In a role reversal that will shock longtime observers of Virginia politics, the Republican Party of Virginia is as united as it ever has been since Bob McDonnell’s victory in 2009.
This solidarity is due in no small part to ranked choice voting (RCV), the method the GOP chose to nominate its candidates during an unassembled statewide convention.
Instead of a no holds barred slugfest, the Republican candidates for governor, lieutenant governor, and attorney general had to court supporters of opposing campaigns in order to secure second, third, and fourth choice votes during the instant runoff process.
Former House Speaker Kirk Cox most notably released a video asking to be a second choice and went out of his way to say kind things about his opponents. In an op-ed the week before the nomination, Cox shared superlatives for each of the other Republican candidates, noting their best qualities and accomplishments.