Republican gubernatorial hopeful Ed Gillespie stumps in Front Royal

Warren County Republican Committee Chairman Darryl Funk introduces his Party’s nominee for governor, Ed Gillespie, to supporters in Front Royal. Photos/Roger Bianchini

On Sunday, September 17^th, Republican gubernatorial candidate Ed Gillespie began a six-stop campaign swing through the Shenandoah Valley in Winchester; with a lunch-time stop in Front Royal, before heading south into Augusta County, Staunton and Charlottesville.

In an impromptu press conference at his third stop of the day, Gillespie said it was important to get his message out to the Republican base and all Virginians in what has been called a dead-heat race with Democratic Lt. Governor Ralph Northam.

Among priorities mentioned for a Gillespie governorship were promises of transportation infrastructure improvements to the I-81 corridor; assurances that Virginia would not become a haven for so-called Sanctuary City protections for undocumented immigrants; but would become an increased home to Charter schools (Charter schools are K-12 institutions, funded with taxpayer money, but managed privately).

Gillespie told Warren County Republicans gathered at the Happy Creek Coffee and Tea Shop in Historic Downtown Front Royal that Virginia has a choice – become the northernmost southern state or the southernmost northern state.  It is a message with clear political implications – Virginia not only went to Barack Obama in both 2008 and 2012, but was also the only southern state to go for Hillary Clinton in 2016.

After a tight primary victory over ultra-conservative challenger Corey Stewart, moderate-Republican Gillespie, like his Democratic opponent Northam, has struggled to get his name and “brand” into the consciousness of Virginia voters.

Polls taken this summer indicated both Gillespie, a former RNC chair, and Northam were dealing with a lack of clear-cut voter recognition.  Less than two months ago The Washington Post’s Fenit Nirappil wrote that recent surveys indicated that 46-percent of surveyed Virginia voters had no opinion of Northam (with 38% favorable), while 44-percent had no opinion of Gillespie (36% favorable).

Nationally, Virginia’s off-year governor’s race is seen as a possible indicator of how the Trump presidency may impact voters as the congressional mid-term election of 2018 approaches.

Gillespie said he did not know incumbent Democratic Governor Terry McAuliffe (52% approval rating as governor) had a planned stop in Front Royal next week, and was simply trying to touch as many bases as possible in his own campaign.

“I think it’s important to fire people up; and it’s not just voting, you’ve got to do social media, put out the bumper stickers, all those things … It’s 51 days (to the election) not that anybody’s counting …I’m energized by the campaign and working hard to win and that’s what it’s going to take; and I’ll be a hard-working governor for you.”

Virginia’s gubernatorial race has been called “how politics should be” in a Washington Post opinion piece commenting on the thus-far civil nature of the campaign.  We asked Gillespie how he has attempted to distance himself and his campaign from the more characteristic down and dirty-natured politics most recently exhibited in the 2016 presidential race.

“I think Virginians want to know what you’re for; what your policies are.  There are differences between me and Lt. Governor Northam when it comes to policies, significant ones.  But I have no doubt he thinks his policies are good for us, I just know they won’t be.  And I try to make the point, the case for my policies and I put out 17 specific detailed policy proposals, including most recently my transportation plan ‘Initiative-81’ to put a greater emphasis on 81, which has been overlooked on transportation policy.  We’re rightly doing things to improve I-95 and 66 and 64 but we’ve got to pay greater attention to 81 – the congestion, the dangerousness of it, we’ve got to come to terms with that and we’ve got to make it a priority; it’ll be a priority for me.”

Gillespie cited tax relief, regulatory reform, and college affordability among his priorities – “These are the kinds of things that people want to know that you have answers for, and what are your answers.  And I enjoy putting them out there, enjoy talking about them as I’m doing here again today – and I think people are hungry for that.”

If it’s 12:15 p.m., this must be Front Royal, Republican gubernatorial candidate Ed Gillespie may have been thinking on his third of six campaign stops on Sunday, Sept. 17.

We asked Gillespie if he would reach across the aisle in the Virginia General Assembly toward bipartisan initiatives were he elected governor.

“I think if you look at my policies, the number of things I’ve put forward – things I know can engender bipartisan support, I’ll work across the aisle to get bipartisan support for policies.  But we’ve got to get things done.  If our next governor doesn’t have a sense of urgency about the challenges we face in the Commonwealth, we’re going to fail our fellow Virginians, and I won’t fail us.

“I think putting forward these specific policies, I’ve taken some ideas that Democrats have put forward, for example criminal justice reform.  I don’t care if someone’s a Democrat or Republican, independent; if they’re willing to work together to get things done, to make life better for all Virginians I’ll work with them to get those things done.”