Creigh Deeds, Terry McAuliffe and Brian Moran all made last minute stops in Roanoke last weekend, looking to sew up the Democrat nomination for governor that Deeds won with relative ease in Tuesday’s primary. McAuliffe canvassed Roanoke voters by phone on Sunday, while later that day Moran promised to “stand up for the little guy,” if elected.
Roanoke State Senator John Edwards introduced Moran outside the Dumas Center but said afterwards that he was not endorsing any Democrat before the primary. Edwards showed up again at Fork in the City on Monday, when Deeds stopped by to press the flesh and make a short, televised speech.
“Creigh will be an outstanding governor,” said Roanoke County sheriff Gerald Holt in welcoming Deeds to the podium. Fork in the City owner David Trinkle, also a Roanoke City Council member, called the election of Deeds this November – assuming he beats Republican nominee Bob McDonnell – “a great opportunity for the State of Virginia…he’s a great friend of southwest Virginia.”
Deeds, a soft-spoken Bath County native, noted that, “there were lots of people that said a nice guy can’t finish first.” A rush of last minute newspaper endorsements and television advertising helped Deeds break away from the pack in the final few weeks. “My opponents haven’t proved their electability to anything, frankly. I’ve got the best plan to move Virginia forward.”
His narrow loss to McDonnell in the attorney general’s race four years ago is another source of confidence: “I lost that campaign by 360 votes, but I proved … I could win a statewide election [and] I could beat Bob McDonnell. I was outspent 2-to-1.” Deeds said Virginia was more Republican in 2005 than it is now, furthering bolstering his chances in November.
Much like McDonnell, who has promised to be the “Jobs Governor”, Deeds said he wanted to offer “hope” to voters this November: “we can continue to build prosperity in every part of Virginia.”
Governor Tim Kaine, who did not endorse any of the three contenders, weighed in after the primary: “Creigh Deeds is the best candidate to continue the work begun by my administration — and the Warner administration before ours — while positioning us for future achievements.” Kaine called the current State Senator a consensus builder in the General Assembly. “I have no doubt [he] will work in a bipartisan way to keep building on the progress we’ve made.”
Deeds was confident during his stop in Roanoke that Moran and McAuliffe supporters would enter the fold after Tuesday’s primary. “We are one party – we will come together. We’ll figure it out.”
