Former Attorney General of Virginia Bob McDonnell was the Republican nominee for the 2009 gubernatorial race in the U.S. Commonwealth of Virginia. At the Virginia State Convention on May 30, 2009, he officially received the party's nomination, as Republican Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling decided against opposing him. His opponent in the general election was State Senator Creigh Deeds, a Democrat from Bath County. Although the race was close in September, McDonnell began take a commanding leads in the poll heading into election day, when he defeated his opponent by a margin of 18 points. He was inaugurated on January 16, 2010 at the Virginia State Capitol.
Campaign
McDonnell announced his candidacy for the 2009 Virginia Gubernatorial election at American Legion's Boy's State of Virginia 2007, making him the seventh consecutive elected Attorney General to run. McDonnell accepted the GOP’s nomination at the Republican State convention, receiving “extended applause from a boisterous crowd of more than 10,000 Republicans from across the state.” Less than two weeks later, State Senator R. Creigh Deeds won his party’s nomination in a primary, setting up a “rematch” from the state attorney general’s race four years earlier.
In early June, Creigh Deeds possessed a slight edge in the polls with a 47%-41% advantage in the early polls. As the campaign continued to progress, the polls shifted toward McDonnell's favor, giving him even a commanding lead in some. When the Washington Post released McDonnell's thesis from Regent University, Deeds managed to cause McDonnell's lead to dwindle to only two percentage points in the Rasmussen. As the effects of the thesis began to disappear, McDonnell's campaign regained steam, ultimately taking a commanding lead heading into election day.
McDonnell crushed opponent Creigh Deeds in the general election by a vote of 59%-41%, receiving the highest percentage of the vote for any candidate for governor since 1961. In addition, the Republican Party of Virginia swept all three elections: Ken Cuccinelli won the Attorney General election and Bill Bolling was reelected to a second term as Lt. Governor.
Issues
The McDonnell campaign strategy focused on economic issues, transportation, and public safety. Bob McDonnell's proposals included new job initiatives, boosting Virginia’s tourism, hospitality, and film industries, making Wallops Island the top commercial spaceport in America, and expanding growth in rural Virginia. McDonnell’s education proposals would move $480 million per year from school administration and put it directly into the classroom; establish more specialized high schools to support high-demand industries; increase online learning through virtual schools; and support educational mentoring programs. McDonnell has frequently expressed his support for President Barack Obama’s ideas on increasing parental choice through charter schools.
McDonnell has said that his priority as Governor would be employment for Virginians. He has favored right-to-work laws, low operating cost of government and a simplified tax code.
Transportation
McDonnell's campaign also addressed transportation, a major issue in heavily congested areas of Virginia. His plan includes issuing $3 billion in transportation bonds that had been approved by the Virginia General Assembly in 2007; modernizing the Virginia Department of Transportation; and encouraging public-private partnerships to improve infrastructure. He wants to widen I-66, improve I-95, and finish Metro to Dulles.
Energy
McDonnell wishes to make Virginia the Energy Capital of the East Coast. He supports drilling for oil off of the coast of Virginia while simultaneously developing new technologies for wind, solar, biomass, and other renewable energy resources. Opponents of McDonnell's drilling proposal say that drilling for oil would risk Southern tourism, rare wildlife, and fisheries for what the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Minerals Management Service estimates would be only enough oil for six months, and require seven to ten years to bring online. He intends to expand investments in renewable energy sources and incentivize green job creation.
Abortion
McDonnell is anti-abortion. As a state legislator, he introduced legislation that would have banned late-term abortions, as well as other legislation requiring parental consent before a minor has an abortion and informed consent for all women. He opposes government funding for elective abortions.