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Delegates retain their positions
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By Garren Shipley -- gshipley@nvdaily.com
It was a good night to be a Republican candidate in Virginia, and the Shenandoah Valley was no exception.
All four of the region's incumbent House of Delegates members cruised to re-election by wide margins.
Incumbent Del. Todd Gilbert, R-Woodstock, sailed to a third term over Democrat John Lesinski, of Rappahannock County, 69 percent to 31 percent, according to complete, but unofficial, vote totals.
"I'm very pleased and grateful to my supporters and all the citizens who believed in my message, which was smaller government and lower taxes," he said.
Gilbert said his win was proof that voters are "generally tired of what's going on in Washington and Richmond."
Democrats were running uphill all day Tuesday, Lesinski said.
"I picked a very difficult election cycle to run against a Republican incumbent," he said. Nonetheless, "I'm very proud of the organization we had and the message we had."
Gilbert's margins of victory in Page and Rappahannock counties were a bit of a shock -- 33 percentage points and 10 points, respectively.
"I thought we had a message that would resonate well in Page County and help us be competitive," Lesinski said. "We knew that Shenandoah County [Gilbert's home territory] was always going to be extremely difficult for us."
The 15th District has been a tough nut to crack for Democrats for years, regardless of the political environment. In 2008, when President Obama won Virginia by 6 points, 15th District voters chose Republican John McCain by 23 points.
In fact, the only Democrat at the state or federal level to succeed in the district recently has been U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner, who won the district by 7 points in 2008. Statewide, Warner trounced Republican Jim Gilmore by nearly a 2-to-1 margin.
Gilbert's totals tracked closely with those of now Gov.-elect Bob McDonnell throughout the valley.
"We kind of got thrown out with the bath water," Lesinski said. He also declined to speculate about any future political ambitions.
"It is just election night," he said. "We have a lot of thinking to do."
In the 18th House District, Del. Clifford L. "Clay" Athey, R-Front Royal, won on auto-pilot as well. Athey took home 82 percent of the vote, compared to 17 percent for Constitution Party nominee Todd M. Jack.
"I am humbled by the overwhelming support of so many of my constituents across Warren, Frederick and Fauquier counties," Athey said.
He also promised to continue "working hard to deserve the support of so many Republicans, Democrats and independents who came out to support my candidacy."
But the overall turnout numbers in the district, 38 percent, show that people in the 18th District really did not care for either contender, Jack said.
"It's not a representation of the people," he said. "It's sad. Neither of us were very good candidates for the people of the 18th District."
Jack said he likely won't be hanging around for another run at office two years from now.
"I'll probably move on. The campaign has drained my finances," he said. "I'll probably leave the state."
Incumbent Beverly Sherwood, R-Winchester, also is headed back to Richmond for another two years, defeating independent Aaron Tweedie with 80 percent of the vote in the 29th District. Tweedie took home just a tick under 20 percent.
Del. Joe May, R-Leesburg, was unopposed for re-election in the 33rd District, and collected 22,475 votes in Clarke and Loudoun counties.
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