Attorney general hopefuls offer stark contrast

RICHMOND — The name of the office is attorney general, but you could almost add a subtitle: “Gubernatorial nominee in waiting.”

Virginia’s attorney general has advanced to the top of the ticket in seven of eight elections dating back to 1981, winning twice. This year it’s Republican Bob McDonnell who is trying to move from chief legal officer to chief executive.

That recent history suggests that the winner of the Nov. 3 attorney general election between Republican state Sen. Ken Cuccinelli and Democratic Del. Steve Shannon will be well-positioned for a run for governor in 2013, which is reason enough for voters to tune in.

“Other than people living in their legislative districts, people don’t know much about them,” said George Mason University political analyst Mark Rozell. “You can get people to pay attention to the gubernatorial campaign, but these other races that create future gubernatorial nominees slide beneath the radar.”

So, by way of introduction:

» Kenneth T. Cuccinelli II ,41, of Fairfax County is widely regarded as one of the most conservative members of the General Assembly.

Since being elected to the Senate in a 2002 special election, he has been a leading opponent of abortion, illegal immigration, higher taxes and same-sex unions. Along with his legislative record,

Cuccinelli is emphasizing his broad range of experience as a private attorney, including business and mental health law.

» Stephen C. Shannon, 38 and also from Fairfax, has been less visible than Cuccinelli in the General Assembly since his election in 2003. He describes himself as “a centrist, law-and-order, pro-business Democrat.” Shannon is stressing his experience as an assistant prosecutor in Fairfax County, promoting an agenda targeting gangs and child-pornographers.

The two have clashed on several issues, including the state’s response to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that has jeopardized some drunken driving and drug prosecutions and the ethics controversy surrounding Republican Del. Phil Hamilton of Newport News.

Cuccinelli was an early advocate of a special legislative session to respond to the Supreme Court’s ruling that defendants have a right to question forensic examiners who prepare reports used in drug and DUI cases. Shannon’s campaign initially accused Cuccinelli of grandstanding but later said the Democrat was working with Gov. Tim Kaine behind the scenes on the issue. Kaine joined Shannon in denouncing a Cuccinelli TV ad that said the Democratic candidate opposed the August special session.

Shannon, meanwhile, has derided Cuccinelli for not joining him and others in calling for Hamilton’s resignation after revelations that the legislator successfully lobbied for a job with an education center before securing state funds to start it. Cuccinelli says it would be inappropriate to call for Hamilton to step down because the next attorney general might have to decide whether the case merits criminal prosecution.

Of the three statewide races, the attorney general contest is the one with the widest ideological gulf. For example, Shannon has consistently scored 100 percent on leading abortion-rights and labor groups’ legislative scorecards while Cuccinelli has scored zero, according to the nonprofit group Project Vote Smart.

Cuccinelli has not emphasized a conservative social agenda in his campaign. Instead, he has laid out proposals for consolidating all state consumer protection activities in the attorney general’s office, improving services to veterans and moving mentally ill prisoners to mental hospitals for treatment. Shannon has largely refrained from pressing Cuccinelli on social issues, although he said in an interview that “Ken is seen as a leader of the far right wing of his party.”

Ideology aside, both candidates claim to have the experience best suited to the job of presiding over the team of lawyers who represent state government in regulatory and judicial proceedings.

Shannon touts his law enforcement background and his role in starting Virginia’s first Amber Alert program for tracking down missing children. In campaign appearances, he frequently rattles off statistics about violent crime and Internet child porn — issues he pledges to make a priority.

“I was a prosecutor before getting elected to the House of Delegates. I’m not going to need on-the-job training,” Shannon said in a telephone interview.

Cuccinelli said he has “a much broader range of experience” that includes civil litigation, advising businesses, juvenile justice reform and delinquency prevention, and doing court-appointed work for indigent defendants and the mentally ill. He cites his endorsement by the Fraternal Order of Police as evidence of his law-and-order credentials.

Despite Cuccinelli’s protestations and Shannon’s more recent focus on civil and administrative law as a private attorney, experience as a prosecutor has helped previous candidates get elected, including Mary Sue Terry, Jim Gilmore, Jerry Kilgore and McDonnell.

The trouble for Shannon, however, is that the political landscape so favors Republicans this year that even the most ardent law-and-order Democrat might have a tough time. Since 1971, the Virginia governorship has been won by the party that does not occupy the White House. Virginia voters often have split the ticket, electing an attorney general or lieutenant governor of a different party than the governor, but this year the Democrats are all trailing in the polls.

Shannon, who trailed Cuccinelli by 7 to 9 percentage points in two recent statewide polls, also could suffer if voters blame the state’s budget woes on Kaine.