Moran gives up House seat to run for governor

Friday, longtime Alexandria Delegate Brian Moran announced he’s resigning from the General Assembly to devote more energy to his gubernatorial bid.

In a written statement, he wrote, “For the past 12 years I have represented Alexandria and Fairfax residents to the best of my ability. Yet as the new year begins, I will be campaigning full time across Virginia, sharing my vision for our future. They deserve the full attention of their representative in the legislative work this coming year.”

Is Moran right? Is he really best serving his constituents by leaving in the middle of his term to be replaced by a delegate with no seniority? It’s a tough call.

I put that question to the House Minority Leader, Del. Ward Armstrong (D-Henry Co.). Armstrong has endorsed Moran and is a close personal friend.

He told me he’ll miss Moran both professionally and personally. He noted Moran’s ability to move legislation on the floor of the House and his smart, tactical decisions. But, using several sports analogies, Armstrong essentially said “everyone’s replaceable.”

Certainly plenty of other candidates for office have resigned to run full time like Bob Dole after he won the Republican nomination in 1996. Virginia Attorneys General Mark Earley and Jerry Kilgore also resigned early after they won their party’s nomination for governor in 2001 and 2005. But, there’s one similarity to all of these examples: they all had one their party’s nomination before resigning.

What if Moran loses the primary? He has two other legitimate opponents in former Democratic National Party Chair Terry McAuliffe and Bathe County State Senator Creigh Deeds. It’s easy to see how any of the three could win the nomination.

That brings us back to the central question: why do this? Money may be the simplest answer. State officials from governor on down are barred from raising campaign cash during the General Assembly session. That means for two months, Moran would be kept out of the all important campaign fundraising luncheons/dinners and would be unable to call up his friends and ask for money. With two other candidates, one of which has a seemingly limitless pool of cash, in the race, lacking the money to run a campaign will likely be a fatal flaw.

Also, note the Deeds has not yet resigned his post in the State Senate, and I doubt he does. In 2005 as a candidate for attorney general, he kept his day job during the primary and the general election. I asked Armstrong if Deeds should resign, and he punted, saying that was a personal decision for each candidate. Deeds will face the same fundraising dilemma as Moran. But he has run statewide before so his name recognition is higher and he may have a larger donor pool to pull from making it easier for him to raise money.

In the end, this is a big gamble for Moran. If he wins the nomination, it was likely the right decision, as he wouldn’t be able to run simultaneously for the House and the Governor’s mansion. But, if he loses the nomination, you’ll have to wonder if he won’t regret this decision.