AP calls Warner winner in Senate contest

By MATTHEW BARAKAT Associated Press Writer
Published: November 4, 2008

McLEAN, Va. (AP) — Democrat Mark Warner defeated his fellow former governor Jim Gilmore in Tuesday’s contest to represent Virginia in the Senate, giving Democrats control of both of Virginia’s Senate seats for the first time since 1970.
Warner held huge leads in polls throughout the race, so Democrats had counted on picking up the seat. Gilmore never gained traction as Virginians were largely focused on the historic presidential campaign.

Warner, who styled himself as a “radical centrist” who would emphasize bipartisanship, picked up support from the unlikeliest of sources: Republicans. About a quarter of voters who said in exit polling they consider themselves Republican voted for Warner, and nearly a third of those who said they voted for Republican John McCain for president split the ticket, backing Warner.

“I want to make sure Democrats don’t have the same arrogance that Republicans had after the elections in 2000,” Warner said in interviews shortly before the polls closed, anticipating overall gains in both houses of Congress for his party.

Warner’s victory caps a rapid turnaround for Democrats in the state. Just two years ago, Republicans held both Senate seats. But in 2006 Democrat Jim Webb eked out a victory over Republican George Allen in a race that gave Democrats control of the Senate.

The last time Democrats controlled both Senate seats in Virginia was 1970, when Harry F. Byrd Jr. — a product of the legendary Byrd Machine that controlled Virginia politics through much of the 20th century, including its era of segregation — left the party to become an independent.

Susan Parker of Blacksburg waited three hours to cast her ballot for Barack Obama and Warner. She said she was thrilled when Warner announced he would run for the Senate.

“The way he helped the financial situation in Virginia was excellent,” Parker said of Warner, who raised taxes on his watch to clean up a fiscal mess he blamed on Gilmore. “They need somebody like that in Congress.”

Warner, a telecommunications tycoon prior to his political career, will succeed Republican John Warner, a moderate Republican who is retiring after a 30-year Senate career. The elder Warner did not endorse either candidate, and he is not related to Mark Warner.

The call was based on an analysis of voter interviews conducted for The Associated Press by Edison Media Research and Mitofsky International.