RICHMOND, VA, Nov 6: Democratic Party insider Terry McAuliffe narrowly defeated Republican Ken Cuccinelli, a Tea Party favorite, to win the nationally watched Virginia governor’s race, US television networks reported.
State election board results showed McAuliffe, a Democratic fundraiser and close friend of former President Bill Clinton, had 47 per cent of the vote to 46 per cent for Cuccinelli, Virginia’s attorney general, with 97 per cent of precincts reporting yesterday.
McAuliffe squeaked to a win with a strong showing from wealthy, liberal-leaning Washington suburbs. His victory, called by networks CNN, CBS and NBC, cements Virginia as a bellwether swing state ahead of midterm congressional elections next year and the presidential election in 2016.
Record amounts of outside money flowed into the campaign as McAuliffe heavily outspent Cuccinelli and national Democratic figures attempted to make the vote a referendum on the Republicans’ small-government Tea Party wing.
Trailing in polls, Cuccinelli, 45, fought back in the final weeks in the campaign by attacking President Barack Obama’s signature healthcare program, which is off to a rocky start.
McAuliffe, 56, tied Cuccinelli to last month’s federal government shutdown, blamed by most Americans on Republicans and especially the Tea Party wing. Virginia was hit hard by the shutdown since it relies more than most states on federal paychecks and contracts.
Cuccinelli also was hurt by a scandal involving Virginia’s Republican governor, Bob McDonnell, who is under investigation for taking gifts from a businessman. Cuccinelli apologized in September for taking gifts from the same businessman. —
(agencies)
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