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From a majority of candidates interviewed by The Daily Progress for a number of races, we’ve heard that the economy is the state’s top issue during this election.

Virginia’s economy is growing, but slowly: The commonwealth isn’t bouncing back from recession as strongly as it has following previous downturns. As a result, Virginia is losing economic advantage compared to other states.

The unemployment rate looks positive — but underemployment is a strong negative. Many people must make do with stop-gap jobs. Others must work two or three jobs just to make ends meet.

Virginia’s apparently encouraging growth and unemployment figures therefore seem to be veneered over a base of economic uneasiness and dissatisfaction.

Therefore, we take the issue of economic vitality as our No. 1 guidance in making our endorsement for governor. And we believe Ed Gillespie has the best chance of leading Virginia to a brighter economic future.

Why?

In basic political terms, because he is of the same party as the majority of state legislators and will be able to work with them.

He’s already laid the groundwork for that cooperation by involving lawmakers in the creation of his economic development plans and other proposals. That’s a smart strategic move that will give the new governor a jump start on implementing his programs.

But of course implementation itself is of no benefit — quite the opposite — if the programs themselves are injurious.

Mr. Gillespie’s overall philosophy is that a wise government should support the conditions in which businesses can thrive and in which Virginians can to keep more of their hard-earned money — a premise with which we agree.

Mr. Gillespie would promote regional approaches to development, such as GO Virginia; emphasize technology growth, including the tech and bio-tech business accelerator projects in and around Charlottesville; push for “workforce transformation” opportunities to help workers qualify for today’s jobs; collaborate with schools and universities to improve workforce readiness; enact policies to help Virginia businesses capture more venture capital; and advance efforts to create ready-to-build sites throughout Virginia, since many industry prospects are seeking such locations — and competitor states are providing them.

Although Virginia’s several agencies dealing with growth and the economy deserve support, one area that needs restraint — or at least better guidance — is the Virginia Economic Development Partnership. This is the agency that has made so many bad grants in recent years, including losing $1.4 million in state money to a fake Chinese company. Mr. Gillespie plans to ensure that the VEDP receives needed oversight.

There are other issues, certainly — and on these Mr. Gillespie doesn’t always land on the spot that might be expected of a long-time Republican. For instance, he has a detailed proposal to help address sea-level rise, which of course means he acknowledges it as a given.

Democrat Ralph Northam and Libertarian Cliff Hyra are also impressive candidates and are dedicated to the betterment of Virginia.

But we urge voters to look more closely at Ed Gillespie, by visiting his website and studying his 19-point action plan. They might be, as we were, pleasantly surprised.

Ed Gillespie‏Verified account @EdWGillespie Nov 2

Proud to have earned the endorsement of the @RTDNEWS for my focus on economic growth. http://ed4va.com/vfcSuC

Editorial: The Richmond Times-Dispatch endorses Ed Gillespie for governor

Despite the occasional nasty campaign flier or 30-second TV spot, this year’s race for governor of Virginia is a cause for at least modest celebration. The two major-party candidates are both admirable men — able, honest, and well-qualified to execute the high office they seek. Not so long ago, this might have seemed unremarkable. But in the 2013 gubernatorial election, The Times-Dispatch decided that no candidate was worthy of endorsement. And last year, after careful consideration, we endorsed the Libertarian candidate for president, much to the chagrin of many readers.

This year poses no such dilemma. Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam, the Democratic nominee for governor, is an honorable man, with a long record of service to country and commonwealth. He is fit for the job of governor. But he is the second-best choice to lead Virginia, not so much because of any defects on his part, but because of the abundant strengths of his opponent. Republican Ed Gillespie has run an energetic, inclusive, moderate-conservative, solutions-oriented campaign. His detailed, in-depth proposals reflect a refreshing respect for the intelligence of the voters.

Gillespie revives the pragmatic, open-minded Republican Party that for so long served Virginia well by emphasizing effective government that focuses on core responsibilities while limiting regulation and keeping taxes as low as possible. In an era of screamers, Gillespie speaks in calm tones about shared goals and specific policies to address both recent declines and longstanding problems. He offers multitudes of incremental progress rather than misleading promises of pure utopias. He is a realistic conservative who understands the gradual changes in Virginia — and is able to appreciate and protect the improvements while recognizing the problems, which are frequently spurred by creeping blue-state calls for bigger and more intrusive government.

His campaign has focused on helping boost economic growth and job creation. Its centerpiece is a highly responsible and straightforward plan to cut every Virginian’s state income tax by 10 percent. Despite hysterical claims to the contrary, Gillespie’s tax reforms will let workers keep more in their wallets, while protecting the commonwealth’s ability to meet its fundamental responsibilities, with a comfortable margin of error. He knows, unlike most Democrats, that more government spending is not the cure for all that ails society.

He has also displayed a desire to reform state laws and institutions that are failing our citizens, especially the most vulnerable among us. He has spoken frequently about the racial disparities in our criminal justice system. Gillespie proposes to raise the dollar amount of the felony larceny threshold, relax some medical marijuana and marijuana possession laws, and improve the process to restore voting rights for felons who have paid their debt to society. He favors treatment and intervention over incarceration as the best response to addiction. These measures demonstrate the candidate’s ability to assess complex challenges and respond with practical solutions rather than poll-tested slogans.

