Obama Coming to Richmond

Just announced: Sen. Barack Obama will make his 8th visit of the campaign season to Virginia and this time it will be right in Richmond.

The Democratic nominee for President will appear at a rally at the Richmond Coliseum on Wednesday.

Obama has not appeared in the city of Richmond since winning the nomination. (He spoke at VCU at the Jefferson-Jackson dinner last spring and in Chester right before the DNC).

I wonder how the candidates for Mayor of Richmond will clamour for time with the nominee when he is in town.

Full details of the visit are after the jump.

The Battle for the “Real Virginia”

Ryan Nobles - bio | email

Both Presidential candidates are sending out some high profile supporters across Virginia today to keep the momentum up leading into election day, which believe it or not, is now only a little more than 2 weeks away. The clear focus right now seems to be the rural portions of the state, which may be the difference on election day.

The Democrats, are sending the widow of Democratic icon Bobby Kennedy across the commonwealth to meet with voters at community gatherings across Southwest Virginia on Tuesday. Ethel Kennedy and her son Max will spend time in the homes and community centers in Marion, Wytheville, Radford and Blacksburg and Vinton.

In addition to the Kennedy visits, former Mississipi Governor Ray Mabus, is touring parts of Virginia as part of Obama’s “Real Change for Rural America” tour. Mabus will be in Tappahannock, Ashland, Scottsville, Bridgewater, Culpeper and Warrenton.

This is part of a clear effort by the Obama campaign to shore up their support in the rural parts of the state. It appears that this seems to be a clear battleground for both sides. With polls showing Obama gaining support in this area, The McCain campaign seems unwilling to just cede that territory. A McCain campaign aide took some heat this week when she call areas outside of Northern Virginia and the D.C. suburbs, the “real Virginia.” While this comment raised eyebrows across the country, many people who live in Virginia, seemed to understand (maybe not agree, but understand) what she was talking about.

Meanwhile, the The Republicans counter with a tour of their own through the rural sections of Virginia. They are also featuring a Mississippi Governor, in fact the sitting Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour. This tour comes on the heels of the Republican VP nominee’s husband Todd Palin coming to Martinsville for the NASCAR race. The Republican tour will hit Roanoke, Wytheville, Blacksburg, Abingdon and Gate City today and then Richlands tomorrow.