Coloring Book

Bob McDonnell won nine of the state's 11 congressional districts; only the 3rd and the 8th went for Creigh Deeds, and they are Democratic bastions. The GOP ticket prevailed from top to bottom. Bill Bolling easily won re-election as lieutenant governor. If one year ago an expert had predicted Ken Cuccinelli would be elected attorney general in a landslide, he would have lost his license to practice punditry.

Democrats entered the campaign with hopes of picking up seats in the House of Delegates. The more extravagant among them dreamed of taking the chamber. On Tuesday, the GOP added to its totals, thereby reversing several cycles of decline. Republicans scored gains in Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads. Locally, Republican John O'Bannon won re-election in the only House race thought to be competitive. The decisive nature of his welcome win suggests yard signs are not reliable indicators.

Election 2009 reflected the electoral primacy of suburbia. Democrats had dominated Northern Virginia's vote-rich suburbs in recent statewide races and had pruned GOP margins in Central Virginia. Henrico, for instance, became a battleground. And while Chesterfield continued to back Republicans, its GOP share suffered erosion. (Shortly after the polls closed last November the Editorial offices concluded Barack Obama would carry Virginia when the staff saw that John McCain won Chesterfield by only a few points.) This week the region returned to partisan normalcy. McDonnell took Henrico with room to spare and won Chesterfield with Reaganesque numbers. Hanover produced its typical GOP rout. Democrats prospered in Richmond, yet in all but the closest elections the city is marginalized -- as are urban cores throughout the commonwealth. Power lies among the greenswards and the parking lots.

Swing voters want government that delivers the essentials efficiently. They expect competence from their elected officials and are weary of social crusades from the left and the right. There is a disconnect between the ideological bases and the electorate's center. Culture ultimately trumps politics, yet at this moment the political realm lacks the seriousness for informed debate of first things. It is best to focus on physical infrastructure instead. Soulcraft is within.

If the GOP performance impresses, then turnout does not. The 2009 tally is not final, but its total vote likely will mirror the total vote in 2005. About 2 million Virginians cast ballots four years ago; about 2 million cast ballots on Tuesday. Democrats won the first election, Republicans the second. Statistics such as these complicate the art of political interpretation -- which is to say the "art" usually consists of bloviators asserting their predilections. Partisans see what they want to see. Every result proves them right and their competitors wrong. One side's victories are transcendental, the other side's mere blips. Perhaps one observer in 1,000 sees through a gimlet eye. We make no claims for ourselves, and, for that matter, prefer wine to gin and sweetened lime.

Virginia is competitive, neither blue nor red but purple. And the decisive pages in the state's coloring book are found in Chesterfield, Henrico, and Hanover -- and in their counterparts in Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads.