First off, you should well remember that since the ‘70s, VA has tended to vote contrary to the Presidency in its Gubernatorial races. The last time it didn’t was 1973, and even then, Mills Godwin only barely won over the moonbat Henry Howell. From 1977 onward, it has voted like clockwork against the WH party: for Republican John Dalton; 1981 for Democrat Chuck Robb; 1985 for Dem Gerry Baliles; 1989 for Dem Doug Wilder; 1993 for GOPer George Allen; 1997 for GOPer Jim Gilmore; 2001 for Dem Mark Warner; 2005 for Dem Tim Kaine; 2009 for GOPer Bob McDonnell. I expect Cuccinelli will continue the trend next year, especially given that Willard will not be in the WH.
If you have some miraculous information that Cuccinelli will lose next year, please share it. I might remind you that he also received a higher % of the vote than Bolling did, and Bolling should’ve performed better given that he was already an incumbent running for reelection and Cuccinelli was making his first run for statewide office.
As for Kaine and Mark Warner, both lucked out in races running against Republicans who ran poor campaigns. Although I supported it then, I realize now that George Allen’s retread candidacy was a fiasco. We should’ve run someone else against Kaine.
I had serious qualms about giving Allen a second shot at it (although I felt a little more confident about it after Webb announced he wouldn't be running for re-election), and it turns out that Allen was indeed the wrong choice. I still can't believe Romney managed to lose Virginia to Obama, but I think Allen still ran behind Romney in most parts of the same. 1994 Allen didn't show up for the campaign, 2006 Allen did.
I think Shaheen will be re-elected in N.H. if they try the same strategy and recycle John "my daddy was Governor" Sununu for a rematch. (even though 2014 should a terrible year for the RATs overall). Shades of the Wellstone vs. Boschwitz rematch. We're trying the same thing over again after voters kicked out these Senators six years ago and still don't like 'em. It's not going to change anymore than Stephenson vs. Einsenhower in 1956 helped the RATs.
Cuccinelli should be elected Governor easily next year, especially with the backlash against the national RATs. But it's troubling that Virginia used to be very reliable for us in Presidential elections and seems to have become a very centrist swing state in recent years, allowing the marxist Obama to win it twice. It's almost as if Virginia and West Virgina have switched sides. West Virginia was never part of the "solid south" but it was always more likely to go RAT in Presidential elections because of poor white people controlled by the coal miners unions. Gore loss in West Virgina in 2000 was considered an upset, and since then it's become strongly Republican in presidential contests, to the point where the RATs don't even try to contest it anymore (I think it's probably because the national RATs moved so far left on social issues, and the pro-life, pro-traditional marriage, and pro-gun local RATs in West Virgina still win elections regularly). Virginia, on the other hand, is no longer the GOP friendly state it was, when it even terribly unpopular RAT presidents with horrible economic records can win it, and liberal RATs imported from northeastern states can win the governorship. But none of that changes the fact the RATs have a terrible weak bench for Governor next year. McAuliffe wouldn't even win the RAT primary if they could find anyone else. He's a walking disaster. He might win if it's Minnesota (Al Franken!) but even Virginia isn't that bad yet.