Even before the first tallies were in Tuesday night, the sign outside the Westin Richmond Hotel meeting room where the Virginia Democratic Party convened seemed a plea to forget what was about to happen: “Channel Your Energy, Replenish Your Spirit and Embrace The Endless Possibilities The Day Brings,“ it stated. Yesterday, after Republicans had swept Virginia’s statewide offices and captured the New Jersey governor’s office, Gov. Timothy M. Kaine did not sound like he would be leaving his post as chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine was out of state for at least parts of 14 days in October, according to a travel log that his office released late yesterday. Kaine, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, was in Chicago and Boston on Oct. 15 and returned from Boston on Oct. 16. He traveled to New York on Oct. 20, stayed overnight, and stopped in Washington on the way back to Richmond the next day, according to the log.

The sons of the late Edward M. Kennedy have urged the governor to pick Paul G. Kirk Jr., the former chairman of the Democratic National Committee, to temporarily replace their father in the U.S. Senate.

The chairmen of the Democratic and Republican national committees spoke last night to more than 200 people at an event held by the Chesterfield County chapter of the NAACP. Gov. Timothy M. Kaine, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, spoke first during the 24th Annual Freedom Fund Banquet, giving a speech that praised the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People but focused largely on touting President Barack Obama’s work in office.

The state director for Sen. Mark R. Warner, D-Va., will head to Capitol Hill with a box of petitions signed by Virginians in support of President Barack Obama’s health-care principles. Several hundred health-care-reform supporters gathered at the Bell Tower on the grounds of the state Capitol yesterday evening to express their support for Obama’s efforts. The event was coordinated by Organizing for America, a project of the Democratic National Committee.

Attempting to reach a different—and hopefully wider—audience for its annual fundraiser, the Chesterfield branch of the NAACP has lined up a nationally prominent speaker for its September Freedom Fund Banquet. The choice isn’t sitting well with some state leaders, in large part because it could put the group at risk of compromising its nonprofit status.

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine, juggling his day job as Virginia’s chief executive and part-time gig as Democratic national chairman, spent four of the past 10 days out of state. Kaine’s press secretary, Gordon Hickey, disclosed in an e-mail last night that between July 22 and yesterday, the governor had woven into his schedule trips to the Midwest and West Coast.

From the beginning of March till the end of June, Gov. Timothy M. Kaine spent parts of 31 days outside Virginia in his capacity as chairman of the Democratic National Committee. Kaine’s travel on behalf of the DNC was catalogued in a response by the Virginia State Police to a Freedom of Information Act request by the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

He didn’t ask for this job. The job of chairman of the Democratic National Committee, that is. Now that he has it, six months later, even an outsider might understand why Gov. Timothy M. Kaine was somewhat reluctant to take it in the first place. He has been dogged by state Republican leaders, eager to find an opening in a pivotal state election year to reverse the tide of political success that has given Virginia Democrats control of the governor’s office, two U.S. Senate seats, the state’s House of Representatives delegation and the state Senate.

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine, who recently has been criticized by state Republican leaders for his out-of-town trips as chairman of the Democratic National Committee, says his security detail on those trips cost less than $10,000 in his first six months in the post. Kaine said he has kept records of the security expenditures and has instructed the DNC to reimburse the commonwealth for the costs.

On monthly radio show, Kaine, chairman of Democratic National Committee, declines to criticize Republican Gov. Mark Sanford, who yesterday admitted sneaking to Argentina to meet woman with whom he was having an affair.

If you want to know where Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine is, just ask him. That’s the message Kaine delivered yesterday to state Republican critics who say he has been sneaking off to tend to his high-profile, part-time job as chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

The Republican Party of Virginia yesterday requested under the Freedom of Information Act records of Gov. Timothy M. Kaine’s out-of-state travels and state expenditures related to his work as chairman of the Democratic National Committee. Lynda Tran, a spokeswoman for Kaine, said the office will respond to the FOIA request the same way it treats all FOIA requests.

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine put on his hat as Democratic National Committee chairman to defend the Obama administration in a Sunday-morning square-off with Republican counter part Michael Steele. During a joint interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press,“ Kaine and Steele sparred over whether President Barack Obama, who supports abortion rights, should receive an honorary degree from the University of Notre Dame, an anti-abortion, Catholic institution, where he spoke yesterday.

Within sight of home base for his first day job, Gov. Timothy M. Kaine spent some time yesterday focusing on his second. The chairman of the Democratic National Committee joined the organization’s executive committee for its business meeting, held yesterday afternoon at the Omni Hotel in Richmond. He thanked them for their support and patience as he tries to tend to both tasks during a difficult time. “I am trying to juggle two pretty challenging jobs,“ he said. “It’s not an easy time to be a governor.“