Election '08: Ron Paul Republicans and Some Guy Named "Buddy"

David Weigel | June 10, 2008

The Dems and GOP have made their big choices, but there are still federal primaries popping up every week or so until September. Tonight, the polls close in three races that reasonoids have been watching, two in Virginia (7 p.m.) and one in South Carolina (8 p.m.).

Virginia-08: The Republican primary for this House seat pits Mark Ellmore against Ron Paul Republican Amit Singh, who was profiled in this month's issue of the magazine. It's been a short, strange trip. Singh jumped into the race in March, running on a modified Ron Paul/libertarian platform against de facto candidate Ellmore, who'd been running since he lost the 2006 primary. He assembled a staff of young conservatives, conducted a poll that showed him extremely competitive, and quickly raised $60,000—more than half as much as the last GOP candidate raised for his entire campaign. Ellmore countered by calling himself a Paul fan and, in the last few days, fabricating a quote from Singh about whether he'd vote for John McCain in November. I don't know who has the edge here, as Singh has been running hard, but a few endorsements they expected didn't come through. But I'll be at the victory party tonight with a report to follow.

Virginia-10: Libertarian Republican Vern McKinley, who appeared at reason's May event on the libertarian vote, has been running for more than a year against incumbent Republican Rep. Frank Wolf. ("When he was elected," McKinley jokes, "Rudy Giuliani was still married to his first wife." A McKinley win would be a miraculous upset, and I don't know anyone who expects it, but watch the vote totals.

South Carolina, U.S. Senate: Republican activist Buddy Witherspoon is running against immigration-compromising Republican Sen. Lindsay Graham, and our own Kerry Howley noticed "The Spoon" (as I, and no one else, call him) when he ran this ad:

He'll lose tonight.

Comments

Plant Immigration Rights Suppo|6.10.08 @ 6:29PM|#

Is "immigration-compromising" code for "not a member of the Know Nothing Party?"

|6.10.08 @ 6:35PM|#

Well, there you go again, Reason. Why should we have to share our country with people who don't speak or look like us. As World Net Daily says (and who can question their credibility)...

|6.10.08 @ 6:59PM|#

As World Net Daily says (and who can question their credibility)

HAHA!

You have made your first mistake....the only blog here with any credibility is the Daily Kos!

GILMORE|6.10.08 @ 7:08PM|#

Click 'n' Wacko | June 10, 2008, 6:35pm | #

Well, there you go again, Reason. Why should we have to share our country with people who don't speak or look like us.

The next step is to deport all the Hippies!

|6.10.08 @ 7:49PM|#

As an ex-South Carolina politics guy, I can tell you that some serious people had been talking about State Treasurer Thomas Ravenel as a challenger to Lindsey Graham.

Then this happened.

Oh, well.

God|6.10.08 @ 7:50PM|#

reason sucks

Reason|6.10.08 @ 8:03PM|#

god sucks?

|6.10.08 @ 8:04PM|#

ot, but man did Moynihan get pwned.

http://thegspot.typepad.com/blog/2008/06/sweden-redux.html#more

|6.10.08 @ 9:41PM|#

So this Ellmore guy, who brags about supporting socialized transportation and says that the federal government needs to be more involved in local energy, apparently won.

I assume VA-08 is a safe Democrat district?

|6.10.08 @ 9:42PM|#

And McKinley single digits in a 2way race. Ouch.

Kolohe|6.10.08 @ 9:46PM|#

I assume VA-08 is a safe Democrat district?

Get a Moran, brain.

Kolohe|6.10.08 @ 9:50PM|#

Only 3 districts in the entire country of interest, and two of them are in the DC metro area?

Ok, Mr Weigel, I guess you deserve a day off after all the good work you've done so far this season.

D.A. Ridgely |6.10.08 @ 10:19PM|#

The Washington Post reports that, unsurprisingly, Wolf crushed McKinley, winning 91% of the vote. Singh lost to Ellmore, too, but took a respectable 44% of the vote.

|6.10.08 @ 10:24PM|#

Mark Ellmore 3,240 56%
Amit Singh 2,558 44%




Frank Wolf * 16,559 91%
Vern McKinley 1,585 9%



:(


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/metro/elections/2008/general_va.html

Travis|6.11.08 @ 12:21AM|#

I'm going to have nightmares about Buddy smiling & nodding on the phone.

|6.11.08 @ 1:30AM|#

There is no Spoon.

He would have gotten more votes had he used some Brujeria for his campaign ads.

Orange Line Special|6.11.08 @ 1:37AM|#

I'm going to start a movement to put on LibertarianThinkingParties, events where local libs (say, the three or four within a 100 mile radius) will get together and try to think things through.

For instance, they could get together and think about this Lindsay Graham statement. Is anyone foolish enough to actually believe him?

|6.11.08 @ 1:58AM|#

44% for a novice who just jumped in the race in the last few months is pretty damn good, I'd encourage him to run again.

Ben in DC|6.11.08 @ 8:18AM|#

Why does the Washington Post show Singh losing, but Arlington County's site does not (as of 8:17 AM)?

http://www.arlingtonva.us/Departments/VoterRegistration/pollresults/ViewTotalVotes.asp

Eric Dondero|6.11.08 @ 8:22AM|#

David, I've highlighted this article and the results over at Libertarian Republican blog. After Zimmer crushing Sabrin two weeks ago in the NJ Senate primary, looks like Ron Paul Republicans are getting slaughtered.

Sabrin, despite much ballyhooh, even managed to finish a distant 3rd.

Nigel Watt|6.11.08 @ 9:11AM|#

Eric, why don't YOU run for Congress?

Ben in DC|6.11.08 @ 9:18AM|#

My bad. I thought that the Arlington results were district wide, not county-wide only. Singh carried Arlington, but not the district.

Bob|6.11.08 @ 9:35AM|#

Eric, why don't YOU run for Congress?


Let's not forget that Dunderoo made lots of noise about running for Congress, then wimped out and tried to deny ever having said it. Life away from the keyboard is just too demanding, and you need more qualifications than being the former coffee-run-gofer for Ron Paul.

|6.11.08 @ 10:41AM|#

Dondero, haven't you like bailed on the Republican Party now? You're supporting Barr/Root 2008, right?

Squid|6.11.08 @ 10:51AM|#

Dondero, haven't you like bailed on the Republican Party now? You're supporting Barr/Root 2008, right?

Dondero wants to turn the LP into GOP Jr.

Barr/Root is just the start.

Somehow he thinks that makes him more libertarian than anyone else.

lunchstealer|6.11.08 @ 12:04PM|#

My main opposition to Lindsey Graham is that he basically gave Bush political cover on the torture issue. He talked a reasonable game and made lots of noise that sounded good about restoring the rule of law to our treatment of detainees, but then got behind some compromises that basically just changed the names of things. So it sounded like the GOP was being a watchdog, but it was all bark and no bite.