Democratic Party: Obama can win Virginia

[DeepModem Mom]

CNN: June 9, 2008
Democratic Party: Obama can win Virginia
From CNN Political Producer Peter Hamby

WASHINGTON (CNN) – The Democratic National Committee e-mailed a memo to national reporters Monday outlining why the state of Virginia and its 13 electoral votes could fall into Democratic hands in November, a sign that both the party and the campaign of Barack Obama genuinely believe they can turn the state blue for the first time since 1964. The memo, written by the Democratic Party of Virginia, comes on the same day John McCain holds a series of fundraisers in central and northern Virginia, and a week after Obama chose the state to kick off his general election campaign....

The note suggests that Obama will rely heavily on riding the coattails of three of Virginia’s popular Democratic leaders — Gov. Tim Kaine, Sen. Jim Webb and senate candidate Mark Warner, the former governor. Citing "the Mark Warner effect" — Warner will be on the same ballot as Obama this fall — the memo asserts that Obama can win the state in the same way Warner won the governorship in 2001: by running up margins in "vote-rich, Democratic leaning northern Virginia" while also employing a "successful rural strategy." Warner ran that campaign as a business-minded moderate willing to work across party lines.

Virginia Democrats are confident that the national political climate is much more favorable to their party in 2008, a trend that could morph traditionally Republican counties in the central part of the state into new electoral battlegrounds.

The memo also argues that McCain has serious deficiencies among Virginia evangelicals, a constituency he lost to Mike Huckabee in the state’s Feb. 12 primary. Independents also chose Obama over McCain in the primary....

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/06/09/democratic-party-obama-can-win-virginia/#more-7731

[Occam Bandage]

1. Can and will.

[Happyhippychick]

2. That.

[papau]

3. If he is losing Mich/Penn/Ohio/Florida via no HillVP he will need razor tight victories elsewhere

[Enrique]

4. McCain might need to have George Allen on the ticket

[DCKit]

5. Gracie Allen would make him appear more competent. n/t

[Karl_Bonner_1982]

6. Why it's doable

Virginia has seen a lot of urbanization and cultural modernization over the past decade or two. And it will finally begin to have an effect on the political climate in the state. And I think there are quite a few African American voters, so that will be a boon for the Dems.