Decision Virginia

Freshman Congressman Tom Perriello (D- 5) will join me today for an exclusive, live interview on NBC12 First at Four. You can see the interview streamed live on NBC12.com. Perriello will join me over the phone as he prepares for yet another lively town hall in his district on the subject of health care reform.

Perriello is as perfect an example over the fight over health care reform anywhere in the country. He is a Democrat, who represents a conservative district and is facing angry constituents on a regular basis, unhappy with many or all of the proposals being put forward in the democrat’s plan.

Perriello was swept into congress on the coattails of President Barack Obama and wasn’t declared the winner until several weeks after election day. He has already become the target of Republicans in Washington, hungry to get back seats in conservative leaning districts. How he responds to the health care debate, could play a big role in his re-election chances.

To his credit, Perriello has not shied away from the debate, or his position on many of these issues. He voted with his democratic house members on the controversial cap and trade legislation, much to the delight of liberal bloggers who played a big role in his electoral win. Health care is the next big fight and the idealistic representative seems to welcome the debate. He has not been afraid to hold town hall after town hall. His approach is much different from other Democratic members in conservative leaning districts, or either of the Commonwealth’s two Senators who have yet to hold face to face open town halls on health care.

The last time the Congressman and I spoke the situation was much different. He was with a group of his new colleagues at an event in Williamsburg that featured the very popular new president. Support for democrats and their core issues was very high. At the time, Perriello told me that he was willing to fight for what he believed in. Today we will see if that fortitude still exists, in the face of waning public support.

The interview will be live during our First at Four on NBC12 and it will be streamed live on NBC12.com.

I just finished an interview with Virginia Rep. Tom Perriello who is taking part in his first House Democratic issues conference. I asked the freshman congressman how important it was for his fellow Democrats to pass a stimulus package that includes GOP support.

He told me that he and his fellow Democrats have worked hard to bring Republicans to the table, but there are parts of the stimulus package that are too important and aren’t worth bending on. He pointed to portions of the plan that are designed to help “working families” in particular.

I’ll have more of my interview with Congressman Perrillo tonight during my live report on NBC12 at 11pm.

The Roanoke Times is reporting that Tom Perriello’s victory over Virgil Goode in the 5th district is now official. A three judge panel declared Perriello the winner by 745 votes after Goode called for a recount.

The Times has already posted comments from both the winner and the loser.

Goode had held the seat more than a decade. Perriello had already begun the transition process.

As expected, the outcome of the race in the 5th congressional district is too tight for Republican Virgil Goode, so has formally asked for a recount.

The final tally left a margin of only .24%, less than the 1% gap necessary for the State to pick up the tab.

Tom Perriello who currently stands as the certified congressman-elect has said that he will “respect” Goode’s right to a recount, but that he doesn’t expect the outcome to change.

If you are wondering just how the recount process will work, the Franklin News-Post has an excellent breakdown of what to expect.

Ryan Nobles - bio | email

As expected the Virginia State Board of Elections today certified the November vote and declared Tom Periello as the winner in the congressional race in the 5th district. The margin of victory is less than 800 votes and certainly within the margin where Virgil Goode may ask for a recount that the Board of Elections will pay for. The question is, will Goode concede and make plans to run again in 2010, or will he force the hand of the BOE and make them count them all again? A liberal blog from Southeast Virginia has an interesting take.

If Perriello holds on to the certified victory, he will be a part of a series of landmark democratic wins in Virginia. In addition to Barack Obama and Mark Warner’s victories, The Dems picked up 3 congressional seats. However, the Roanoke Times published an interesting editorial this weekend about why their victories weren’t exactly perfect.

Elsewhere-

Mayor-Elect Dwight Jones holds a meeting today with his transition team. Jones plans to outline what areas the transition group will be focusing on and announce the appointment of some new members. There has been plenty of speculation as to who Jones will be appointing to some key City Hall staff positions. Similar appointments in the Wilder administration were cause for quite a bit of controversy. We will see if today’s announcement gives us any indication who might be in positions of power in a Jones City Hall.

And Attorney General/Candidate for Governor Bob McDonnell goes to the dogs. His office gets a “surprise” visit from some canine supporters.  

There are a few things are out there on a chilly Tuesday morning. I guess some parts of the state saw some snow. I know my friends back in Upstate New York saw much more, so I am not complaining. 

