The Democratic primary in the 10th Senate district continues to provide lessons in power politics, and a little history, too.
A recent poll on the race showed that all three candidates — Emily Francis, Dan Gecker, and Alex McMurtrie, were bunched together in what amounted to a statistical tie. “Undecided,” a perennial powerhouse at this stage of a contest, lead the field.
Then an interesting thing happened. Gov. Terry McAuliffe took the extremely unusual step of endorsing Dan Gecker. We’ve covered the uncomfortable aspects of McAuliffe’s relationship to Gecker before.
But here, it does appear McAuliffe’s endorsement gave Gecker a boost among those polled. Will it last through election day on June 9th? We’ll find out. And of course, McAuliffe’s active endorsement has raised the hackles of Gecker’s fellow candidates and their supporters. That’s to be expected.
It’s worth recalling that we’ve not witnessed a sitting governor get involved in a primary race since the Gilmore era. When he did, it was a Big Deal. Today? The press can’t be bothered. But it’s also worth remembering that Gilmore’s involvement in those long ago contests cost him a lot of goodwill in central Virginia — to say nothing of the General Assembly. The resulting rancor did not fade away, and eventually helped Mark Warner and Tim Kaine win statewide in 2001.
McAuliffe runs that risk with Democrats in the 10th district today. He’s betting that Democrats who back Francis and McMurtrie will get over their hurt feelings by November and get behind Gecker (assuming he wins the primary). Peace will reign in the valley, and Terry just might get “his” Senate back.
The Gilmore example should caution him otherwise. He is putting his considerable thumb on the scales to help his publicly chosen candidate. This begs the question: why does Gecker need so much help? But it also leaves us to wonder whether Democrats will either forget, or forgive, Terry for actively meddling in what they consider to be their race.
And he’s not done yet. Rumor has it the The Governor is appearing at a Gecker fundraiser on the 28th. Once again: if Mr. Gecker is so strong, why is McAuliffe spending so much effort trying to boost him?
