Campaigns for lieutenant governor seldom make noise. The race for attorney general typically generates more headlines. The gubernatorial contest dominates the scene. The reason is simple: The lieutenant governor has few stipulated duties. The position’s main obligations include presiding over sessions of the State Senate and succeeding the governor in the event of the governor’s death or resignation. Principally because of the second function,

Jody M. Wagner, the Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor, is accusing her Republican opponent, Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling, of being AWOL on state business. Wagner says that of five state commissions the lieutenant governor is mandated by statute to serve on, Bolling attended only four meetings during his four years as lieutenant governor.

Democratic gubernatorial nominee R. Creigh Deeds outraised Republican nominee Bob McDonnell in July and August, but McDonnell entered the final two months of the campaign with a clear financial advantage, campaign reports show. McDonnell had $5.8 million in the bank Aug. 31, while Deeds had about $4.4 million, the campaigns reported yesterday.

As Virginia again braces for budget cuts, Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling is trying to make the past of Jody Wagner, his Democratic opponent in the November election, come back to haunt her. Bolling, a Hanover County Republican who is seeking re-election, says overly optimistic revenue forecasts by Wagner—as Virginia’s secretary of finance—and the administration of Gov. Timothy M. Kaine have resulted in the series of painful budget cutbacks the state has been undergoing for the past two years.

Speaker of the House William J. Howell, R-Stafford, has asked the House Ethics Advisory Panel to investigate Del. Phillip A. Hamilton, R-Newport News, for a possible violation of the state’s Conflict of Interest Act. Howell called for the investigation yesterday as the three statewide Democratic candidates—and the top two statewide Republican candidates—called for Hamilton to resign because of budget actions he took to secure a job for himself.

The two candidates for governor picked up important endorsements yesterday. The Black Legislative Caucus, consisting of 14 Democratic members of the General Assembly, representing about 700,000 people, endorsed Democrat R. Creigh Deeds. The Virginia Association of Realtors, with, 33,000 members, the largest trade association in the state, endorsed Republican Bob McDonnell.

Democrats seized yesterday on recent remarks by the state Republican Party chairman to brand Republicans as insensitive to rural Virginians. In a conference call with reporters, Democratic gubernatorial nominee R. Creigh Deeds and the state Democratic Party chairman, C. Richard Cranwell, called on Republican gubernatorial nominee Bob McDonnell to apologize for Pat Mullins’ remarks.

The state’s down-ticket candidates are far apart on the issues—and in their campaign checkbooks. The Republican nominee has a hefty lead in the cash race for lieutenant governor, while the Democratic candidate for attorney general continues to have more cash on hand than his opponent, according to campaign-finance reports filed yesterday.

Raised: $366,141 during the May 28-June 30 reporting period
  Cash on hand:
$1.1 million
Democrat
  Raised: $231,661 during the reporting period and spent $316,566
  Cash on hand: $187,980

The latest survey by Public Policy Polling shows Republican Bob McDonnell has the support of 49 percent of those polled, and Democrat R. Creigh Deeds has 43 percent, in the race for governor. The result follows polling right after the June 9 Democratic primary that showed Deeds, a state senator from Bath County, with an edge over McDonnell.

Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling, running for re-election, is blaming Democratic challenger Jody Wagner, a former state finance secretary, for Virginia’s budget woes. In a newspaper column and a fundraising appeal, Bolling links departing Gov. Timothy M. Kaine’s former finance chief to the continuing cash crunch, faulting her for flawed revenue projections.

Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling, running for re-election, is blaming Democratic challenger Jody Wagner, a former state finance secretary, for Virginia’s budget woes. In a newspaper column and a fundraising appeal, Bolling links departing Gov. Timothy M. Kaine’s former finance chief to the continuing cash crunch, faulting her for flawed revenue projections.

The Republican candidates for statewide office will be listed first on the ballot for the Nov. 3 statewide elections. The GOP name was drawn from a bowl at a State Board of Elections meeting yesterday. The Republican candidates’ names will be first in House of Delegates races as well. So it will be Bob McDonnell, then R. Creigh Deeds for governor; Bill Bolling, then Jody Wagner for lieutenant governor; and Ken Cuccinelli, then Steve Shannon for attorney general.

Democratic lieutenant governor nominee Jody M. Wagner yesterday challenged Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling, the Republican incumbent, to five debates to be held in different regions of the state. A spokesman for Bolling noted that “we look forward to a rigorous discussion of the candidates’ qualifications, their records and their vision for the future of Virginia.“

Brief power outages in Northern Virginia and a report of a gunman in Virginia Beach added drama to yesterday’s statewide Democratic primary. Otherwise, the day was marked by low turnout and little suspense once the polls closed. Returns soon showed that state Sen. R. Creigh Deeds and Jody M. Wagner won runaway victories to become the Democratic nominees for governor and lieutenant governor.