The districts are the House of Delegates 96th and the Senate 1st. Both seats are open. Delegate Melanie Rapp retired earlier this year and Senator Marty Williams was defeated in the June 13th primary by radical right-wing activist Tricia Stall. The Democratic candidates are strong, with Troy Farlow in the 96th and John Miller in the 1st.
The four groups first convened last Thursday for the annual Williamsburg Democrats picnic. Hundreds of dollars were raised for the William & Mary Young Democrats' coffers, and dozens of locals showed up to begin a mission that was continued last night at an astoundingly successful Monday-night bash at a Williamsburg restaurant.
Over 100 people, including over 25 College students, showed up for a candidate meet-and-greet hosted by Phil Forgit (candidate for the 96th District in '03). In addition to Troy Farlow and John Miller, local Board of Supervisors candidates, Supervisor John McGlennon, and Delegate Bill Barlow made appearances. Speeches were minimal as the candidates preferred to talk to each person one-on-one, making the whole, nearly three-hour event a huge success for these four Democratic organizations that are putting their all into turning the Lower Peninsula blue in 2007!
Keep an eye on these two races and on these four groups. Sure there's plenty of action in Fairfax County and Virginia Beach, and everyone loves Democratic bastions like Arlington and Charlottesville, but the Williamsburg area (With over 120,000 people between James City County, York County, and Williamsburg City) is quickly becoming totally vital to Democratic victories in Virginia.
We have one competitive race in the MVDDC area keep us informed at precinctops1@mvdemocrats.com