Spotlight on Delegation Underscores Va.'s Importance

By Tim Craig
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, August 28, 2008; A24

DENVER, Aug. 27 -- At this week's Democratic National Convention, it pays to be a delegate from Virginia.

The delegation has been showered with attention from Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine and the presidential campaign of Sen. Barack Obama, underscoring the state's importance in the race for the White House.

The 101 delegates have gotten to meet celebrities and see three of the most sought-after attendees -- Kaine, U.S. Senate candidate Mark R. Warner of Virginia and Sen. James Webb (Va.) -- almost daily.

As many people have scrambled for credentials to get into the convention hall, some Virginia delegates have scored the coveted passes for family and friends relatively easily. Some delegations are housed in hotels 20 miles from the heart of the action, but the Virginians sleep in a hotel in the center of the city.

And when TV cameras turn to the convention floor, there's the Virginia delegation, a few dozen yards from the podium, just behind the group from Obama's home state of Illinois. In contrast, delegates from Maryland, considered a safe state for the Democrats, are seated well off the floor.

Joyce Glaise, an Obama delegate from Danville, is attending her fourth Democratic convention. On Tuesday, she was in awe over her proximity to the speakers and podium.

"People used to be like, 'Oh, you are a red state,' " Glaise said as Kaine's parents and three children walked by. "They didn't give us any respect. We sat way up in the stands. Everyone knows where Virginia is now."

"We are being treated like first-class citizens," said Sen. Henry L. Marsh III (Richmond), an Obama delegate attending his sixth convention. "This is shaping up to be the best convention yet."

The Obama campaign and the national party hope the extra attention resonates back home and encourages activists to work harder in the fall to make Obama the first Democratic presidential nominee to win the state since 1964.

Party leaders are also using the convention to thank Virginia Democrats for their recent successes, including winning the past two gubernatorial races and reclaiming control of the state Senate.

"There is no question, within the hierarchy of the Democratic Party, everybody understands what's going on in Virginia," said C. Richard Cranwell, chairman of the state Democratic Party.

Besides the state's importance in the fall election, the delegates are benefiting from the key roles played at the convention by Warner, who delivered the keynote address Tuesday night, and Kaine. They and Sen. James Webb (D-Va.) were mentioned this summer as possible running mates for Obama.

Kaine, who became friends with Obama after he campaigned for the Virginian in 2005, was one of the first governors to endorse the presidential candidate and became a finalist for the ticket's number two spot. Although Obama tapped Sen. Joe Biden (Del.), Kaine still has a big role at the convention.

The governor will speak Thursday night, when the convention moves to Invesco Field to accommodate the 80,000 people expected to hear Obama accept the nomination.

Kaine, Warner and Webb have also been frequent guests on national television this week. On Tuesday, Kaine appeared on "The Daily Show."

Kaine's staff members have gone out of their way to ensure that Virginia's delegates benefit from the spotlight.

And in the weeks before the convention, Kaine's political staff worked with the Obama campaign to secure dozens of credentials for some party officials and volunteers who were not elected delegates.

"The DNC and the Obama campaign have been very responsive to requests made by the Virginia delegation," said Charlie Kelly, executive director of Kaine's political action committee. "They see the convention as an opportunity to celebrate Democratic achievements in Virginia and energize the grass roots for the fall."

On Tuesday night, Kaine held a party for the Virginia delegation featuring a surprise appearance from former NBA star Charles Barkley.

"The sun is really shining on Virginia Democrats, and it wouldn't be shining if we weren't doing a good job," Kaine told the delegation Wednesday. "They didn't get us front-row seats for nothing."

Richmond Mayor and former governor L. Douglas Wilder said there is hardly an event in Denver he has attended at which someone hasn't mentioned Virginia's importance to the Democratic Party.

"They say, 'I hope you guys can carry Virginia,' " Wilder said, adding that for the first time in decades, delegates to the convention "feel like they are part of it."

Janet Payne, a longtime Democratic activists from Fredericksburg, is attending her first national convention. During a cocktail party sponsored by Del. Brian J. Moran (D-Alexandria) Tuesday night, she drew a comparison between one of Virginia's early leaders and the access to party leaders she has been given in Denver.

"It's like Thomas Jefferson. Virginia is a leader again," Payne said. "We have three national Democrats who dominate the news cycles, and everyone around us knows Virginia is important."

Minutes after she made those remarks, Warner walked into the party. He had given the keynote address a few hours earlier, and his speech was being replayed on TV as he schmoozed with Virginia delegates.

"I can't believe it," Payne said. "I've known him since he was a nobody."