Are Democrats trying to lose Virginia's governor's race?

[rogue06]

A new Northam ad says that "Ed Gillespie won’t stand up to Donald Trump because he’s right next to him."

The horror!

Of course he's playing to his ignorant base, and in reality, there's still a good chance Northam could win simply because of the DC factor. The rest of the state leans Republican until you get to the high population center near DC where it's as blue as blue can be, so I wouldn't be surprised if Northam wins, especially when you consider that Hillary won Virginia by 5% in 2016. And of course if that happens, Democrats will be crowing about how it's a referendum against Trump and that Congress is as good as theirs come 2018.

Ignoring all the other referendums on Trump that the Democrats have lost.

[Mountain Man]

Ignoring all the other referendums on Trump that the Democrats have lost.

Yes, but if they win the governorship in Virginia then the narrative will be "Forget about everything that has happened before. This is the for-real-no-fooling referendum against Trump which proves that voters nationwide are turning their back on him and want him impeached!"

[Cow Poke]

Yes, but if they win the governorship in Virginia then the narrative will be "Forget about everything that has happened before. This is the for-real-no-fooling referendum against Trump which proves that voters nationwide are turning their back on him and want him impeached!"

Yes, the joyous chorus "the tide has turned, everything is OK!"

[rogue06]

Yes, but if they win the governorship in Virginia then the narrative will be "Forget about everything that has happened before. This is the for-real-no-fooling referendum against Trump which proves that voters nationwide are turning their back on him and want him impeached!"

Then again, if Gillespie wins then they will solemnly intone how this doesn't mean anything.

[Mountain Man]

Then again, if Gillespie wins then they will solemnly intone how this doesn't mean anything.

Just like it apparently didn't mean anything when Obama would endorse a candidate only for that candidate to lose. It got so bad that Democrat candidates started begging Obama to stay away.

Politico, February 2014: "W.H. Senate plan: Keep Obama away"

[Cow Poke]

Then again, if Gillespie wins then they will solemnly intone how this doesn't mean anything...

...again, still.

[Sea of red]

Looks like Northam has it.

[shunyadragon]

The Democrats won all positions in Virginia and New Jersey by solid margins.

[Sea of red]

Tonight was basically a rejection of Trump.

[shunyadragon]

Tonight was basically a rejection of Trump.

Not yet, this was a highly partisan blue urban versus rural red.

[JimL]

Are Democrats trying to lose Virginia's governor's race?

With only one exception, the party that holds the presidency has lost the Virginia governor's race since 1977. That exception happened in 2013, leading to all five statewide offices being held by Democrats; it seemed to many that Virginia's growing blue population had stopped the historical trend. In 2017, both history and demographics would point to a Democratic victory in the three statewide offices and in House of Delegates races, but something strange is happening in Virginia.

The Virginia Democratic Party is blowing their shot in spectacular fashion — culminating in printing literature which excluded their black lieutenant governor nominee, sending mail comparing Republican gubernatorial nominee Ed Gillespie to white supremacists in Charlottesville, and even comparing a Latina Republican House of Delegates candidate to a ravenous dog and the Halloween character Jason. Now, a Hampton University poll has Republican nominee Ed Gillespie winning by 8 percent going into the last two weeks.

But things were unraveling, even before this....

...While few gave Gillespie and the GOP ticket a chance a couple weeks ago, Democrats' errors on top of errors could lead to a November surprise.

So much for the Hampton University poll, Gillespie and republicans get crushed state wide.

[Cow Poke]

So much for the Hampton University poll, Gillespie and republicans get crushed state wide.

Pretty much, yeah.

[shunyadragon]

So much for the Hampton University poll, Gillespie and republicans get crushed state wide.

I seriously question the poll, because the results, I believe were predictable, were seriously divided down the line by party. The role of Trump was the lack of a positive influence that would carry any swing votes for the Republicans.

[One Bad Pig]

Tonight was basically a maintaining of the status quo.

Fixed that for you. Virginia has become increasingly blue, and voted for Hillary in the last election. It's not exactly a huge shock that the Dems pulled out a win. Congrats, I guess. You avoided the upset.

[JimL]

Not yet, this was a highly partisan blue urban versus rural red.

Yes, I believe it was a rejection of Trump and Trumpism which is what Gillespie ran on. Northam won by nearly 10 points, the largest margin in 32 years, and Democrats not only won the Governorship, Lt. Governor, Atty Gen. but also won 17 house seats, some of those in rural districts. Virgina is now solid Blue, and I think we can all thank Trump for that!