A broad group of Democrats, Independents and Republicans, from every part of the commonwealth announced their endorsements of Bob McDonnell for Governor, and the formation of “Virginians for McDonnell.” The group will be led by Judy Ford Wason, who headed “Virginians for Mark Warner” in 2001 and was a member of the group in 2008, and Wyatt Durrette, former candidate for Attorney General and Governor, who endorsed Tim Kaine for Governor in 2005. Joining the two in the leadership of the bipartisan group are two former cabinet secretaries in the Mark Warner administration; a former Democratic delegate from Chesterfield County; a former Virginia Attorney General who served as Chief Deputy Attorney General under Attorney General Mary Sue Terry (D); the Director of “Virginians for Mark Warner” in 2008 and a host of other leaders from across the Commonwealth.
Regarding the formation of “Virginians for McDonnell” Judy Ford Wason remarked, "Virginians look for strong leaders they can trust and depend on to bring people together to forge consensus on tough issues and advance positive solutions. Bob McDonnell is this type of leader. He has a background in business management, a qualification that is especially important in these tough economic times. As Attorney General Bob worked consistently across party lines on pressing public safety issues and I am confident that is how he will lead as Virginia’s next governor. We face great challenges in Virginia. We need elected officials who have demonstrated their ability to lead and their experience in achieving positive results. Bob McDonnell has demonstrated these qualities as Attorney General and they will serve him well as governor.”
She added, “In each election I, like so many other Virginians, look at the ability of the candidate, not the party label and I have made the decision to strongly endorse Bob McDonnell for governor. I encourage all Virginians, regardless of party, to look at Bob’s record, study his bold policy proposals, and join us in the ‘Virginians for McDonnell’ effort.”
Speaking about the group Wyatt Durette noted, “This group of Virginians is composed of men and women who have not consistently supported candidates of a single party. Rather we are individuals who have chosen to support candidates belonging to both parties, when we believed that was in the best interest of Virginia and the country. This year we have united behind Bob McDonnell because we strongly believe he is best suited to lead Virginia and meet the very significant challenges facing our Commonwealth during the next four years.”
Durette continued, “As Attorney General he has established his ability to work across partisan lines to solve problems, a quality we highly value. While we recognize the role of partisanship in the service of ones principles, we hold equally high the ability to work together and to seek consensus in pursuit of solutions to extremely complex problems. The task of leading Virginia through these challenging times requires a person who knows where the partisan line stops and the governing line begins and Bob McDonnell has demonstrated that he does. Virginians for McDonnell is the vehicle in this election to support a candidate for Governor while maintaining the independence to choose candidates from either party for other offices. Where Virginia’s next Governor is concerned this is not a time to sit on the sidelines. It is time to choose. We have made our choice and we invite all like-minded Virginians to join us.”
Bob McDonnell noted, “Virginia faces many challenges. To create the new jobs and more opportunities that our citizens need we must come together across partisan lines for the common good. As Attorney General I worked across partisan lines to dramatically toughen penalties for sex offenders, combat online crime, reduce burdensome and unnecessary government regulations, and make Virginia safer and stronger. 92 of my 105 legislative proposals passed the General Assembly, with strong bipartisan support. I was particularly pleased that my opponent in this gubernatorial campaign voted for 98% of my successful proposals. That is the record of bipartisan success and cooperation I bring to this campaign and it is the model for how I will lead as Virginia’s next Governor. I am honored to receive the support of so many accomplished leaders. We are running a positive campaign dedicated to reaching out to all voters with policies that will make this a better Commonwealth for all Virginians. Our message is resonating, and I am honored that Virginians are coming together from all regions and parties to support our campaign.”
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