Virginia

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

Agreed.  Democrats winning Virginia in an off-year, Republican wave election is further proof that Virginia is a lean democratic state.

Republicans need to face facts, they haven't won a senate race or governors race in a long time, whether it's a Presidential year, a mid-term year, an odd-numbered year.  They simply can't pull it off because the NOVA vote is too overwhelming. 

The one argument Republicans can make is that Warner was popular and Gillespie was underfunded.  This argument is unavailing.  The fact is that Gillespie had almost 100% name recognition in Virginia.  He was a national figure in Washington, DC. 

If Republicans couldn't win Virginia in 2014 they have a wildly uphill battle in 2016 when the electorate will look vastly different. 

Also, few people dispute that Virginia is trending democratic... so another 2 years of demographic changes will also help democrats.

Democrats should be worried about North Carolina, Iowa, and Colorado though.  I could see Iowa and North Carolina going Republican in 2016.

Not everyone pays so much attention to politics that they know the former leader of the RNC.   

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

Agreed.  Democrats winning Virginia in an off-year, Republican wave election is further proof that Virginia is a lean democratic state.

Republicans need to face facts, they haven't won a senate race or governors race in a long time, whether it's a Presidential year, a mid-term year, an odd-numbered year.  They simply can't pull it off because the NOVA vote is too overwhelming. 

The one argument Republicans can make is that Warner was popular and Gillespie was underfunded.  This argument is unavailing.  The fact is that Gillespie had almost 100% name recognition in Virginia.  He was a national figure in Washington, DC. 

If Republicans couldn't win Virginia in 2014 they have a wildly uphill battle in 2016 when the electorate will look vastly different. 

Also, few people dispute that Virginia is trending democratic... so another 2 years of demographic changes will also help democrats.

Democrats should be worried about North Carolina, Iowa, and Colorado though.  I could see Iowa and North Carolina going Republican in 2016.

Not everyone pays so much attention to politics that they know the former leader of the RNC.   

Most people who vote in off-year elections, who live within a 100 mile radius of Washington DC know exactly who Ed Gillespie is.

yeah, I forget, Virginia doesn't exist south of the Rappahanock.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

You must think the largely Republican voter base who live over 100 miles outside of DC (mostly in SWVA) are particularly dumb to not know who Ed Gillespie is.  I guess Republican voters are just that uninformed about who they are voting for. 

I live in Hampton Roads. Perhaps you've heard of it?  Hint: it's not near Wise County.  We don't get DC Channels here either.  But you are correct, we are all idiots for being less familiar with an unelected political operative than with a former governor of our state.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

You must think the largely Republican voter base who live over 100 miles outside of DC (mostly in SWVA) are particularly dumb to not know who Ed Gillespie is.  I guess Republican voters are just that uninformed about who they are voting for. 

I live in Hampton Roads. Perhaps you've heard of it?  Hint: it's not near Wise County.  We don't get DC Channels here either.  But you are correct, we are all idiots for being less familiar with an unelected political operative than with a former governor of our state.

Nice way to re-frame the argument.  Have you heard of Ed Gillespie or not?  And if you haven't, do you consider yourself an informed voter?

Yes, I've known of him for quite some time. I also spend time on a political forum, much like 99% of other people.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

You must think the largely Republican voter base who live over 100 miles outside of DC (mostly in SWVA) are particularly dumb to not know who Ed Gillespie is.  I guess Republican voters are just that uninformed about who they are voting for. 

I live in Hampton Roads. Perhaps you've heard of it?  Hint: it's not near Wise County.  We don't get DC Channels here either.  But you are correct, we are all idiots for being less familiar with an unelected political operative than with a former governor of our state.

Nice way to re-frame the argument.  Have you heard of Ed Gillespie or not?  And if you haven't, do you consider yourself an informed voter?

Yes, I've known of him for quite some time. I also spend time on a political forum, much like 99% of other people.

