Republicans gear up for convention
By Layla Wilder
Both Republicans battling to take on former Gov. Mark Warner (D) in this year's Senate race say they think they have secured the support they need in Northern Virginia to be victorious.Campaign staff of former Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore claim he has a clear lead among the estimated 5,300 delegates needed to cinch the nomination, while Del. Bob Marshall's supporters say the report is a scare tactic Gilmore backers are using to wear on Marshall supporters.
"They are just trying to create a perception that they have it locked up," Steve Waters, Marshall's campaign director, said. "This thing is really close."
It is "not a rumor" that Gilmore has cinched the nomination, said Ana Gamonal, a spokeswoman for his campaign. In response to "media inquiries," the Gilmore campaign announced last week that he has the support of 6,000 delegates, Gamonal said.
"They weren't voodoo numbers that we made up," she said.
Shortly after John Warner announced his retirement last year, Republican U.S. Congressman Tom Davis and Gilmore both expressed interest in his seat. Gilmore supporters lobbied for Mark Warner's opponent to be chosen at the GOP convention in May. They argued that method would be more efficient than a primary.
Davis, who announced his own retirement from politics later in the year, never officially entered the race. Some supporters said a convention battle for the nomination would diminish his chances of capitalizing on his voter base in Northern Virginia.
Jim Hyland, chairman of the Fairfax County Republican Committee, said he thinks the nomination is still "an open question" for both candidates. The majority of delegates are Republican advocates who have filed to be part of a convention. They are not required to promise support to either candidate, Hyland said.
"Gilmore doesn't have a chance against Mark Warner," Waters said. "It will just end up to be a battle between the two former administrations. Bob [Marshall] would give him a better run for his money."
Hyland, who announced his support for Gilmore before Marshall entered the race, said he believes that Gilmore has a better chance because he is better known. "But either candidate would be good people to take on Mark Warner," Hyland said.
Marshall has secured a "solid majority" of delegates in Prince William and Loudoun – counties he represents – and is doing well throughout the state, according to Mark Tate, a volunteer with the campaign. Marshall supporters estimate he has about 57 percent of Fairfax County delegates, Tate said.
Gamonal said the Gilmore campaign isn't sharing how many Northern Virginia delegates support him, but Marshall is "definitely not ahead."
"I'll leave it at that," Gamonal said. "Of course, turnout is the key, and we are making sure that our delegates turn out."
Waters calls the convention "a battle between the establishment and a guy for the people." Marshall has support in Northern Virginia because he is someone "who will go against the status quo to go to bat for the voters."
Marshall, elected to the House of Delegates in 1991, is a Catholic home-schooling father with a reputation for being a tireless anti-abortionist and gun control advocate. He led a group of elected officials and citizens in protesting taxing powers the General Assembly gave to the Northern Virginia Regional Transportation Authority, which the Virginia Supreme Court eventually ruled unconstitutional.
Gilmore, a former attorney general, was elected governor in 1997 promising to eliminate the state's car tax. He began the process of eliminating the tax but drew criticism from the left that it severely impacted a state economy that was shaky at the time.
Marshall has raised about $51,000, Waters said. According to Gamonal, Gilmore has raised $750,000.