‘Reagan Democrat’ Hopes to Unseat Virginia Senator

RICHMOND, Va. —  National Democratic leaders were relishing the prospect of a Vietnam War hero and Reagan administration Navy secretary challenging Republican Sen. George Allen, a day after James Webb beat a Democratic Party stalwart in Tuesday’s primary for the November election.

But beating Allen will be a struggle, even for a Republican turned Democrat with Webb’s portfolio.

With the blessing of leading Senate Democrats, Webb, 60, beat traditional liberal Harris Miller, thanks to overwhelming support in the suburbs of Washington, D.C.

Webb is pursuing a populist strategy aimed at returning so-called Reagan Democrats -- moderate, middle-class and largely rural whites -- to the Democratic Party.

Those voters have been unshakably loyal to the folksy, cowboy-booted Allen in two successful statewide campaigns, and Allen remains formidable as he seeks reelection. Webb is a key player in the Democrats’ fall strategy to win the six seats necessary to control the Senate.

“If you had to construct a candidate who would be a great opponent to Allen, it would be Jim Webb,” Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.), chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, said Wednesday. “On some positions, he’s conservative. On some others, he’s more moderate.

“But he is who he is. He’s genuine,” said Schumer, who gave Webb the campaign committee’s rare preprimary endorsement.

Allen is a former Virginia governor who is weighing a White House bid. Webb remains unknown to most Virginia voters despite his White House experience and the six best-selling war novels he’s written.

National Democratic leaders -- among them Schumer; Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean; Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.), 2004 presidential nominee; and former Gov. Mark R. Warner, a 2008 presidential prospect -- have pledged financial and campaign support for Webb.