Goode says he won’t concede
AP Photo/Marcus Yam
Virgil Goode, center, stands with supporters at the Smith Mountain Lake Republican Headquarters in Moneta on Tuesday.
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Published: November 6, 2008
Updated 3:44 p.m.
ROCKY MOUNT, Va. (AP) — U.S. Rep. Virgil Goode says he doesn’t plan to concede his re-election race to Democrat Tom Perriello.
The Republican congressman said at a news conference Friday that he will wait until Nov. 24, when the state Board of Elections is scheduled to certify vote totals. Unless the margin changes dramatically, he’ll decide then whether to ask for a recount.
Perriello is ahead by about 650 votes over Goode, based on Associated Press returns Friday afternoon.
Perriello scheduled a public appearance Friday afternoon in Martinsville.
-Associated Press
Challenger Tom Perriello’s lead widened slightly over Rep. Virgil Goode on Thursday as provisional ballots and absentee votes continued to be posted in the 5th District Congressional race.
The hard-fought race slowed to a crawl and seems to be headed into a process where the winner won’t be determined until at least Nov. 24, when the State Board of Elections certifies all results of Tuesday’s election.
An analysis by The News & Advance of where Goode’s once-solid support eroded in Southside Virginia showed that voters in the Martinsville-Danville area seemed most dissatisfied.
Returns from the city of Martinsville changed most between 2006 and 2008. The city gave Goode 59 percent of its votes two years ago against Democrat Al Weed, but on Tuesday only 39 percent supported Goode.
Similar trends occurred in Danville and Henry County, both of which fell back 13 percent in their support of Goode.
Del. Morgan Armstrong, D-Henry County and leader of Democrats in the House of Delegates, said he found the 5th District election “interesting.”
“I sort of found the results unexpected, and I’ve been in politics awhile,” Armstrong said.
He declined to speculate on why support for Goode slipped so markedly in Martinsville and Henry County.
The percentage of voters supporting Goode fell in every county and city in the 5th District from 2006 to 2008.
In the area around Lynchburg, Bedford City showed the biggest decline, at 10 percent. The percentage decline in area counties stood at 9 percent in Bedford, 7 percent in Campbell, 6 percent in Appomattox and 5 percent in Nelson, according to an analysis of state Board of Elections results.
During the day Thursday, the margin of Perriello’s lead varied between 31 votes and 830. Twelve of the district’s 22 counties and cities had updated their returns as of late Thursday afternoon. Another 10 had not posted their results.
Observers from the U.S. House of Representatives Administration Committee were visiting 5th District registrars’ offices Thursday to watch as local electoral boards reviewed provisional and absentee ballots.
Kyle Anderson, spokesman for the committee, said it doesn’t have jurisdiction in the state-level counting process. The committee does have jurisdiction if a federal election is contested, Anderson said.
A recount can’t be requested until the State Board of Elections certifies the results, and then only the losing candidate can request a recount. The winning margin must be less than 1 percentage point to justify a recount, the board said in a statement Thursday.
The Goode campaign put a new spokeswoman on the job Thursday. Jennifer Hing, who has served as a spokesperson for the House Appropriations Committee, of which Goode is a member, said his campaign is optimistic.
“We’re confident that once the process is complete we will be on top,” Hing said.
Jessica Barba, Perriello’s spokeswoman, said, “We feel confident that Tom Perriello will be declared the winner in this race.”
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Reader Reactions
Posted by ( Cleocat ) on November 12, 2008 at 5:06 pm
Goode is just another mouth breather. Goode riddance. Hee hee.
As far as all the religous talk..I have to laugh.
I do not think that being a “magical thinker” that believes in a wizard up in space makes soomeone a “real” American… I think it just makes someone imaginative and easily convinced.
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Posted by ( DrMink ) on November 10, 2008 at 12:59 pm
Good to see another attempt at cleaning up Congress and the Congressional delegation for the Commonwealth of Virginia.
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Posted by ( poet ) on November 07, 2008 at 10:01 pm
There are ignorant people because they don’t know any better, then you have the ignorant bigots like Vahomboy that go out of their way to remain, well…for lack of a better term…ignorant. It makes no difference to his type because bigotry, lies and stupidity trumps facts and truth every time.
1)Fact. The constituion holds no litmus test on religion. You can be anything you want to be Vahomboy and the constitution says Keith ellison can be what ever he wants to be.
2)Fact. Of course you’re not embarrassed. Why should you be. You think your personal dismissal of truth somehow changes the constitution to refect your own bigoted views. That’s one reason why poor Virgil is being rejected. All bigots do that, all the while thinking they ‘have a pair’.
3)Over and over again the truth has been told that Kieth Ellison got sworn in on the Bible during the official group swearing of the oath. He choose the Koran during his private ceremony to invoke his faith in his God on that auspicious day.
4)Fact. The Koran Keith Ellison used came from the personal library of Thomas Jefferson. You know….one of those guys that framed the constitution that gave Kieht Ellison the right to practice the religion of his choice. By your bigoted view I guess Thomas Jefferson is godless and his body should be shipped out on a plane, boat or automobile.
