RICHMOND-Virginia is known for its colorful history, and now, a historic election can be added to its laundry list of momentous political events. For the first time since the Reconstruction Era, the Republican Party has control of both houses of Virginia's General Assembly.
In several close races, Republicans stayed on top in the Senate and succeeded in taking over the narrow Democratic hold in the House of Delegates. With their newly won seats, Republicans now will be able to implement the conservative legislation of Gov. James S. Gilmore III (R) that previously was blocked by Democrats in the House.
But the new Republican control in Virginia is in no way a sign of weakness in the Democratic Party in Virginia. While the loss of control in the House of Delegates seems to signal a growing Republican trend, the Democratic Party has not been defeated by sweeping conservativism. In fact, it hasn't been defeated at all. Strong showings and narrow defeats by many Democratic candidates proved that local elections weren't decided before the public hit the polls.
According to Virginia Democratic Executive Director Craig Bieber, these elections did not show an "overwhelming trend" in Republican voting. Instead, races centered on local issues, and many were neck-and-neck, including that between Sen. Jane H. Woods (R) and former Congresswoman Leslie L. Byrne (D) in Fairfax County - a seat that ended up in Democratic hands.
Republicans had slated the Democrats to lose many positions in both the House and Senate, and even with slippage in seats, Democrats were able to keep the margin relatively close. Democrats kept their total of 19 seats in the Senate, while Republicans captured 21. The Democrats kept 47 seats in the House compared to a Republican 53. In addition, a number of seats taken by Democrats previously were held by Republicans who were expected to win.
"It could have been better; it could have been worse," said Bieber. He asserted that, in this election, the Democrats had "good candidates with good messages" and that, with the help of strong campaign organization, Democrats won important races and picked up some Republican seats.
By taking hold of surprise seats originally thought to go to the Republicans - such as that won in Isle of Wight County by Richard J. Holland (D) - the Democratic Party in Virginia showed that it is alive and well and ready for extremely important presidential and congressional elections in 2000. "We are looking to concentrate next on our two strong presidential candidates and on Sen. [Charles] Robb's strong campaign," said Bieber.
But to spread Democratic messages in Virginia, the party will have to make fundraising efforts similar to those of Republicans. This year, Republicans surpassed Democratic fundraising $9.5 to $7 million. "They definitely out-spent us," said Justin Wilson, Virginia Young Democrats vice president. The strength in Republican fundraising came mainly from well-known leaders such as Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va.) and Gov. Gilmore.
This poses a problem for Democrats. Without well-known party leaders, Democrats can't muster the financial support for lesser-known candidates that it needs to win. This year's fundraising was led mainly by Mark Warner, a party leader and potential candidate for governor in 2001. Although he will be facing a difficult race of his own, Sen. Charles Robb (D-Va.) must work to raise funds to strengthen the 2001 Democratic gubernatorial candidate.
But local races now are past, and General Assembly Democrats must focus on implementing campaign goals and working with a Republican majority. Of much concern is the redrawing of district lines throughout the Commonwealth.
Every 10 years, the state legislature redraws federal, state and local districts. This shifting of district lines could give one party an advantage in future elections, especially in smaller House districts. There's no telling how Republicans will use their power in the redistricting process, but Democrats need to build constructive relationships with opponents to ensure that this important job is carried out in as fair a way as possible.
Election Day did not go exactly according to plan for the Democratic camp, but they are ready to be successful in the future, and are prepared to work in the present to better Virginia. Last night, surprise wins and extremely close misses showed party morale, enthusiasm and a promising future for a successful return of the Democratic Party in Virginia.
(Erin Perucci is an associate editor for The Cavalier Daily.)
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