Virginia 09: Can Dems Seize the Western Suburbs?

I'm pretty stoked about Tom Shields' official entry into the contest for the 73rd House District, which runs along the western border of the City of Richmond from the University Heights area near UR to a corner of Henrico near Horsepen and Broad that has grown increasingly diverse -- racially and economically. Ryan Nobles from NBC12 has more on his Decision Virginia blog:

He has already spent many hours cris-crossing the 73rd district of Virginia, but today University of Richmond Professor Tom Shields officially kicked off his challenge to Republican incumbent John O’Bannon.

Shields is part of a group of serious challengers to Republican House members across the state, as the Democrats attempt to take control of the lower house of the General Assembly. It’s a position they have not been in since reconstruction.

While Shields has attempted to run a relatively upbeat campaign, he has not been afraid to go on the attack of his opponent. Shields has characterized O’Bannon, a neurologist from Henrico, as “out of touch”.

You can dig into Shields' campaign at the official website.