Conservative Virginia lawmaker could challenge Allen in Senate primary

Republican Bob Marshall, a long-serving member of the Virginia House of Delegates, is weighing a run for the state’s open U.S. Senate seat.

Marshall told The Examiner he was serious about the prospect, but had no timetable for making a decision.

Although numerous candidates are already vying for the GOP nomination, none have come close to touching former Sen. George Allen, who held the seat from 2001 to 2007 and is a favorite of national Republicans who see him as their best chance to replace retiring Sen. Jim Webb (D). The Senate contest has largely stood as a two-man race between Allen and presumed Democratic nominee Tim Kaine, and the two former governors have already squared off in a debate months ahead of the primaries.

But many Virginia Republicans, including Tea Party voters and those seeking to use their vote to buck the establishment, have been clamoring for a more conservative, outsider candidate to challenge Allen.

Marshall would start out at a major disadvantage in terms of both time and money compared to the other candidates, most of whom had almost a year head start on Marshall. But in 2008, he gave Jim Gilmore, the eventual GOP nominee for the state’s other Senate seat, a major run for his money, indicating he could be competitive if voters continue to seek an Allen alternative.

Marshall also carries some political baggage stemming from his two decades in Virginia’s lower chamber. In opposing the repeal of the ban on gays serving openly in the military, Marshall suggested the Virginia National Guard should implement its own ban, citing fears that straight troops would contract diseases from their gay colleagues. He has also taken a hard line against abortion rights and healthcare reform, which could give Kaine ammunition to portray him as too conservative for the state in a general election.

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