways. I know a LOT of people that aren’t going to vote for him based on that alone.)”

*”Fallon seems to have everyone supporting him with many believing he’s earned it…so its hard to not see him being the top vote getter..I struggled to pick between Cristol and Schneider for second vote getter – I think both are running good campaigns (though I’ve only received mail from one of them.) However, because Lander is the only elected, he should have good name ID and could surprise people by sneaking into the second spot in a low turnout election.”

*”Unfortunately for him, I think Andrew squandered away some of his money by having two mail pieces hit before the school board caucus, which many voters probably lost in the mix. His mail has also been fairly plain and unimpressive. However, I think he still probably will have enough support through his personal networks to carry him to the finish line.”

*”A couple weeks ago I would have put Peter in a close third. However, he too has squandered an opportunity in the mail. Peter has run twice before, and voters clearly didn’t like him. Granted this is a primary, but the way Peter wins is by getting people to give him their second vote because voters trust either Patrick Hope, Barbara Favola, or Rip Sullivan. However, foolishly Peter’s first two pieces didn’t have anything about this endorsements on them…he should be reinforcing that support on every piece.”

*”Katie Crisol benefits from being the only woman on the ballot, and with Mary Hynes leaving the board, many voters will want to replace a woman on the board, and Katie is their only option. Katie has also proven to be a serious candidate, and the Washington Post endorsement was a huge validation. The question is whether she is able to get a piece in the mail about it before the election.”

*”More than any other election in recent memory, it’s vital that candidates staff the polls. Many people will be persuadable on their second choice, and a well-organized team could help put a candidate over the top.”

*”I think Schneider is enough people’s second vote (and a lot of people’s first vote) that he ends up in the pole position. However, I think it is an unsettled field – and I could see any number of permutations emerging.”

*”I think Dorsey is (and will continue to be) hurt by the Garvey connection. And I think Cristol will fall away as more people take a closer look at her experience (lack of). Fallon has gotten good endorsements (including your own) but I’m not sure how that will translate (he could end up doing well and I would not be surprised) and whether he can move beyond some of the housing/social programs support in the Hope/Favola camp. Lander may benefit from name recognition and from second place votes – and a sense among Democrats that for his shortcomings he has done pretty well as chairman and has taken the Board in a different direction that Abby.”

*”It’s still a very unsettled political landscape in Arlington and the only thing that seems certain is that we won’t have much clarity until after the votes on counted on June 9…”

*”I don’t think that is automatic to November once the two nominees are selected. I would not discount the potential for [Republican] Mike McMenamin to be a serious challenger for a seat. ”

*”I think the difference between Schneider, Lander, and Cristol will be less than 100 votes. My ‘darkhorse’ favorite for a second seat is Cristol because she seems to be a lot of folks’ second choice and perhaps is least associated with any particular “camp” in Arlington politics. If enough folks find her refreshing she’ll claim the number two spot.”

*Dorsey – “despite his association with Peter Rousselot and Libby Garvey, he’s got a lot going for him and he is so eager.”

*Fallon – Will finish third because “old fogies vote but probably not in large enough numbers.”

*Schneider – Will finish second “because he’s got deep roots in Arlington and these people will vote.”

*Cristol – Will finish fifth; “leaving the forum tonight, heard a couple wondering where she works – dazzling performance but we still don’t know enough about her.”

Now for the 45th House of Delegates Democratic primary.

By far and away, Julie Jakopic and Craig Fifer got the most votes to finish first or second and ended up essentially tied (the tiniest edge to Fifer, but definitely too close to call), with Clarence Tong the only other candidate getting any votes to finish first or second. Everyone predicted Mark Levine to finish third or fourth, and almost everyone predicted Larry Altenburg to finish fifth, with one each for third and fourth place.

A few comments that jumped out at me were:

*”I think Fifer has run the best campaign – solid fundraising, good endorsements, good team behind him – he should win. However, if EMILY’s List really engages for Julie, they could make the difference for her lackluster campaign. It’s possible that Clarence with all of his money could make an impact, but he just seems to not be connecting with people.”

