Deeds wins Democratic nomination in blowout

Sen. R. Creigh Deeds, D-Bath County, won the three-way Democratic gubernatorial primary Tuesday by a wide margin, clearing the way for Charlottesville’s state senator to face GOP nominee Bob McDonnell in November.
Deeds – whose campaign was long seen as a darkhorse – emerged on the stage at the Omni Charlottesville Hotel and proclaimed victory — and admitted a bit of disbelief.

“Wow,” Deeds said, shaking his head and laughing in amazement. “No one could have imagined what we’ve accomplished in the commonwealth of Virginia tonight. The thunderstorms, the rain, the hail didn’t stop you from turning out to have your voices heard.”
Deeds won with 49.73 percent of the vote, followed by former Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe’s 26.41 percent and former state Del. Brian Moran’s 23.84 percent, according to unofficial returns with 99.8 percent of precincts reporting.
Voter turnout was fairly low, but nevertheless higher than election officials’ projection of 5 percent. Statewide, some 6.4 percent of the state’s 5 million registered voters participated. Nearly 10 percent of voters cast a ballot in Albemarle County, while 11 percent voted in Charlot-tesville.

Deeds won by a devastating margin in the Charlottesville area. Deeds carried Albemarle with 79.11 percent of the vote, compared with 11.11 percent for
McAuliffe and 9.76 percent for Moran. In Charlottesville, Deeds carried the day with 76.39 percent of the vote.
Both McAuliffe and Moran called Deeds after the polls closed to concede and offer their congratulations.
Deeds was long deemed the least likely to win, as he trailed his rivals in both fundraising and in the polls. But Deeds’ fortunes began to turn around in the wake of a May 22 endorsement by the Washington Post that called Deeds the best candidate for Northern Virginia for his leadership on such issues as transportation funding and nonpartisan political redistricting.
Scores of previously undecided voters – particularly in vote-rich Northern Virginia – began to give Deeds another look. Moreover, many Democrats began to see Deeds as their best bet to take on McDonnell in the general election Nov. 3.

“They felt he was the most electable,” Del. David Toscano, D-Charlottesville, said. “[The general election] is going to be tough. We need all hands on deck. Bob McDonnell is very formidable.”
The general election will be a re-match – albeit on a much bigger stage – of the 2005 attorney general’s race, in which McDonnell beat Deeds by a mere 323 out of 1.94 million votes cast.
This time around, supporters said, Deeds will be backed by the full weight of the Democratic Party. The Virginia gubernatorial race is seen by both parties as one of the nation’s highest profile political contests of 2009.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if we see President Obama out there campaigning for Creigh,” Charlottesville Mayor Dave Norris said.
Norris, who had endorsed Deeds alongside the entirety of the Charlottesville City Council, said he was not surprised by Deeds’ win, as he noted that Deeds had been surging in the polls while former frontrunner McAuliffe saw his support dwindle. Yet Norris was surprised that Deeds’ victory was such a blowout.
“I expected it would come down to the wire. The margin of victory was definitely surprising,” he said. “The more people got to know Terry McAuliffe, the less they liked him. The more people got to know Creigh Deeds, the more they liked him. Do the math.”
U.S. Rep. Tom Perriello, D-Ivy, praised Deeds for his dedication to his constituents and said he understands Virginians’ concerns about health care and education.
“He’s the real deal,” Perriello said. “He may not be the flashiest guy around, but he is the most dedicated man you’ll ever meet.”
In his victory speech, Deeds said he intends to carry on the progress made under former Gov. Mark R. Warner and Gov. Timothy M. Kaine on issues such as education, job creation and efforts to keep Virginia a business-friendly state.
“To Virginians from every corner of the commonwealth … if I’m elected the next governor of Virginia, if I’m given this extraordinary opportunity, every day you will have a governor who is on your side.”
Deeds had sharp criticism for McDonnell, whose policies he likened to those of George W. Bush. McDonnell has opposed stem-cell research and abortion, even in the case of rape or incest, Deeds said. McDonnell, Deeds added, also opposed expanding Virginia’s unemployment benefits system amid the worst economic recession in memory.

McDonnell issued a video statement late Tuesday congratulating Deeds and jokingly urging him to take a much-deserved vacation for the next few months. After briefly addressing some of the planks of his campaign platform, McDonnell concluded, “Our campaign is about saying yes to new ideas and bold solutions for Virginia’s future. Creigh, again, congratulations on your well-earned victory tonight. I look forward to the race ahead.”
Shortly after it became clear that Deeds had won, the Republican National Com-mittee sent out a news release titled “Creigh Who?” that criticizes Deeds’ record on taxes, guns and seems to blame Virginia’s economic difficulties on the policies of Kaine and Democrats such as Deeds.

Along with the gubernatorial candidate, Virginia Democrats also selected Jody Wagner as their nominee to face Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling, a Republican, in the Nov. 3 lieutenant governor’s contest.
Wagner, a former state secretary of finance, beat out Democratic operative and national security consultant Mike Signer. Wagner won with 74.21 percent of the vote, with 99.8 percent of precincts reporting Tuesday night.