Well, I suppose if Leslie Byrne were the Lieutenant Governor, she’d be the front-runner for our gubernatorial nomination, and we wouldn’t have Creigh Deeds, Brian Moran or Terry MacAuliffe contending for the nod.

Those might be pros or cons, depending on how you feel about Leslie Byrne relative to any of those three candidates.

Posted by Sam on 6 March 02009 @ 12pm

While certainly true, that’s an electoral difference, outside of the framework of the actual office. The LG does so very little that it’s tough to conjure many hypothetical differences.

Posted by Waldo Jaquith on 6 March 02009 @ 1pm

In that case, I think you’re seriously discrediting the inspiration that Bill Bolling’s crusade against his own weight issues has been to, like, maybe five or even six Virginians.

Posted by Sam on 6 March 02009 @ 2pm

Whoa! Remeber Tim Kaine was Lt. Governor. Where would we be if he hadn’t been there? Just think of what you might have had! No system is perfect but the change might be a lot worse.

Posted by Chip Woodrum on 6 March 02009 @ 6pm

Well, if Leslie Byrne was elected Lt. Governor then Ben Tribbett would probably be quite excited about her potential candidacy for governor. :)

Posted by Bryan Scrafford on 6 March 02009 @ 7pm

That’s true, Del. Woodrum, but it still doesn’t address the merits of the office itself. We could all vote for “Governor-in-Waiting,” a position that involves doing absolutely nothing, and that would accomplish the same thing. That might make more sense than continuing this practice of voting for LG, since we’re really voting on who we think we might want to run for governor in four years.

Posted by Waldo Jaquith on 6 March 02009 @ 10pm

Point taken, Waldo. But I am certainly not in favor of locking the choice in 4 years in advance. As the system now works the Lt. Governor must at least run his or her own campaign for the nomination and, sometimes, for election. I think that’s better than having the gubernatorial candidate dictate the lt. gubernatorial nomination (that’s how it seems to work at the federal level).

Maybe the offiice could be abolished but I’m too much of a traditionalist for that.

BTW, I’m no longer a “Del.” Just Chip is fine.

Posted by Chip Woodrum on 7 March 02009 @ 8am

“Voting for LG is like voting for clerk of court or commissioner of the revenue—what the hell do I know about who’s qualified for the job?”

Then you have no business voting in that election. If you don’t get to know your candidates, stay out of the game.

And in answer to your question of “How would Virginia be different today if Leslie Byrne had been elected instead of Bill Bolling, other than the odd tie-breaking vote?”, my answer is that worlds would have collided with hilarity ensuing.

Posted by HalifaxCentral on 10 March 02009 @ 10pm

Then you have no business voting in that election. If you don’t get to know your candidates, stay out of the game.

I know my candidates. But I don’t have the slightest idea of how to determine who is more qualified. The problem with this system isn’t me, it’s that thousands of people are called to vote for an office about which they haven’t the slightest idea of how to assess the qualifications of the candidates.

If you could explain to me how to assess the merits of the candidates for clerk of court or commissioner or the revenue, I’m all ears.

Posted by Waldo Jaquith on 11 March 02009 @ 7am

Oops, please delete that one above.

Anyway, I treat every election as a job interview. I examine each candidate’s resume and attempt to hire the best person by voting for them.

Posted by HalifaxCentral on 11 March 02009 @ 8pm