Terry McAuliffe projected to narrowly win Virginia governor’s race

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Democrat Terry McAuliffe has narrowly defeated Republican Ken Cuccinelli in Virginia’s governor’s race, according to NBC News projections.

The Democratic businessman and former political moneyman was locked in a tight race with the GOP Attorney General as the votes came in Tuesday night, with Libertarian Party candidate Robert Sarvis peeling off limited support from both sides in a contest with broad implications for both parties.

McAuliffe, who failed to win the Democratic nomination for governor four years ago, has maintained a consistent lead in polls this year in part due to Republican infighting that helped the deeply conservative Cuccinelli secure his party’s nomination. And the Democrat is hoping to tap into the organization that helped President Barack Obama win the state in two consecutive elections as well as the popularity of his good friends – Bill and Hillary Clinton.

Cuccinelli had distinguished himself as a conservative stalwart during eight years as a state senator and most recently as attorney general. The Republican embraced the ascendant Tea Party movement early on, winning accolades from conservatives for his legal challenges to Obamacare, abortion rights laws and climate change research.

That endeared Cuccinelli to conservatives nationally, but turned some voters at home against him. McAuliffe has highlighted more strident examples of Cuccinelli’s views to swing voters across Virginia, a state which has become friendlier to Democrats in recent elections due to changing demographics in the state. Many within the state’s sizable independent population also appear to have found a suitable alternative in Sarvis.

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