Virginia congressional hopefuls Pat Herrity and Keith Fimian are sprinting furiously to shore up votes before the June 8 Republican primary, knocking on doors, appearing at the “Viva Vienna” Memorial Day celebration, and, in Herrity’s case, throwing out the first pitch at a minor league baseball game.
Herrity, a Fairfax County supervisor, and Fimian, a local businessman, are fighting for the right to square off against freshman Rep. Gerald Connolly (D), who defeated Fimian in 2008 by about a 12-point margin.
“We’ve got a very active, very strong group of volunteers,” said Tim Edson, Fimian’s campaign manager.
“Between meet-and-greets and [door-knocking], I’m spending time with voters as much as I can,” Herrity said.
The two candidates also are slated to make a joint appearance on WTOP radio’s “The Politics Program” with Mark Plotkin on Friday.
By the number$
» Herrity has raised more money over the past seven weeks, according to recently filed campaign finance disclosures, but Fimian still enjoys a sizable cash-on-hand advantage.
» Herrity raised about $162,000 compared with Fimian’s approximate total of $107,000 from April 1 through May 19, according to pre-primary reports filed to the Federal Election Commission.
» Fimian had $407,000 cash on hand at the end of the reporting period compared with about $96,000 for Herrity.
“This primary contest will be all about turnout,” said Stephen Farnsworth, professor of communication at George Mason University. “If you can get your people to the polls, you’re likely to be the nominee. I really think that either candidate could emerge victorious on June 8.”
The contest has become unusually brutal, with the candidates vying to differentiate from one another in the Democratic-leaning 11th Congressional District.
Herrity said he was disappointed about the toxic tone.
“I’ve spent my two years on the board fighting for the taxpayers … and to have someone completely trash that conservative record is disappointing,” he said.
For his part, Herrity’s campaign sent out a mailer labeling Fimian a “tax cheat” for a $16,000 lien levied on his company.
Since candidates have to appeal to a much smaller base of voters, primaries can get much uglier than general elections, Farnsworth said.
Leslie Byrne, a Democrat who held the seat during the mid-1990s, said the turnout number to watch is 30,000. If voter turnout is less than 30,000, “I’m going to say that the Republican doesn’t have a chance” in the general election, she said.