*”Julie got off to a slow start, but I hear she’s picked up the fundraising and really kicked into gear. Also, in a non-IRV, 5-way primary, the winning number could be as low as 35%. Between her deep ties to the district and Rob Krupicka’s endorsement, it’s hard to imagine her not being able to hit that.”

*”Craig Fifer has also done well in the fundraising department and should be able to communicate with voters. His job with the City of Alexandria and endorsement from Adam Ebbin helps, but he doesn’t have the roots Julie has and, as the 8th CD primary showed us, Adam Ebbin isn’t terribly popular– even in his own district! He won less than 1,500 votes in the 14 Alexandria precincts in the 45th, and the Congressional primary turnout was definitely higher than it will be on June 9th.”

*”Clarence Tong has run an impressive field game, but it’s not clear where his votes would come from. He’s raised an impressive amount of money, but it’s not clear that will translate into votes.”

*”Just like the Congressional race, Mark Levine will once again demonstrate that voters are too smart to allow someone to buy their way into elected office. Maybe if Mark had spent more time working to help other Democrats and build the party before dropping $70k into his own Delegate race he would have some institutional support.”

*”Larry Altenburg might be able to turn out some people through his own personal network, but with less than $2k raised last quarter it’s hart to see how he’ll be able to communicate with anybody beyond his own personal network.“

National and Virginia News Headlines: Tuesday Morning

By
lowkell
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6

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Tuesday, June 2. Also see the video of yesterday’s press conference near Memorial Bridge “to urge Congress to pass a bipartisan, long-term federal transportation bill that makes critical investments in America’s aging infrastructure.”

*Another tortured effort by the GOP to help itself with minorities (“In place of a Republican salute to black music, a limp handshake.”)

*U.S. Supreme Court rules for Muslim woman denied job at clothing store

*Supreme Court throws out conviction for violent Facebook postings (I’m not sure I understand this ruling at all.)

*Lindsey Graham has a plan to win the GOP nomination. If it works, it’d be a first.

*Rick Santorum joins GOP’s anti-Constitution crusade: Why the right’s homophobic freakout could have major consequences

*Politifact: Gov. McAuliffe hardly making progress on land conservation pledge

*Our view: What the regulators want to hear (“FERC is holding what are called ‘scoping meetings’ to solicit public input on the two proposed pipelines – to basically scope out the lay of the land, so to speak.”)

*Panel raises questions about role of ABC enforcement

*Howell raises half a million (“Virginia House Speaker William J. Howell has a dominant cash advantage over his tea party rival in the run-up to the June 9 primary election, though his opponent is getting help from big names in national politics.”)

*In topsy turvy Loudoun, outgoing chairman may run again after all

*Local officials call for increased infrastructure funding for Memorial Bridge

*Fairfax attorney who faced firing over Geer case will stay employed after all

*Virginia Beach police say dog bound, burned alive (Whoever did this needs to go to jail for a loooong time, as they are dangerous psychopaths.)

*Land sales, apartment deals could be boost for Portsmouth

*D.C. area forecast: Cool and wet dominate until a weekend warm-up

Video: Final Democratic Debate for Arlington County Board Primary; 1 Week to Go

By
lowkell
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22

See below and in the comments section for video from last night’s final Arlington County Board Democratic debate. The first video is a question on what the candidates’ perceived weakeness are and how they would address those.

Dan Gecker’s Pal Kathleen Willey Trashes Bill and Hillary Clinton

By
lowkell
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0

For Democratic voters in the Virginia 10th State Senate district, just keep in mind that Dan Gecker, inexplicably endorsed by close Clinton friend Terry McAuliffe, has been tightly connected to Kathleen Willey for years, was even her attorney during the Clinton impeachment hearings, when both Gecker and Willey were working hard to drive Bill Clinton from office. As if that’s not bad enough, Gecker also said he wasn’t sure he would vote to reelect Barack Obama in 2012, dropped the “D” and ran as an “I,” and also noted that his political hero is Ronald Reagan. Why on EARTH would any Democrat vote for Dan Gecker? Also, is Dan Gecker ever going to dissasociate himself from this relentless Clinton hater or what?