Gillespie backs charter schools as an alternative public-school opportunity for students who need a better education. He has outlined specific plans for expanding cooperation among governments, businesses, and faith communities to address issues such as foster care, adoption, and prisoner re-entry, where Virginia’s performance can certainly improve. He understands the need to act prudently on health care, so that its demands on the budget do not squeeze out funding for education and public safety. He recognizes that reforms to the state’s burdensome certificate of need program will ultimately benefit patient care and costs.

Perhaps most important, Gillespie knows that while Virginia remains a prosperous, dynamic dominion, it also faces strong competition — for jobs, businesses, students — from nearby states, especially those to the south. Virginia’s natural assets, enviable workforce, and outstanding universities have long provided competitive superiority. But those advantages can be forfeited if the commonwealth’s regulatory regime, budget discipline, and entrepreneurial appeal are allowed to decay. Gillespie talks often and persuasively about the unbreakable link between economic growth and social progress. As governor, he will deliver on Virginia’s potential. He has earned our confident endorsement.

Bannon embraces Ed Gillespie

Bannon: Trump, Stewart Voters Going to Win Virginia Governorship for ‘Bush Guy’ Gillespie

Following headliner Stephen K. Bannon, executive chairman of Breitbart News, populist-nationalist 2018 U.S. Senate candidate Corey Stewart addressed the Remembrance Project National Conference in Washington, DC, Saturday. The event, at the capital’s famous Willard Hotel, featured a “who’s who” of leaders in the fight against illegal immigration, including headliner Bannon, Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton, and Colorado gubernatorial candidate Tom Tancredo, in Remembrance Project’s largest annual event to honor Americans killed by illegal alien crime and the “angel families” they left behind.

Stewart, speaking afterwards with Breitbart News, called Bannon “the most powerful political figure in the United States today.” He agreed with Bannon’s assessment of the political winds in the country. “There’s momentum in the country to destroy political correctness, to do something about illegal immigration, to build the wall, and enforce immigration laws,” he said.

Virginia gubernatorial candidate Ed Gillespie made “Mara Salvatrucha,” or MS-13, a focal point of his campaign as Tuesday’s election draws near. Fueled by illegal aliens, the transnational criminal gang has become a gruesome feature of the once placid Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, DC.

The issue, that has come to define the race in the last month, is no news to Stewart, who extensively raised the alarm on MS-13 and the refusal of Gillespie opponent Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam to endorse banning the “sanctuary city” policies that fuel transnational criminal organizations in other states in his primary campaign.

Just Thursday, the Department of Justice unveiled indictments for murder against four more alleged MS-13 members from Anne Arundel County, Maryland, just over the state line from the Northern Virginia communities, about which both Gillespie and Stewart have raised concerns.

“MS-13 is not just a Northern Virginia problem. It’s not just in Northern Virginia and tidewater,” Stewart told Breitbart News on Saturday. “It is spreading down the [Interstate] 81 corridor and is becoming a statewide issue … It’s an issue that will drive not only conservatives but independent voters who are concerned about it.”

Stewart, who lost to Ed Gillespie by the narrowest of margin’s in June’s GOP primary, thought his one-time opponent has done well for himself by making illegal immigration-fueled crime the central issue of his campaign. “As he’s moved to the right,” Stewart told Breitbart News of Gillespie, “as he’s embraced the issues of protecting historical monuments and cracking down on illegal immigration, I don’t think it’s a coincidence his poll numbers have improved dramatically.”

The left, including the incumbent Democrat, arch-Clinton ally Terry McAuliffe, has tried to shame Gillespie’s populist turn as “racist.” Most prominent is the response of leftist PAC “Latino Victory Fund,” placing in circulation an ad showing a Gillespie supporter with a confederate flag on his pickup trying to run down Muslim and Latino children. The ad, now conclusively linked to the Northam campaign, has been called “vile” and “despicable” by the Washington Post editorial board.

Corey Stewart called the ad “by far the dumbest move by the left in the last year.”

Bannon, in his own address, broadly agreed with Stewart’s understanding of the path of the Virginia governor’s race. When he mentioned Gillespie’s name, cheers of “Corey! Corey!” erupted from the crowed. “For the Senate in ’18,” was Bannon’s reply.

“That’s a horse race now,” Bannon said. “Gillespie, what was he? Eight, ten points down two weeks ago, two and a half weeks ago?”

Gillespie is now running even or ahead in many polls.

“If Gillespie … a Bush guy … wins, and I do believe that Gillespie’s going to pull this thing out,” Bannon continued, “it will be because of the underlying message of Corey Stewart and what he believes in, and the Trump voters in Virginia who are gonna turn out!”

Stewart was similarly optimistic about the effect of the momentum Gillespie has stirred up with his embrace of Virginia’s populist energy. “A Gillespie win or a narrow loss means there will be a lot more national money and resources going into Virginia in 2018,” he told Breitbart News.