Virginia group stays true to message

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Virginia conservatives say they are galvanizing their base and raising money to elect candidates who share their core principles, even if that means campaigning against Republicans.

"We're looking at good, fiscal conservative candidates for 2007 and are very excited about getting them elected to the Virginia Senate, where we believe the real leadership problems exists," said Robin DeJarnette, executive director of the Virginia Conservative Action PAC (VCAP).

Virginia's conservative campaign mirrors a national movement that ascribes the Republicans' historic losses in Congress last month to the Bush administration and national Republicans' abandonment of conservative tenets such as limited spending, lower taxes and enforcement of immigration laws.

VCAP aims to identify 1 million supporters in key districts before elections next year, when all 140 seats in the General Assembly will be at stake.

The group has raised $1.5 million and has pinpointed 400,000 conservatives, many of whom live in Northern Virginia, where Republicans have struggled in recent statewide elections.

A recent VCAP fundraising event featuring former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Georgia Republican, sold tickets for $200 to $1,000 and collected $25,000.

Republican strategist Craig Shirley, VCAP's honorary finance chairman, said the campaign undercuts the misconception that Republicans and conservatives are one and the same.

"I'm a conservative first and Republican second," he said.

Among conservatives, state Senate Finance Chairman John H. Chichester of Stafford County symbolizes Republican neglect of conservative values.

In 2004, Mr. Chichester teamed with then-Gov. Mark Warner, a Democrat, to push through the largest tax increase in Virginia history, after having campaigned in 2003 as a "leader in the fight for lower taxes."