National and Virginia News Headlines: Monday Morning

By
lowkell
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6

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Monday, June 1. Also see the tributes for Beau Biden by the Senate Majority and Minority leaders.

*Krugman: That 1914 Feeling (” Even in the short run, the financial safeguards that would supposedly contain the effects of a Greek exit have never been tested, and could well fail. Beyond that, Greece is, like it or not, part of the European Union, and its troubles would surely spill over to the rest of the union even if the financial bulwarks hold.”)

*Newsflash: It’s Going To Be Hillary vs. Jeb (“Can we all stop pretending that there’s any real suspense in this presidential race?”)

*Paul foils efforts to extend some NSA programs (The problem is this guy’s a far right-wing extremist who also believes the U.S. is going to invade Texas and other crazy conspiracy theory crap.)

*GOP senators tear into Paul (“One fellow Republican accuses him of ‘lying’ about government surveillance to get more campaign donations.”)

*Bernie Sanders isn’t the problem: Insane NYT op-ed gets the Democratic Party entirely wrong (“Echoing a right-wing talking point, an NYT op-ed ignores history and says the Dems have gone too far left”)

*Scott Walker just can’t win: How the religious right’s extremism is sabotaging his chances (“No matter how far to the right the Wisconsin governor goes, it will never be enough for a Republican base gone mad”)

*Major rule changes proposed for pre-trial discovery in criminal cases

*Expensive mockery of democracy in Virginia (“The absurdity of the boundaries designating Virginia’s 3rd Congressional District are apparent to anyone: The district starts in Norfolk, swings west to Portsmouth, jumps the harbor to Hampton, snakes through neighborhoods in Newport News, straddles the James River through Surry and Charles City counties, hooks westward to capture Petersburg and stretches, finally, into Richmond.”)

*For now, Scott stays out of redistricting legal battle (“A legal battle is raging over whether U.S. Rep. Bobby Scott’s district has too many black voters – but Scott, the state’s lone black congressman, is sitting on the sidelines”)

*With key elections ahead, Virginia Democrats under McAuliffe spend big (“The governor’s committee and state party have spent $1.8 million on staff and consultants since January 2014.”)

*In Loudoun, a cloud of disrepute

*4 Democrats compete in Fairfax’s sometimes divided Mount Vernon district (Current Supervisor Gerry Hyland “has not endorsed any of the candidates and did not respond to requests for comment on the election.”)

*Bullpen falters as Nationals are swept by Reds

*Heavy storms possible late today

Video: 45th House of Delegates District Democratic Debate (5/31/15)

By
lowkell
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15

The debate this afternoon for the 45th House of Delegates district Democratic nomination was put on by the Mt. Vernon  District Democratic Committee, and ably moderated by Matt Bell. Below, and also in the comments section, please see video from the debate (the first question was on the top priority each candidate would have as delegate). The candidates are (L-R) Craig Fifer, Clarence Tong, Larry Altenburg, Mark Levine and Julie Jakopic. In my view, these are all smart, articulate candidates – they certainly all performed well today! – really an “embarrassment of riches” in many ways, and also a tough choice for voters on June 9 (and for me in terms of who to endorse, if anyone)!

Top 11 Virginia Primaries I’ll Be Following Most Closely on June 9

By
lowkell
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0

There will be numerous primaries for the Virginia General Assembly and for local office (County Board, School Board, Mayor, etc.) on June 9. Here are the top eleven (note: I was going to do ten, but realized I needed to squeeze in one more) I’ll be watching, in reverse order of how much I care about the particular election. How about you?

11. Senate District 11 Republican primary: Can right winger Amanda Chase take advantage of her endorsement by the Republican Times-Disgrace Richmond Times-Dispatch today and knock off incumbent Sen. Steve Martin, one of the most bigoted and extreme members of the Virginia General Assembly (see, for instance, Virginia State Sen. Steve Martin: Muslim Americans Shouldn’t be Protected by U.S. Constitution and “Child’s Host” State Senator: Torture Justified “no matter what body parts are lost in the process”). Again, this is a safe Republican district, so it’s not interersting from that perspective.

