Is anyone outside the blogosphere paying attention to the contest between Harris Miller and James Webb for the right to run against U.S. Sen. George Allen? I read next to nothing about the race in my home-town paper, the Richmond Times-Dispatch. The race never comes up in conversation — and that’s saying something because most of my friends are politically opinionated, and many of them are Democrats.
An article in the Washington Post today says that no more than two or three percent of registered votes is expected to participate in the nomination election this month. That would be disgracefully low. Whatever their imperfections, both candidates are men of substance, and they have engaged in a lively debate.
Perhaps there is no excitement here in Richmond because both Miller and Webb are perceived as remote — Northern Virginians and Beltway insiders. Whatever the reason, the lack of enthusiasm doesn’t augur well for the eventual winner in his race against Allen.