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State Sen. Creigh Deeds basks in his victory in the Democratic gubernatorial primary in Charlottesville, Va., on Tuesday night. Steve Helber/AP

 

State Sen. R. Creigh Deeds won the three-way Democratic primary for governor of Virginia, an impressive showing for the candidate who was the least well-funded in the race. And while the momentum was clearly heading in his direction, his capturing of nearly 50 percent of the vote was the big headline of the night. Trailing well behind were former DNC Chairman Terry McAuliffe and former state Delegate Brian Moran.

Results with nearly all precincts reporting:

Deeds 159,284 49.73%
McAuliffe 84,588 26.41
Moran 76,376 23.84

Deeds will face former state Attorney General Bob McDonnell (R) in November. The winner will succeed Democrat Tim Kaine, who is barred by state law from succeeding himself. Four years ago, McDonnell defeated Deeds for the AG post by just 323 votes.

Deeds raised about $3.7 million for his campaign, less than Moran and far less than McAuliffe, who entered the race as the favorite, despite this being his first bid as a candidate. McAuliffe had long been associated with the Clintons, having raised money for both Bill and Hillary and having headed her presidential bid in 2008.

Deeds also benefited from sharp attacks aimed at each other by McAuliffe and Moran; Deeds mostly stayed out of the fray. Hailing from rural Bath County, near the West Virginia border, he was clearly the most conservative of the three Dems, supporting a loophole in state law that exempts gun show sales from background checks.

categories: All Politics Is Local

10:34 - June 9, 2009

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