| by Carnacki
Whoever thought of this deserves credit for a smart move:
Five Democrats who hold state leadership positions and are running for governor have agreed to endorse the winner of the May 14 primary, state party Chairman Larry Puccio said Wednesday.
Puccio said that each of the five officeholders has signed a pledge that the eventual party nominee will have his or her "full public support." The pledge would also have the nominee seek that support.
Those making the pledge are Senate President Earl Ray Tomblin, acting Senate President Jeff Kessler, state Treasurer John Perdue, Secretary of State Natalie Tennant and House Speaker Rick Thompson.
Why is this so important?
West Virginia has seen post-primary grudges among candidates. Democrat Joe Manchin refused to endorse Charlotte Pritt after she prevailed in a tough 1996 primary for governor. Pritt lost a close race to Republican Cecil Underwood. Manchin was later elected governor and is now a U.S. senator.
Pritt herself had not endorsed then Gov. Gaston Caperton after losing to him in the 1992 primary either.
Ironically, despite WV GOP chairman Mike Stuart's claims to the contrary, the WV GOP is facing their own Charlotte Pritt situation in this race.
At every opportunity, Stuart and other leading Republicans have sought publicly and privately behind the scenes to undercut the most popular Republican candidate in the race, former Secretary of State Betty Ireland, who had the highest favorable ratings among Republicans in the state.
After she had already announced, Stuart said he was thinking of running if the right candidate didn't get in. Now Stuart and the Republican tools in the press, Hoppy, Surber, etc., are slobbering over a political novice who filed at the last moment and doesn't seem to have made an public stances or to even understand the role of governor.
In the AP report, the writer Larry Messina allows Stuart to concern troll the Democrats, but Stuart does it in a way that really comes off as if he's projecting his own thoughts on to the Democrats:
"They've been at each other's throats, effective, and I don't see what changes that."
That would be the same Mike Stuart who said this to Politico after Ireland announced her candidacy:
West Virginia GOP chairman Mike Stuart tells POLITICO he's mulling a run for governor and will decide when the time line for the election is hashed out.
It's still unclear whether the election to replace Sen. Joe Manchin will be held in 2011 or 2012, but Stuart said he has not ruled out throwing his hat in the ring once the date is set.
"The key is bold leadership. We need a GOP candidate that is not afraid to lead to build a better future for West Virginia," he said.
With Stuart going for Ireland's throat as he has, she might want to remember how little party loyalty Stuart has shown her. |
