In Virginia campaign, civility yields to racial appeals.

Gubernatorial candidates Ed Gillespie, left, and Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam 

during a debate in McLean, Va., on Sept. 19, 2017. 

(Photo: Bonnie Jo Mount/The Washington Post /AP)

Six weeks ago, the Virginia governor’s race was kind of boring, maybe in a good way.

Republican Ed Gillespie and Democrat Ralph Northam met Sept. 19 on a brightly lit stage in McLean, and for an hour politely discussed a laundry list of issues in front of a studio and television audience.

Headlines about the debate created a narrative that would hold for weeks. “Yes, Virginia: Politics Can Still Be Civil in the Trump Era,” NBC News said. “Few fireworks in gentlemanly Virginia gubernatorial debate,” wrote  Politico.

“I’ve watched every VA GOV debate since 1981,” the University of Virginia’s Larry Sabato tweeted. “Never have [two] nominees been so respectful. They barely raised their voices.”

By Jon Ward.

Full story at Yahoo News.