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Thursday, September 6, 2007 - 12:00am Gillmor's Seat Up For Grabs This story did not receive much coverage today, but Representative Paul Gillmor (R) was found dead in his Washington, D.C. apartment of an apparent heart attack. Although most folks outside of his state have never heard of him, Paul Gillmor was in his 10th term in the House of Representatives and had a successful career before entering the world of politics. He was an Air Force veteran, served in the Vietnam War, practiced law, and ran a financial services company.
The district in which Paul Gillmor served will now have a special election to determine his replacement. Republicans have held the seat for the last seventy years, but the last election was among the closest. Gillmor won with 57% of the votes in 2006. His challenger, Robin Weirauch (D) received 43%. In 2004, Gillmor garnered 67% of the vote to Weirauch's 33%.
Normally this district is considered a safe seat for the Republicans. However, the Democratic party did not put many resources into this race in '06 and their candidate was still able to capture 43% of the vote. With no other elections on the horizon, the Democrats can put their full weight behind Robin Weirauch in hopes of picking up a seat they haven't held since 1936. She already has name recognition in the area and that will give her an immediate leg up on any challenger.
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