RICHMOND — Just two years ago, nearly every top-ranking Republican in Virginia called for the removal of Jeff Frederick as chairman of the state party after accusations of incompetence and mismanagement.
Now, many of those elected officials, including Gov. Robert F. McDonnell, see Frederick’s candidacy for the state Senate as an integral part of the Republican strategy to gain control of the chamber in November.
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Republicans are contributing to his campaign, headlining events for him and offering advice in a tough race against Democratic Sen. Linda T. “Toddy” Puller (Fairfax) in Northern Virginia.
Frederick, 36, was ousted as state party chairman in 2009 after a brief tenure and did not run for a fourth term in the House of Delegates, where he prided himself on being an outspoken conservative.
But, he said, he decided to run this year — after the district was redrawn favorably for him during redistricting — to try to shake up the Senate, where many Republican proposals have died at the hands of the Democratic majority.
“We can’t keep doing the same thing over and over again and expect a different result,” Frederick said. “We have to do things differently.”
Puller declined to criticize Frederick and instead stressed her willingness to work with both Democrats and Republicans — something she called the “Virginia difference.”
“I’ve been there, and I’ve been able to get things done,” said Puller, 66, a reliable Democratic vote who was elected to the Senate in 1999 after eight years in the House.
Republicans are aggressively fighting to take control of the Senate, where Democrats hold a 22 to 18 majority. If the GOP picks up just two seats, the party would seize control, because Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling (R) presides over the chamber; that would allow Republicans to control committee assignments and debate.
An outspoken legislator
Democrats are on the defensive in many parts of the state, including vote-rich Northern Virginia, but they continue to think that Frederick is too conservative to topple a well-liked Democrat in a Democratic-leaning district.
Frederick, who as a legislator was outspoken on conservative issues, once took to the Assembly floor to say that Darwin’s theory of evolution “was used by atheists to explain away the belief in God.” He also once jokingly compared then-Sen. Barack Obama to Osama bin Laden, saying that “both have friends who bombed the Pentagon” — a reference to Obama’s association with former Weather Underground member Bill Ayers.
But Frederick, following in the footsteps of McDonnell and other recently successful Republicans in Virginia, is playing down his focus on ideology. He talks about reducing the size of government, keeping taxes low and easing congestion.
“Being chairman of the Republican Party is different than being a member of the Virginia Senate,” McDonnell said in an interview. “I think he has the right ideas on jobs, businesses, taxes and spending.”
In 2009, Frederick had support from local activists as he fought to remain chairman, but party leaders — including McDonnell, the state’s five GOP congressmen and House Speaker William J. Howell of Stafford — called for his resignation. The allegations against Frederick included that he directed business to his own company, spent party money for unbudgeted purposes without approval and refused to coordinate with the campaign of the 2008 Republican presidential nominee, Sen. John McCain (Ariz.). He has denied the allegations.
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