So are you implying that your Republican friends in the state were so uninformed that they voted for someone they never heard of even though he was a national figure from the state?  I guess now I understand why the GOP is such a mess of a party.

Um, no. I responding to your claim that Ed Gillespie had 100% name recognition, and that this proved he was so familiar to voters and potential voters that it put him on even footing with Warner. And then to your humorously dismissive and misinformed attitude toward the rest of Virginia outside of NOVA.

There were some people who voted for Gillespie without any idea of who he was because of his party. That sort of thing is normal in an election. I dare say it probably describes the majority of people who voted for the Democrat in House districts in Virginia won by incumbent Republicans.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

You must think the largely Republican voter base who live over 100 miles outside of DC (mostly in SWVA) are particularly dumb to not know who Ed Gillespie is.  I guess Republican voters are just that uninformed about who they are voting for. 

I live in Hampton Roads. Perhaps you've heard of it?  Hint: it's not near Wise County.  We don't get DC Channels here either.  But you are correct, we are all idiots for being less familiar with an unelected political operative than with a former governor of our state.

Nice way to re-frame the argument.  Have you heard of Ed Gillespie or not?  And if you haven't, do you consider yourself an informed voter?

Yes, I've known of him for quite some time. I also spend time on a political forum, much like 99% of other people.

So are you implying that your Republican friends in the state were so uninformed that they voted for someone they never heard of even though he was a national figure from the state?  I guess now I understand why the GOP is such a mess of a party.

Um, no. I responding to your claim that Ed Gillespie had 100% name recognition, and that this proved he was so familiar to voters and potential voters that it put him on even footing with Warner. And then to your humorously dismissive and misinformed attitude toward the rest of Virginia outside of NOVA.

There were some people who voted for Gillespie without any idea of who he was because of his party. That sort of thing is normal in an election. I dare say it probably describes the majority of people who voted for the Democrat in House districts in Virginia won by incumbent Republicans.

I understand that you think you know everything but if you are so convinced that Ed Gillespie didn't have such name recognition in Virginia, please cite some evidence rather than being a dismissive loudmouth.  The only thing humorous is the fact that you somehow seem to think that Gillespie's loss in an off-year election with low democrat turnout is anything but a sign that Virginia is now a lean democrat state. 

I don't need to know everything to know that there are a lot of people who are moderately informed on political issues who do not follow the careers of political operatives, given that I know some of these people. If you need corroboration just Google "Ed Gillespie name recognition"

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http://www.nbcwashington.com/blogs/first-read-dmv/Ed-Gillespie-Announces-US-Senate-Run-in-Virginia-240546921.html

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http://www.nationaljournal.com/off-to-the-races/ed-gillespie-s-senate-bid-isn-t-as-crazy-as-it-seems-20140120

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http://www.timesdispatch.com/news/state-regional/close-senate-race-could-have-aftershocks-in-virginia-politics/article_ba100c6c-27ee-57d6-9dd1-29740757d0fe.html?mode=jqm

Given where I live I do indeed find humorous the idea that the only part of the state outside of a 100 mile radius of DC is Southwest Virginia, as it seems like a satirical reflection of both the political pull of the beltway to the detriment of the rest of the state, and a stereotypical outsider's political view of the "new" Virginia. 

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

I wasn't saying that you yourself were an outsider to Virginia. I was speaking of your level of familiarity with your state. 

Our median income, and thus our tax contribution per capita, here may be a tad less than yours, but it doesn't stop us from having to pay additional sales and gas taxes to fund local transportation, while public transit funds from the state for here and the rest of the state combined amount to pennies on the dollar compared to the allocation for WMATA.

Try taking a look at some of the polls from the summer. You'll find at that point nearly half either have never heard of Gillespie or don't have an opinion of him, compared to single digits for Warner.  I'd be cautious about forming any conclusions regarding presidential elections from the results of a low turnout midterm, but the one thing one can most certainly not take from a well-known popular former Governor and incumbent Senator barely hanging on is any confirmation that Democrats can be confident they have 13 EVs in the bag.