Bill Clinton to keynote Virginia Dems’ dinner

Former President Bill Clinton will help the resurgent
Virginia Democratic Party raise money at the annual Jefferson-Jackson Dinner in
early February, the party has announced.

The fundraiser, held in Richmond, is expected to raise
thousands of dollars for a party that has been on an upswing in recent years.
Virginia Democrats have won two Senate seats in recent years, picked up the
state Senate in 2007 and hold the governor’s mansion through this year’s
elections.

{mosads}The event will be the former president’s first major
fundraising effort since wife Hillary Rodham Clinton was sworn in last week as
secretary of state. A Clinton spokesman told The Hill recently that the former
first lady’s Cabinet position will not preclude Bill Clinton from pulling in
money for Democrats.

At $175 a ticket, the party’s annual dinner will fill the
party’s coffers.

In recent years, Virginia Democrats have had big draws at
their annual events. In 2008, 6,000 Democrats came to hear then-presidential
rivals Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama just days before the state’s February
primary. In 2007, Obama was the keynote speaker.

Former President Clinton could have another reason to be
interested in Commonwealth politics this year: Close adviser Terry McAuliffe
(D) is seeking the Democratic nomination for governor, making his own bid for
office after years of backing the Clintons’ own electoral efforts.

A native New Yorker, McAuliffe will face off
against ex-state Rep. Brian Moran and state Sen. Creigh Deeds. Both Moran and
Deeds have been running for months, and both are well-known in Virginia
Democratic circles. The three candidates will face off in a June 9 primary.

McAuliffe has sought to bolster his name
recognition with an early advertising blitz in the Norfolk media market. With
Deeds from the more rural western side of the state and Moran hailing from
Democrat-rich Northern Virginia, McAuliffe’s first ad comes in the largest
region without a native candidate.