The inestimable Steve Benen linked to a Richmond Times-Dispatch article in his campaign roundup today. I didn’t see it highlighted here (maybe I’m looking in the wrong places!), but the overall theme has been talked about quite a bit in these parts.
Amid Trump resistance, Virginia Democrats see surge of candidates for House of Delegates:
As of late last week, Democrats said they had candidates running in 43 of the 66 House districts that Republicans currently represent, more than double the 21 GOP districts Democrats contested in 2015.[...]
“I have not seen this before,” said Del. Charniele L. Herring, an Alexandria Democrat and chairwoman of the House Democratic Caucus, of the phenomenon she described as a “huge organic surge.”
They touch on Mary Jo Sheeley (as well as Ben Pearson-Nelson and Dawn Adams, all running for the 68th), Schuyler VanValkenburg (72nd), multiple candidates in the 73rd (Debra H. Rodman, Chelsea Savage, Sarah Smith, Bill Coleman), Lizzie Drucker-Busch (56th), Sheila Bynum-Coleman and Tavorise K. Marks (62nd), all of whom are challenging Republican-held districts.
Obviously, being a Richmond newspaper, they’re focused on the local challenges. It’s great to see wider coverage, though.
Of course, the Republicans are offering “advice”:
“They have no clear message or clear reason for taking their frustrations out on Virginia Republicans,” said Republican Party of Virginia Chairman John Whitbeck. “It seems to be all driven by the national political scene. But I think they’re in for a rude awakening when they see that Virginia voters care about Virginia issues.”[...]House Majority Leader M. Kirkland Cox, a Colonial Heights Republican poised to become the next House speaker in 2018, said Republicans win because they know their districts.
Let’s prove them wrong!
(pdxbuckeye has been doing a great job doing data crunching on the districts, too. If this diary caught your eye, you’ve almost already seen his diaries but they’re worth pointing to anyway. I’ve linked a couple of those above.)