It’s been a rough week for Ed Gillespie. In a primary contest where he was “expected to cruise” to victory, Gillespie “just barely survived…in a shockingly tight contest.” Articles across the state and around the country pegged the tight contest as showing the “sharp fault lines” in a “deeply fractured” Republican party. Corey Stewart came within just over a point within besting Ed Gillespie. To make matters worse for Ed, he couldn’t excite Republicans to get out and vote for him in the first place–Republican turnout was a mere 40%, while Democratic turnout was 60%, almost 200,000 more votes.
That’s not all: Gillespie strongly supports Trump, whose popularity in Virginia is in free-fall, andlatest polling shows Gillespie trailing Democratic nominee Ralph Northam. Gillespie is having a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad week.
Watch American Bridge’s new web ad rehashing Gillespie’s terrible first week of the general election.
Need more proof? Just take a look at the headlines:
Richmond Times-Dispatch: Editorial: Virginia Democrats express a unity Republicans lack
US News & World Report: Ed Gillespie’s Big-League Problem In Virginia
NPR: GOP’S Gillespie Ekes Out Win In Virginia Governor Primary; Northam Cruises For Dems
BuzzFeed News: Ed Gillespie Appears To Eke Out Win In Virginia’s Republican Gubernatorial Primary
CNN: Gillespie ekes out win in surprisingly close GOP Virginia primary
The Wall Street Journal: Virginia Gubernatorial Primary Shows Divisions in GOP
Slate: Virginia’s GOP Has Lost It
The Virginian-Pilot: Gordon Morse: Primary shows Gillespie’s weaknesses, Northam’s strengths
The Atlantic: Virginia’s Wake-Up Call to the GOP Establishment
The Washington Examiner: Close Virginia race shows Trump poses risks to Republican incumbents
Richmond Times-Dispatch: Schapiro: For the GOP, a long, hot summer before a longer, hotter fall
Published: Jun 22, 2017