Would Terry McAuliffe have won in Virginia?

[PBS Poll-435]

Poll question: Would Terry McAuliffe have won in Virginia?

Creigh Deeds lost in his 2005 race for VA Attorney General while Tim Kaine won at the top of the ticket.

Poll result (87 votes)
Yes	(12 votes, 14%)	Vote
No	(65 votes, 75%)	Vote
Indeterminable	(10 votes, 11%)	Vote
Other(!)	(0 votes, 0%)	Vote

[Captain Hilts]

1. No. And neither would Moran. Kaine won because Kilgore insulted voters last week of the campaign.

I would have much preferred Moran.

[Jennicut]

2. Maybe but why can't VA get a good liberal to run as a Dem?

Is it just too conservative there?

[Captain Hilts]

3. Yes. Conservative is the default. Ask Henry Howell supporters. nt

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

4. Up until Obama took the state, it'd been decades since it turned blue.

So, yeah, it's too conservative. It's a borderline state, frankly, that has a lot of rural voters and a lot of defense contractors in the north.

[Jennicut]

8. Oh well. We did our best then.

They must have really been fed up with Bush in 2008.

[Captain Hilts]

11. Yes. Including the military who saw the wars badly managed. nt

[Freddie Stubbs]

9. Tell that to Tim Kaine, Jim Webb, and Mark Warner

[Captain Hilts]

10. Webb's opponent committed political suicide. Being a Marine and Reagan Admin official also helped.

Mark Warner ran against a completely disgraced Gilmore.

Elections aren't a total meritocracy. Stuff just happens.

[Freddie Stubbs]

28. All the other Republcians were afraid to run against Warner

And don't forget that he was elected Governor before he defeated Gilmore for the Senate seat.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

12. None of whom I'd call a "Strong Liberal"

Mind you, I like all of them, but they're not exactly DU All Stars, so to speak. So I stand by my comments.

[Freddie Stubbs]

13. But they did turn the state blue

[ShortnFiery]

24. Yes, but a sickly shade of greenish corporate-blue at the expense of the Working Class. n/t

[Freddie Stubbs]

29. The working class elected these guys

[ShortnFiery]

35. All the more tragic.

Blue dogs are turning ghoulish GREEN for GREEDY.

[Sebastian Doyle]

37. Working class?

You mean all the lobbyists, "defense" contractors and CIA scumbags who make up the population of Northern Virginia?

[ShortnFiery]

21. Yes, we're all in love with conservative blue dogs within our party.

[Freddie Stubbs]

27. For some reason voters seem to like them

[depakid]

25. The state is chock full of fundies and military personnel

Not to mention it straddles Appalachia.

[SCRUBDASHRUB]

33. This Virginian isn't a fundie. No military in my immediate family.

To win in VA, Dems have to run as "centrists", unfortunately. When Mark Warner ran for governor, he got a lot of support not only from Dems, but Republicans, too (I remember seeing Sportsmen for Warner stickers).

[AllentownJake]

5. No and he'd make us all embarrassed

Deeds was a bad candidate but Terry's antics on the national scene for six months is not what anyone wants.

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

17. I find a 19% loss rather embarrassing

[AllentownJake]

19. Well do that and have Terry on Morning Joe the next day

drinking rum. When you are the incumbent party in a bad economy and your opponent's bumper sticker says Bob for Jobs...you are going to lose.

[amandabeech]

31. What bad economy? Obama has this well in hand! Happy days are here again!

I sure as he!! hope that my subject line is true in 2010, or we will have more Deeds on our hands.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

6. He'd have done a lot better than Deeds.

At least he would've run a far better campaign. I'm not sure he would've won, but it certainly would've been a lot closer.

[countingbluecars]

7. I've lived in Virginia

for over 30 years. No way McAuliffe could have won.

[Frances]

15. I agree with you

I'm old enough to remember when Virginia closed their public schools rather than integrate them.

So, although Virginia has come a long way, especially because of the growth of northern Virginia, the Dems won't win unless they have first rate candidates and politicians like Mark Warner.

[countingbluecars]

26. I remember in the early 80's

there was a restaurant near where I was living that refused to serve black people! This was near northern Virginia.

You are right. It takes a first rate Democratic candidate to win in Virginia.

[Thothmes]

30. Most of my long term Dem friends sorta looked upon

McAuliffe as a political carpet bagger. He had no experience in Virginia politics.

[onehandle]

14. Probably not, but it would have been a Hell of a lot closer. nt

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

16. Probably not, but he would have run a real campaign

[ShortnFiery]

18. No, but JIM MORAN would have brought out our base. Too bad that carpetbagger McAulliffe ...

split the LIBERAL vote and left conservative Deeds as our nominee.

Terry McAuliffe? Take him! Please.

[SCRUBDASHRUB]

34. Brian Moran was running in the primary, not Jim.

[ShortnFiery]

36. Oops! Thanks. I stand corrected.

[AspenRose]

39. That's exactly what happened.

[argonaut]

20. Nah, McDonnell was too good a candidate.

It probably would have less of an embarassing landslide, though.

[PBS Poll-435]

23. Even with his thesis? It should have been his "Macaca" moment

[Renew Deal]

22. He would have lost AND embarrased the party.

At least Deeds only did one of those.

[saltpoint]

32. He was trounced in the primary and would have fared

little or no better than Deeds in the general.

[RollWithIt]

38. Maybe, maybe not, but he would have been a better candidate... nt

[TheWebHead]

40. Terry and any other Democrat would have run into the same problem

independents... $700b bank bailout, $800+ billion stiumulus, $1.1 trillion proposed healthcare, cap & trade ($???b) and trillion dollar budget deficits for many years to come. 2009 should have been about lowered expectations and modest proposals with a heavy dose of economic realism... it wasn't. And if this behavior continues in 2010, expect those who participated to be steamrolled.

[SoCalDem]

41. Snuffleuphagus McAuliffe? nope.. he's a greasy guy..too "connected"

and irritating as hell to watch..Who would want a governor like that?

[Perky]

42. Carpetbagging snakeoil saleman is a hard persona to diowon

I personalty like Terry but hie ebullient positivism seems contrived.

[Blue_Tires]

43. unsure now; but i'm leaning toward no...

that is certainly what i thought during the primary...

[S_E_Fudd]

44. Possibly...he certainly would have come closer...nt