Senate Democrats in 12 contested races in Northern Virginia have built up a war chest of $1.8 million for the final weeks in what promises to be a cutthroat race to control the state’s upper chamber. As a group, Democrats in the region have three times the cash on hand as their Republican opponents as they fight to hold a slim 22-18 majority in the Senate. Area Democratic candidates outraised the GOP 2-to-1 between Aug. 11 and 31, according to campaign finance reports released last week.
If Republicans can gain two seats in elections slated for Nov. 8, they effectively control the Senate because Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling, a Republican, holds the tiebreaker.
A large chunk of the Democrats’ pot belongs to Majority Leader Dick Saslaw, who has $726,000 left to spend.
Democrats control 10 of the dozen contested seats in Northern Virginia. But two of those senators are not seeking re-election.
Several wildcards remain in the mix, including Gov. Bob McDonnell’s $3 million campaign stash in his personal political action committee. The Republican governor “wants the Senate back in Republican hands” and is aggressively “committing his resources to this,” said Garren Shipley, spokesman for the Republican Party of Virginia.
Former President Clinton will headline a fundraiser for Democrats on Oct. 28 at the McLean home of friend Terry McAuliffe, a former Democratic candidate for governor and chairman of the Democratic National Committee.
Democrats across the state are on the defensive. Just three of the 18 Republican senators will face Election Day opponents, while 16 incumbent Democrats have GOP challengers.
Races in the southern and southwestern portion of Virginia — where Democrats hold seats in more conservative areas — represent the most likely path for Republicans to taking control of the state senate.
But Democrats remain cautious about their stronghold in the north in light of recent losses both in the state and nationally.
“It hasn’t been that long that Fairfax County was reliably Republican territory,” said Brian Coy, spokesman for the Democratic Party of Virginia. “We should never take any vote for granted.”
