Mark Warner: 'People want us to get things done'

ALEXANDRIA

Virginia “turned a significant page” with Tuesday’s vote for Barack Obama, but it would be a mistake for the new president or his Democratic allies in Congress to interpret the election results as signaling a political re-alignment in the state or nation, Sen.-elect Mark Warner said today.

Victorious over former Gov. Jim Gilmore in every section of the state, Warner said he takes the returns as a sign that “people want us to get things done.”

And that means that Democrats and Republicans must work together, he said. He cautioned that Democrats should not “take on the same arrogance that Republicans did after the 2000 election.”

Warner met with reporters after addressing and thanking his campaign staff at his headquarters here. “It was a pretty darn good day yesterday,” he told about 40 workers gathered in the office.

Last night, Warner formally claimed the U.S. Senate seat pollsters and pundits had awarded him months ago, declaring his overwhelming victory a mandate for "results, not rhetoric."

His Republican opponent, former Gov. Jim Gilmore, congratulated Warner on a "masterful campaign" and pledged to remain someone who will "speak out on the issues on behalf of the people" - a reference to his push for offshore drilling and a renewed focus on national security.

Warner saluted the man he'll replace: retiring Republican John Warner. Despite their political differences, the men grew close during Mark Warner's time as governor. John Warner did not campaign for Gilmore, his fellow Republican.

As governor, Mark Warner said, he pulled Virginia out of financial woes. "We can do the same thing and make America the most competitive nation in the world if we do it together," he told the crowd, which began chanting, "Yes, we can!" - the slogan of presidential candidate Barack Obama.

Warner's victory had appeared all but certain for months, with Gilmore trailing by as much as 30 percentage points in some opinion polls and unable to raise money for more than a handful of television ads. While Warner collected nearly $13 million for the campaign, Gilmore could manage only $2.6 million.

Gilmore's defeat was the most lopsided loss suffered by a Virginia Republican since 1988, when Democrat Chuck Robb defeated Maurice Dawkins for a Senate seat. Warner's victory gives Democrats control of both the state's Senate slots for the first time since 1970.

The origins of Tuesday's outcome, and its dimensions, can be traced to each man's term as governor.

Gilmore, governor from 1998 to 2002, left office with the state's economy slumping and the government in Richmond facing a budget crunch. The final year of his term was marked by a bitter feud with the Republican-controlled General Assembly over his insistence on repealing the state tax on cars.

Warner, who took office in January 2002, built alliances with GOP legislative leaders to close the budget gap and win approval of a tax increase in 2004. As he left office, the budget was running a surplus, Wall Street had withdrawn threats to downgrade the state's credit rating and Time magazine was hailing Warner as one of the nation's five best governors.

Alliances Warner built and enemies Gilmore made during their tenures figured prominently in their campaign. Several GOP legislative leaders endorsed Warner and the state's usually Republican business establishment closed its wallets to Gilmore.

Dale Eisman, (703) 913-9872, dale.eisman@pilotonline.com