5)Fact. I’m unaware of any law that says you, Virgil Goode, or any other ignorant bigot has the right to demand how or who Minnesota votes.
One last fact. I know you and your type are not going to do anything but keep repeating the same tired stupid stuff. You just can’t help it, because you will take deliberate steps to remain ignorant. In a time when the country has rejected your kind of ignorance and bigotry hands down, it just pathetic you can’t seem to join the civilized society. I really pity you.
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Posted by ( GraceStreetBoy ) on November 07, 2008 at 8:02 pm
Virgil Goode is, quite simply, a hick, a cleaned-up redneck, a bigot, and an embarrasment to the good people of Central Virginia. Thanks for your public service, Virg, we bid you a fond farewell…...
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Posted by ( Vahomboy ) on November 07, 2008 at 6:17 pm
David, you are a trip! You are right, freedom of religion here in the US. I don’t care to rule or be a dictator or even live in another country. I’ve traveled abroad and seen what some have done to their countries. I’ll stay right here and fight for what’s right. Certain “groups” here in the US use the religious crutch here every day to get things “their” way. Removal of prayer in schools and such. You with me here? We’ve taken God out of almost everything here in the US so we don’t offend “others”. I frankly don’t care about the others being offended. If they don’t like it, leave! It’s only a matter of time before “someone” cries out about being offended about God’s name being on a sign in front of our churchs and want to have it removed. They don’t want “In God We Trust” on our money but they love making it and spending it. Some don’t even have to pay taxes on it! I’m offended that he wanted to use the Quran to be sworn in to a US public office, but who am I? A working taxpaying American so I guess I don’t count. Let me be a foreigner or an illegal and I’ll have all kinds of rights, without even having to work for them.
Do I sound off my rocker? May be, but at least I stand up for things, which is better than being run over by others.
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Posted by ( David ) on November 07, 2008 at 5:42 pm
I want to remind Vahomboy that here, in the good ol’ US of A, we have freedom of religion. It’s in the Constitution of the good ol’ US of A. And, if Vahomboy doesn’t like our constitutional guarantees, I suggest that HE move to another country where there is no religious freedom—like Saudi Arabia, or Iran. Yes, these are countries where Muslim rule, but his words seem much more in line with the state run religious thinking of those countries than the thought that we, as Americans, are free to worship as we see fit and to work out our own relationship with the devine rather than have it dictated by a dictator or even by Vahomboy himself.
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Posted by ( Vahomboy ) on November 07, 2008 at 4:18 pm
“I’ll always remember Goode for his bigoted remarks about Keith Ellison, congressman from Minnesota. Ellison, a Muslim, was to take the oath of office on the Quran and Goode loudly said that was wrong, he must use a Bible. That only lead to further religious persecution, unfairly, of Muslims. Goode pretty much embarrassed his congressional district.“
Well, it DIDN’T embarass me. At least he has a pair. If Ellison wanted to use the Quran, well let him do so in the country that uses it as their bible. Planes, boats and automobiles leave this country everyday headed out abroad. This is America, US of A, Love It or Leave It! In GOD We Trust!
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Posted by ( poet ) on November 07, 2008 at 1:57 pm
Oh my goodness gracious Observer, boo hoo hoo, poor Virgil. Jobs fleeing the south side in droves and the only time you hear anything from this incompetent is when he steps out the shadows to make some bigoted remark or try to bamboozle the south side into reelecting him every couple years.
So now somebody comes along and holds him accoutable to what he did and his record ( more accuratly, non-record ), and you want us to believe he’s loosing based only on your silly assertion somebody hates him. Sheeeeeeesh, it couldn’t ever be because the south side didn’t fall for the good ole boy okey-doke again.
It is true that Perriello will be a junior member of that august body, but at the least he won’t be an embarrassment for the entire state.
And of course you’re wrong about Perriello being unable to do things
(1) because he hasn’t even taken office yet and you have no basis to make the assertion and
(2) for the sake of argument lets say you’re right. You should be accustomed to that because Virgil sure hassn’t done anything for the south side. But of course you are wrong and saying desparate things. Typical neo-con.
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Posted by ( observer ) on November 07, 2008 at 9:59 am
Earmarks were brought up, but Virgil did not say he agreed 100% with McCain. Some earmarks may have been out of sorts, but the ones that Virgil was / is getting for the 5th have been good for us. I want to see how Perriello, If the vote goes his way, will bring money to the 5th like Virgil did.
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Posted by ( avillage ) on November 07, 2008 at 9:55 am
Well, Observer, Southside may lose money, sure. I also note in the McCain campaign, his constant call to remove earmark spending. Goode specializes in earmarks.
I’ll always remember Goode for his bigoted remarks about Keith Ellison, congressman from Minnesota. Ellison, a Muslim, was to take the oath of office on the Quran and Goode loudly said that was wrong, he must use a Bible. That only lead to further religious persecution, unfairly, of Muslims. Goode pretty much embarrassed his congressional district.
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