10. House District 28 Republican primary: I would have rated this one higher, but I find it hard to believe that Tea Partier Susan Stimpson will defeat House Spaker Bill “ALEC” Howell. It sure would be hilarious if she did. Also, a Stimpson victory is probably the only chance for Democratic nominee Kandy Hilliard in November. So…go Stimpson! 😉

9. Senate District 12 Republican primary: I’ll be fascinated to see if Siobhan Stolle Dunnavant can defeat Bill Janis after this debacle by Dunnavant. This is a safe Republican seat, so it’s not interesting from that perspective.

8. Senate District 16 Democratic primary: I’m rooting for Rosalyn Dance over the this guy (Joe Preston), who among other problems answered “undecided” to a slew of questions, including ones on important/hot-button issues like whether or not to support a “personhood” amendment (that would, effectively, ban abortion, as well as many forms of contraception, embryonic stem cell research, etc.), what he thinks about “physician-assisted suicide,” “Common Core” educational standards, and a constitutional amendment requiring a 2/3 majority to impose new or increased taxes/fees.  I mean, how on earth can you be running for State Senate and be undecided on these important matters? Not serious. Also, Democrats need to make sure the nominee from this district defeats Independent slimeball Joe Morrissey in November, and Rosalyn Dance is the best one to do that.

7. House District 79 Democratic primary: It would be awesome to see Democrat Steve Heretick knock off the utterly egregious DINO Johnny Joannou, at long last, although Joannou has certainly proven that he’s not easy to beat (for whatever reason). The bottom line is that there’s no excuse to have such a godawful faux-“Democrat” in a safe “blue” district like this one. Right, 79th HoD district Democratic voters?!?

6. Alexandria Mayor Democratic Primary: The three candidates include one current Mayor (Bill Euille), one former Mayor (Kerry Donley) and one current Vice Mayor (Allison Silberberg). This one could also be super close, and could have important ramifications for Alexandria’s future…

5. Mt. Vernon District (Fairfax County) Supervisor Democratic primary: There are four candidates in this one –Dominion “Global Warming Starts Here!” Power executive Tim Sargeant, Dan Storck, Jack Dobbyn and Candice Bennett. Most elected officials appear to have lined up for either Storck (e.g., most of his fellow School Board members, Del. Scott Surovell) or Sargeant (Sen. Toddy Puller), and I’m hearing the outcome could be super close. Stay tuned…

4. House District 45 Democratic primary: This five-candidate race is to succeed Del. Rob Krupicka (D), who is stepping down in favor of doughnuts (can’t say I blame him!). While this race will not determine the balance of control in the overwhelmingly Republican House of Delegates, nor is the general election outcome in any doubt given the overwhelmingly “blue” nature of the district, it’s a fascinating race featuring several strong progressive candidates.

3. Arlington County Board Democratic primary: A five-way race for TWO open seats on the Arlington County Board, between Katie Cristol, Christian Dorsey, Peter Fallon, James Lander, Andrew Schneider and Bruce Wiljanen. This one could be super close and have important consequences for the future of Arlington. I’m rating this so high because I find it interesting, of course, but also because I live in Arlington. 🙂

2. Senate District 10 Democratic primary: I’m pulling for progressive and environmentalist Emily Francis to win, and for the disloyal DINO Dan Gecker to lose. This primary is super important, because Democrats have to pick up this seat (currently held by Republican John Watkins, who is retiring) to have any hope of taking back control of the State Senate.

1. Senate District 29 Democratic primary: Just as Democrats need to pick up John Watkins’ seat in the 10th, we absolutely MUST hold the district that Sen. Chuck Colgan (D) has held for so many years. I’m pulling strongly for former U.S. combat Marine and current Prince William County teacher Atif Qarni, both as the best candidate on the merits, and also as the most likely of the three Democrats running to hold this Obama/Kaine district seat (but one in which Democratic “dropoff” is severe in off/odd-year elections like this one) in November.  

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