For Congress in Virginia

Reps. Wolf and Moran, and Mr. Connolly.

THIS YEAR, the ballot in Northern Virginia's 11th District is notable for the name that doesn't appear. Discouraged by changing demographics and partisan demagogy, Republican Tom Davis is stepping down after seven terms in the House. This is a seismic shift for the region. Mr. Davis didn't reject partisanship, but he didn't value party above his district's needs or greater Washington's. Mr. Davis was a relentless advocate for Metro funding and D.C. voting rights, issues unpopular in his party but critical to the region's growth.

Democrat Gerald E. Connolly, a veteran local politician, is the best bet to extend this record of valuable service. As a long-serving member of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, Mr. Connolly is attuned to the needs of the district, which encompasses most of Fairfax and a large part of Prince William County. In his effective five-year tenure as chairman, Mr. Connolly has preserved affordable housing, promoted stricter environmental standards and continued to make rail to Dulles International Airport a priority. Mr. Connolly can be thin-skinned and stubborn, but there's no denying that his sometimes-abrasive style of leadership has produced results. His experience on Capitol Hill -- he worked for 10 years with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee -- would ease his transition to Congress.

Mr. Connolly's Republican opponent, Keith S. Fimian, is a likable and successful businessman, but he can't match Mr. Connolly in experience, and his grasp of the finer points of the economy is tenuous. He says that his priority is to balance the federal budget, but he doesn't plausibly describe how. The centerpiece of Mr. Fimian's campaign is the inaccurate charge that Mr. Connolly mismanaged Fairfax County, producing a projected $430 million deficit in fiscal 2010. In fact, most area jurisdictions face similar shortfalls, and Mr. Connolly has deftly managed Fairfax's budget without dramatically increasing taxes.

In the 10th District, which extends from McLean to Manassas to Winchester, 14-term Republican incumbent Frank R. Wolf faces Democrat Judith M. Feder in a rematch. Ms. Feder, the former dean of Georgetown's Public Policy Institute, is an intelligent, engaging candidate who would immediately become one of the leading experts on health care in the House. But Mr. Wolf merits reelection on the basis of his knowledge and advocacy of important local projects, including Metro to Dulles, his willingness to promote bipartisan solutions on issues such as Iraq and entitlement reform, and his tireless support for human rights abroad. With Mr. Davis's departure, Mr. Wolf's seniority -- he is the longest-serving Virginia representative -- becomes that much more critical to securing federal dollars for the region.

Experience is also a factor in Virginia's 8th District, where an energetic newcomer, Republican Mark W. Ellmore, looks to unseat entrenched Democrat James P. Moran in a district that includes Arlington County, Alexandria, Falls Church and parts of Fairfax County. We've been critical of Mr. Moran, for sometimes inflexible partisanship and offensive remarks. But Mr. Moran's ability to secure millions of dollars for infrastructure improvements to help absorb the 20,000 military employees relocating to Fort Belvoir and the surrounding area is an example of why he is popular with his constituents, and why we support his reelection bid. Mr. Ellmore has run a lively campaign, and his background as a banker would bring welcome fiscal knowledge to the House. But his proposals for the district -- securing more transportation dollars for Northern Virginia and promoting alternative energy -- are vague and not an improvement over Mr. Moran's.