Former Republican National Committee chairman and presidential adviser Ed Gillespie made his run to replace Va. Sen. Mark Warner official Thursday, releasing an announcement video in which he pledges to focus on middle-class America and criticizes his potential opponent for supporting Obamacare and bloated spending.
“Some say our weak economy is the new normal,” Gillespie says in the ad, with his family in the background. “Well it’s the old mediocre, and we can do better.”
Gillespie, a former George W. Bush administration official, has a live website at http://edforsenate.com/.
Virginia Republicans will pick their nominee for the race by convention instead of a primary. His connection to the state party is historically strong: He chaired the Virginia Republicans before managing former Gov. Bob McDonnell’s 2009 gubernatorial campaign.
Should Gillespie emerge the party’s nominee, it would set up one of the country’s most high-profile Senate contests for 2014.
(h/t Zeke Miller)
