After resounding Democratic victories Tuesday night in the gubernatorial and lieutenant governor elections and Republican victories in the General Assembly, many questions have surfaced regarding the new power structure in Richmond.
"We don't look at it as a shift in power," said Bill Steinbach, Virginia Republican Party spokesman, in reference to new Democratic power.
While the Democrats garnered power in the executive branch, the Republicans picked up 12 seats in the House of Delegates, bringing their total to 64 out of 100 total seats. That positions Republicans only a few seats shy of a super-majority capable of overriding a governor's veto.
"There is a real danger of gridlock," said Larry J. Sabato, professor of government and foreign affairs.
Professor Robert Holsworth, director of the center for public policy at Virginia Commonwealth University, agreed that the Democratic governor and Republican-led General Assembly could lead to problems within Virginia government.
Democratic governor-elect Mark R. Warner "can't succeed unless Republicans go along with him," Holsworth said.
But regardless of new threats of impending gridlock, many Democrats excited about their party's takeover of the governor's mansion, said William B. Harvey, Albermarle County Democratic Party chairman. He added that he believes Warner can handle the tension between the governor and the General Assembly.
Both Harvey and Sabato agreed that Warner's leadership will play a large role in how governmental business proceeds in the next four years.
The threats are compounded given this year's political difficulties in Richmond under purely one-party control.
"He's a businessman and used to cutting deals," Sabato said. "And he's going to need to use every ounce of those business skills."
"Having the governor and General Assembly under one party broke down last year," Harvey said.
Gov. James S. Gilmore III, a Republican, drew up his own budget in the spring after the General Assembly reached an impasse because of Gilmore's insistence on proceeding with car tax reductions.
In his acceptance speech at the Marriott Hotel in downtown Richmond on Tuesday night, Warner emphasized his commitment to finding viable solutions to the budget impasse and increasing teachers' salaries - something that was frozen this year to help maintain a balanced budget in the face of falling state revenues.
Pundits agreed the biggest problem facing Warner's term is the budget crisis, which stems from an unexpected falloff in revenue following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the Pentagon and the World Trade Center.
"Warner's term is not going to be easy," Sabato said. "He made an awful lot of promises but there is no money and limited support in the legislature."
While the Democratic Party attempts to plan for working with a divided government, the Republicans plan to review their failed campaign strategies.
"The Republican Party got spanked because of the budget impasse," Sabato said. "They did it to themselves"
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