Attorney General Bob McDonnell plans to use the power of a state wide office to get a bit of earned media today. The AG, who essentially runs as an incumbent, will unveil what his office describes as a “powerful” video on the gang problem in Virginia. They will use the video as an educational tool to show young people the dangers of joining a gang.

Expect quite a few press events like this, where McDonnell appears as the Attorney General, not a candidate. His goal is to show voters that he is getting the job done as their top lawyer, not campaigning. It is an advantage he holds over any of his democratic opponents, because while two of them are both elected officials, they are not the Attorney General. The statewide office, compels more newsrooms to send cameras and notebooks to his events.   

Elsewhere.. 

Senator-Elect Mark Warner picks a new chief of staff for his legislative office. 

Washington, D.C. is bracing for as many as 4 million people for Barack Obama’s inauguration. (Are you going? let me know)

His not quite the congressman yet, but Tom Perriello went to Washington to prepare as if he were. It will be another week before Virgil Goode can ask for a recount. 

And Politico uses their “Arena” to have a lively discussion about the future of GOP leadership. See how many times you can find the name Eric Cantor. 

Finally..

Many thanks to the SPJ club at VCU. I spoke to the group last night and had a terrific time with the young journalists. They had many great questions about the election and the profession and I was honored to be asked to speak. A special thanks to Jonathan White, the club’s president for invitation. 

Here is a picture from the event:

Also a special thanks to the family from New Hartford, NY, who popped by to take part in the talk. What a small world!

Ryan Nobles - bio | email

I hope you didn’t think I was kidding when I said that Decision 2009 is already underway. We have a governor’s race on tap in the state of Virginia and already the battle lines are being drawn. But while candidates are lining up for 2009 and beyond, there are still quite a few lingering questions still out there from 2008 yet to be decided.

The biggest lingering issue in Virginia politics is the congressional race in the 5th District. Democratic challenger Tom Perriello declared victory in his race against Republican incumbent Virgil Goode. The race had it’s share of mud-slinging but has yet to identify a winner. The final tally had Perriello ahead by just about 750 votes. Goode, however has said that he is not ready to concede and this race appears to be headed to a recount. Goode can’t even ask for a recount until the vote is certified on Nov. 24th. If Perriello hangs on, it will cap an historic turnaround for Democrats in Virginia that not only saw them win the Presidential race for the first time in over 40 years, but also a U.S. Senate race and pick up three seats in Congress. (Rep. Thelma Drake lost her seat and the seat vacated by Rep. Tom Davis also went to a Democrat).

The current democratic domination of Virginia politics looms large over the 2009 gubernatorial race, but could the democratic brand be too popular? Three heavyweight candidates, Del. Brian Moran, Sen. Creigh Deeds and former DNC Chair Terry McAuliffe, are already committed to running for Governor as democrats. It is still very early, but if their problems are not resolved, the primary could turn into a slugfest which leaves the victor wobbly and wounded waiting for the anointed Republican Bob McDonnell to knock them out. (yes I was going for a record of boxing metaphors there)

McAuliffe has become a ubiquitous figure at Virginia Democratic events. He was all over the Democratic Victory party in McLean and even was the guest of honor for a Barack Obama debate watching party here in Richmond. (Where we asked him about running for Governor) McAuliffe’s early testing of the water has been met with some harsh reaction from editorial page writers and his potential opponents. Brian Moran’s communications director Jesse Ferguson said that “Given Mr. McAuliffe’s previous ambitions to run for Governor of Florida, he needs to explain to the people of Virginia if he’s doing this for the right reasons.”

However, he remains a formidable figure with a vast amount of resources. Moran and Deeds certainly have local connections with their distinct bases, but could McAuliffe just outspend and out-chat the other two to death? It is clear that this could be a tense winter for Democrats, hungry to be the first to hold on to the Governor’s mansion, for three consecutive terms.

McAuliffe will appear along side a cadre of politicos at an election postmortem organized by UVA sage Larry Sabato.

Elsewhere..

Bob McDonnell makes the rounds at a heavily watched Republican Governor’s Association meeting, hoping to become one of them.

Dwight Jones is officially Richmond’s Mayor-elect and the scramble for his seat in the House Delegates is already underway.

Also..

Tonight at 11, I will have a special Reality Check about how the demands of the struggling economy is forcing many people make difficult choices about how they spend their money. We put a local woman to the test. She agreed to live on only $20 for an entire week. We will show you just how difficult it was and give you the chance to read all about her experience tonight on NBC12 news.