Governor

The Obama administration is engaged in a broad push to make more home loans available to people with weaker credit, an effort that officials say will help power the economic recovery but that skeptics say could open the door to the risky lending that caused the housing crash in the first place. President Obama's economic advisers and outside experts say the nation's much-celebrated housing rebound is leaving too many people behind , including young people looking to buy their first homes and...

RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia Republicans have chosen firebrand conservative minister E.W. Jackson's for lieutenant governor, the first black candidate the party has nominated for statewide office since 1988. Jackson provoked the loudest ovation of the day at from the tea party-dominated Republican Party convention in Richmond on Saturday, declaring in an impassioned speech, "I am not an African-American, I am an American!" He won the nomination on the fourth ballot over six rivals.

RICHMOND — Democrat Terry McAuliffe has pulled slightly ahead of Republican Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli II in the race for Virginia governor , according to a poll released Thursday. The Quinnipiac University poll shows the former Democratic National Committee chairman getting support from 43 percent of voters while Cuccinelli has 38 percent. A recent Washington Post survey had Cuccinelli up narrowly among registered voters, 46 to 41 percent, and ahead 51 to 41 percent among likely...

RICHMOND, Va. — Republican convention nominates minister E.W. Jackson for Virginia lieutenant governor. Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

FBI agents are conducting interviews about the relationship between Virginia Gov. Robert F. McDonnell, his wife, Maureen, and a major campaign donor who paid for the food at the wedding of the governor's daughter, according to four people familiar with the questioning. The agents have been asking associates of the McDonnells about gifts provided to the family by Star Scientific chief executive Jonnie R. Williams Sr. and actions the Republican governor and his wife have taken that may have boosted the company, the people...

Last week, as news circulated of New Jersey Governor Chris Christie's weight-loss surgery, so did a video in which Christie parodied his own brand — and the fleece he wore day and night during the Hurricane Sandy crisis. In the video, he asks everybody from Morning Joe to Jon Bon Jovi if they've seen his now-missing fleece, without which he is powerless, like Iron Man without his suit. The governor may be able to poke fun at the absurdity of, among other things, his rising star, rumored ambitions ...

WHAT SPELL WAS CAST by businessman Jonnie R. Williams Sr. to induce forgetfulness and truth-shading from Virginia Gov. Robert F. McDonnell and the man who would succeed him, Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli II? What powers of alchemy does Mr. Williams, a major campaign donor, possess that prompted those two officials, the state's most powerful elected Republicans, to flagrantly disregard Virginia's already flimsy disclosure laws? Already, we have seen Mr. McDonnell strain veracity by dodging disclosure of a $15,000...

RICHMOND — Virginia's historic governor's mansion has survived nearly two centuries, 54 governors and a Civil War. Now, it's time for a wedding. On Saturday, Gov. Robert F. McDonnell will walk his daughter down the aisle at St. Patrick's Catholic Church before Virginia's first family opens the doors to the mansion for a late-afternoon reception. About 200 guests will wander the estate's gardens and ornate rooms filled with art and artifacts dating to a bygone era as they celebrate the marriage of...

George M. Leader, who was elected governor of Pennsylvania at age 37, died May 9 at his home at an assisted living facility in Hershey, Pa. He was 95. Kelly S. Kuntz, a spokeswoman for the Country Meadows assisted living center, confirmed the death. The cause was not disclosed. Mr. Leader, a Democrat, took office as governor in 1955 and served one four-year term, the maximum allowed by law at the time. He was the second-youngest person to be elected Pennsylvania's governor. He fought to rid government of...

Gov. Robert F. McDonnell and his wife, Maureen, had about 200 guests to Virginia's historic Executive Mansion for their daughter Cailin's wedding in 2011. The menu included fresh poached jumbo shrimp, bruschetta topped with Virginia tomatoes and stuffed free-range chicken breast. The $15,000 worth of fine dining came courtesy of Jonnie R. Williams Sr., the chief executive of a company that has made major contributions to McDonnell's campaigns and that is the subject of a federal securities...

RICHMOND — Thousands of Virginia Republicans on Saturday picked a slate of statewide candidates who vowed to stay true to conservative principles, resisting calls to remake the GOP message after losses in 2012. At the top of the ticket is gubernatorial hopeful Ken Cuccinelli II, the attorney general. Known for high-profile battles against "Obamacare," abortion and a university climate scientist, Cuccinelli stood by what detractors have called an out-of-the-mainstream agenda.

RICHMOND — Ask delegates at the state Republican convention here why they admire Ken Cuccinelli, their newly official candidate for governor , and the most frequent answer is that he's "a warrior. " I've got no argument with that. But before Virginia voters cast their ballots in November, they have a right to know: a warrior for what? If Cuccinelli is elected, it's reasonable to expect that he'd use the powerful governor's office to fight for the same causes that...

RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia's activist conservative attorney general has won the Republican Party's gubernatorial nomination by acclamation. At the GOP's statewide convention, thousands of conservatives and tea party followers who dominated the Richmond Coliseum on Saturday roared their unanimous support for Ken Cuccinelli. He was unopposed for the nomination and is generally beloved by the tea party for his aggressive challenges to federal mandates Cuccinelli is an...

HARTFORD, Conn. — Officials in Gov. Dannel P. Malloy's office say the governor will meet with representatives from the National Transportation Safety Board and Connecticut's two U.S. senators at the site of a Metro-North Railroad crash that injured 70 people. Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy and other Connecticut officials will also participate in the tour, scheduled for 9:30 a.m. EDT Saturday near Bridgeport. The delegation will update journalists with the...

RICHMOND — With this year's GOP gubernatorial nominee set, attention is on two other statewide ­races on the Republican side of the November ballot — particularly the crowded, contentious field vying to become lieutenant governor. That race features seven hopefuls and has turned nasty in recent weeks, with negative campaigning dominating the contest as the candidates head into the state party convention. About 13,500 delegates will choose the winner in Richmond on...

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Illinois lawmakers agreed to legalize the use of medical marijuana on Friday under a plan that's being billed as the strictest in the nation among states that have authorized the drug's medicinal use, though it was unclear whether the Democratic governor plans to sign it. The plan authorizes a pilot program for physicians to prescribe marijuana only to patients with whom they have an existing relationship. Background checks are required, and patients...

Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler (D), who is gearing up to run for governor next year, will report having $5.2 million in the bank, far more than any previous Democratic candidate at this point in the cycle, his campaign said. The figure, which is part of a report of a report due to the State Board of Elections on Wednesday, is also expected to greatly exceed those of Gansler's potential rivals for the nomination. During the past year, Gansler raised more than $1.2 million, the...

Maryland Lt. Gov. Anthony G. Brown, who is poised to announce next month that he is running for governor, is in discussions with Howard County Executive Ken Ulman about joining his ticket, according to several people familiar with the talks. The pairing of Democrats Brown and Ulman — who has been gearing up to run for governor himself — would shake up a highly competitive Democratic primary to succeed Gov. Martin O'Malley just as it gets underway in earnest. By adding...