Today’s Commentary section features guest columns from the three contenders for the Democratic nomination for governor. A primary on June 9 will determine the winner. Either Brian Moran, Terry McAuliffe, or Creigh Deeds will face off against Republican Bob McDonnell in the general election. This year marks the Democrats’ first serious intramural competition among gubernatorial contenders since 1985—and that poses dilemmas.

I am running for governor because in these difficult times, Virginians need a fighter in the governor’s office who has the record and the compassion to put Virginia’s families first. Today, Virginia’s families are hurting: 300,000 have lost their jobs, thousands have lost their homes to foreclosure, and hundreds of thousands more worry they will be laid off or unable to make their mortgage payment. I have seen their faces and heard their stories. These are the Virginians I will wake up to fight for every single day.

The Chesterfield County voter registrar won’t have to worry about running out of ballots this year. Monday is the deadline for people who want to vote in the June 9 Democratic primary who are not registered now, and registrar Lawrence C. Haake III said few people have come by his office at the county courthouse to register. In the February 2008 Democratic presidential primary that featured Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton, so many people turned out to vote that some Chesterfield precincts ran out of ballots.

Terry McAuliffe’s cash and advertising advantage is translating to a double-digit lead in the increasingly bitter race for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination, a new poll shows. Among likely voters in the June 9 primary, McAuliffe, who has raised more than $4 million and has been running television advertising for months, is favored by 30 percent, according to survey released yesterday by Public Policy Polling of Raleigh, N.C.

The campaign of Democrat gubernatorial hopeful R. Creigh Deeds is airing a second ad in the Hampton Roads, Bristol, Roanoke and Richmond media markets to go along with his spot on education.

A new poll puts Republican Bob McDonnell ahead in a November Election Day showdown with any of the three Democratic challengers vying for their party’s nomination. The poll, conducted by SurveyUSA, shows the former Virginia attorney general beating state Sen. R. Creigh Deeds, D-Bath, by five points—44 percent to 39 percent. The poll shows McDonnell beating former Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe by seven points—46 percent to 39 percent—and beating former Del. Brian J. Moran, D-Alexandria, by 12 points—46 percent to 34 percent.

Two more Richmond-area elected officials endorsed Brian J. Moran for governor today—Richmond Circuit Court Clerk Bevill M. Dean and Chesterfield County Supervisor James M. Holland.

Two more Richmond-area elected officials are expected to endorse Brian J. Moran for governor today, as his campaign finalizes plans to open a Richmond office on Monday. Richmond Circuit Court Clerk Bevill M. Dean and Chesterfield County Supervisor James M. “Jim” Holland are expected to announce their support of Moran today. They join several other local leaders backing Moran, including Richmond Mayor Dwight C. Jones, who will host the local campaign office opening on Monday evening. Moran’s wife, Karyn, also is expected to attend.

In Richmond two months ago, former President Bill Clinton urged Virginia Democrats to wage a vigorous nomination battle for governor—but not to go overboard and aid their GOP opponents. Tomorrow, he will put himself to the test as he campaigns in Richmond and Roanoke for his chosen candidate, Terry McAuliffe. The former president will appear with McAuliffe at 9:30 a.m. at the 17th Street Farmers’ Market at 17th and Franklin streets. McAuliffe and Clinton will then move on to Roanoke, where at 12:15 p.m. they will speak at Fire Station No. 1 at 13 East Church Ave., SE.

Virginia’s candidates for governor last night promised Virginia teachers what they wanted—more money. The three Democratic candidates, state Sen. R. Creigh Deeds of Bath County, former Del. Brian J. Moran of Alexandria and former Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe of McLean, told the Virginia Education Association’s annual convention here that they would work to bring the average teacher salary in Virginia up to the national average. It now is about $4,000 below the average.

Gubernatorial candidate Brian Moran wants to retrofit schools with energy-efficient technologies while teaching students about science and the environment, he said in a news conference yesterday, Earth Day. It is one piece of his schools plan that ranges from reducing class sizes and increasing teacher salaries to expanding pre-kindergarten, an issue dear to the man he hopes to succeed, Gov. Timothy M. Kaine.

The three men seeking the Democratic nomination for governor stopped in South Richmond last night to discuss jobs, education, health care and their support for restoration of felons’ voting rights. More than 150 local residents, city politicians and campaign operatives gathered at the Southside Community Services Center on Hull Street for a forum sponsored by the Richmond Crusade for Voters. The predominantly black voter-mobilization group traditionally has supported Democratic candidates.

Two days after Brian Moran declared during the first Democratic gubernatorial debate that he would support a repeal of Virginia’s ban on same-sex marriage if elected, the Virginia Partisans Gay and Lesbian Democratic Club is backing his bid for governor.

The three Democrats seeking their party’s gubernatorial nomination held their first debate in Williamsburg. Those who know Creigh Deeds, Brian Moran, and Terry McAuliffe were not surprised to read Times-Dispatch reporter Olympia Meola’s description of the session as “largely civil.“ During the 2005 campaign for attorney general, Deeds and Bob McDonnell (the victorious Republican now running for governor) generally adopted a high tone. The race’s closing laps had some testiness, but the two seemed out of character. The recount occurred in an atmosphere of civility. Despite being a tough partisan, Moran is one of the most engaging personalities in the political scene. He has a nimble mind. McAuliffe is not everyone’s cup of caffeine, yet he is smart enough to remember that forums such as these reward cool, calm, and collected. He understands the game.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Bob McDonnell says President Barack Obama should not be offered an honorary degree when he delivers the commencement address at the University of Notre Dame on May 17. McDonnell, an alumnus of the Catholic university in Indiana, said “a number of [Obama’s] views, both private and public, appear to be in great conflict with the Catholic social teaching.“