For all those who say that Virgil Goode is "unbeatable," you might want to read the following press release from the Perriello for Congress campaign. Very, very impressive, and just remember: this is a presidential election year in which Democrats have shown that they are far, FAR more fired up than Republicans. Also, except huge turnout in the 5th CD with Barack Obama and Mark Warner leading the ticket. The bottom line is that if there's any year to say "Goode-bye" to Virgil, it's 2008. And if there's any candidate to do it, it's Tom Perriello!
Perriello Campaign (VA-05) Shatters District Fundraising Record
Donations from All 22 Counties and Municipalities Top Goode's In-District Support for All of 2007April 1, 2008-Ivy, VA-With the close of the first quarter, Democratic challenger Tom Perriello has raised a total of over $600,000 and has more than $500,000 cash-on-hand in his race against Rep. Virgil Goode for Virginia's Fifth congressional district. With over 1,200 donors in the first quarter alone, including citizens of all 22 counties and municipalities of the Fifth District, the outpouring of support demonstrates Virginians' hunger for new leadership.
"The tremendous success of this fundraising quarter shows that people are ready for leadership focused on right and wrong, not right and left. I've been humbled to witness support from every corner of the district, and from people from all walks of life - farmers and union workers, faith leaders and business leaders, long-time political donors and first-time political givers, Republicans and Independents," said Perriello. "People want jobs, health care, and a responsible solution in Iraq, and they want leaders who will get things done, not make excuses."
With seven months until Election Day, the Perriello campaign has already raised more than any previous Democratic challenger against Rep. Goode. Perriello raised almost twice as much from Fifth District donors this quarter as Virgil Goode raised from Fifth District donors in all of 2007. Perriello raised more than $340,000 in the first quarter of 2008, with 98% of donations coming from individuals.
Along with its record-breaking fundraising, the Perriello campaign has logged over 1500 volunteer hours. The campaign has opened offices in Franklin County and Charlottesville, and will open its Danville office this week.
Oh, and this was no April Fool's joke; it's for real, and it feels so Goode! :)
Must have been all your prodding and encouraging, Lowell. Thank you!
Wow! I am exhausted but inspired this morning, overwhelmed by the flood of support that got us over the finish line late last night. You contributed over $85,000 in the last 48 hours, and we added over 700 contributors just in the last week. Together, we shattered previous records to reach over $600,000 raised and just over $500,000 cash on hand - coming from people in all 22 counties and municipalities of our district and from a movement of people hungry for this new generation of politics.And, we just found out that the national party has made us a targeted race!
As so many of you stepped up beyond what I could ever have expected, I have felt a deep and growing confidence that we are going to win this election - and do it with a mandate to deliver results for people here in the Virginia Fifth and around the world. For the first time in my life, we are daring to think that politics can be a place for solving problems and improving lives. We are daring to think big if for no other reason than that it is the only practical response to the scale of problems and opportunities we now face. Our goal can and must be to answer the call of earlier generations for a politics that expands our sense of the possible to match the challenges of our time.click here to tell your story
The best kind of transformative politics is people-powered politics, and you have powered this campaign. With your support, we've been kicking into high gear, opening up offices around the district, getting our messsage out to voters, and building the largest grassroots network this district has ever seen.
You have inspired me about what is possible in this campaign, and I want to know what inspires you. On the day after the election, how would you want to complete the sentence "We won this election because..." or "We won this election with a new generation of politics that stands for..."? I would love to hear your thoughts. Please send these to yourstory@perrielloforcongress.com.
I cannot thank you enough for the tremendous generosity you have shown. I aspire to live up to your hopes for this campaign.
Blessings,
Tom
"Mr. Perriello has never run for office..." SO? The country needs change, and the beauty of Tom's campaign is that he wasn't a county official before running for office. He was working for peace in Africa and Afghanistan and then creating organizations to foster the common good. This is the type of grassroots leadership that others (like Donna Edwards for example) have campaigned on and won.
I like and support Democrats in all the districts you've mentioned, but maybe instead of "injecting a dose of reality" you should ponder why Perriello is raising so much money and running such a strong, district wide campaign. It's not because he's running a pipedream; it's because the grassroots realizes we have someone who can finally defeat Virgil Goode!
Go Tom!
By the way, DCCC money doesn't really mean that much, other than you are effectively proving your viability. Truth be told DCCC money is really over rated. Candidates will have to make their own breaks, regardless of the National party.
Good fundraising as we have seen in the past does not translate to wins, especially in this district.
Actually, Tom has already raised more money than any previous challenger to Congressman Goode -- and he still has 8 months to build and activate his grassroots network for election day.
Albemarle county only has so many votes. Just trying to inject a dose of reality.
If you look at population growth and new voter registration in the northern counties, it is pretty clear that Albemarle, Charlottesville and Nelson will make up 40-45% of the electorate in 2008. How's that for reality?
According to the Virginia State Board of Elections, as of February 26, 2008, the following are numbers of registered voters for each of the three jurisdictions referenced above:
Charlottesville - 24,124
Albemarle - 62,797
Nelson - 10,294
These three jurisdiction have a total of 97,215 registered voters. The 5th congressional district has a total of 416,536 registered voters, again, based on information form the Virginia State Board of Elections as of February 26, 2008.
Based on the numbers, Charlottesville, Albemarle and Nelson contain 23.5% of the registered voters in the 5th congressional district, not the 40-45 per cent you suggest in your comment above.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/...
P.S. Norm, if you're reading, I'm still waiting for my check.
In regard to this district, people say we need a "blue dog" because this district is a little more center/right-of-center, and those type of candidates like Heath Shuler tend to understand and immerse into the culture a little better traditionally than the ones further to the left. Government spending isn't going to be a deciding factor for any grandious voting bloc in the 5th. Either way, see my reply below.
(also if my posts are a bit scattered tonight its because I'm trying really hard to pay attention in class and not reply to blog threads :) )
But before I get excited about our prospects in the 5th, I want to see some polls.
I can't see a truly progressive candidate going into southside and pulling votes away from a very popular Goode. Yes, Goode is well liked by members of both parties in southside because he is a country boy. The C-ville way of thinking just does not work throughout this district. I certainly credit him for running but this is not the type of democrat that I envision going this particular district and winning. Maybe I am just too pragmatic? The DCCC will have alot to answer for if Nye and Byrne narrowly lose and the 5th goes its usual direction. Beating Virgil Goode at this point with a real progressive candidate may be like hiking up Mt. Everest with crutches but I hope I am wrong.
Perriello speaks with an authentically religious voice that connects with the many concerned citizens of Southside. Goode is a good country boy who hasn't brought jobs, security or health care to the district. Kaine and Mark Warner both carried this district.
You're entitled to your opinion. If Glenn Nye wins it won't be because of Tom Perriello's victory, and if Glenn Nye loses it won't be because of Tom Perriello's victory.
Perriello is an outstanding fundraiser and great progressive candidate in the wrong area but I don't agree with the above statement. Those that really understand southside know they will not elect an "outsider" with an Albemarle-Cville base. I guess in the end we will agree to disagree and I hope I am wrong.
Yes, a democrat can certainly win this seat but I think it will be a "bluedog" Baptist type, not a progressive religious person.
A "progressive" (read left-center not heinously liberal) can win in the 5th and in Southside; its not the "wrong" area. The key element missed here is culture. Culture flew over Weed's head like Break through the culture, and you're in the game. As a progressive, if Perriello shows that he understands the culture and can show his progressive policies are inclusive of the culture and can help the way of life in that culture, then new ball game.
Goode is very conservative, but thats honestly not the reason he has a stronghold on the 5th. He has run the show for so many years here because his name identity is synonymous with the culture of most of the 5th. Ask a lot of folks voting for Goode on election day and they'll say the deciding factor is that "he's a friend" and "he's one of us" before he's the "principled conservative". Thats the granite in his base.
For example, Byrne is the best possible candidate we can run for the 11th because she fits the cultural profile of Fairfax. I don't buy that Dems cannot win some Republican districts just look how Pollard dominates a red area. We get crushed when we run candidates that do not know their districts or take positions contrary to their constituency. I would rather see a Democrat I agree with 70% of the time than a Republican who I never agreed with. Pragmatically speaking, I am not convinced Perriello even comes close to fitting the profile for the 5th.
While I understand the cultural argument, I think that a) it doesn't give credit to Tom's authenticity and ability to create bonds with the voters he's meeting every day and b) Tim Kaine carried the district despite being a Harvard grad, as did Mark Warner; Barack Obama carried this district with unbelievable voter turnout. I think that we are denegrating the voters of the 5th by saying that they are happy with how their lives are and (while they do like Virgil) aren't willing to give someone with better ideas a chance to bring them more prosperity.
Obama-McCain will be an intersting matchup but I think McCain will probably take the 5th fairly easy. I don't look too much at the primary since McCain has essentially won before Va's primary. Now Mark Warner could be a huge help to Tom. This could really boost his numbers.
Goode has literally spent decades working the system in the 5th dating back to his days as a state senator.
It will take a country boy Democrat to beat a country boy Republican who is friends with even many older Democrats in the region. Can Tom make an appeal to the culture without living the culture of southside?
btw i was not saying that the uva thing was necessary...it would just help.
There's much else to recommend the plan--its support of new energy technologies to reduce our dependence on oil, its call for a new GI bill for the 21st century--but perhaps the most newsworthy element of the initiative is who supports it. Its signatories, all unelected House challengers, represent a new breed of Democrat--one that is following in the footsteps of Jim Webb, Joe Sestak, and Patrick Murphy; one that feels more comfortable dealing with foreign policy. Eric Massa (NY-29) served 24 years on active duty in the Navy. Tom Perriello (VA-5) spent time in Liberia and Sierra Leone working with civil society and pro-democracy groups. Jeff Merkley (OR-Senate) worked at the Office of the Secretary of Defense and then in the Congressional Budget Office on nuclear weapons. Moreover, this is not a bunch of long shots with nothing to lose. The list of supporters includes a large number of candidates who are running in the most competitive districts in the country.