On Monday, December 15th, the 2008 Virginia Electoral College assembled in the chamber of the Virginia House of Delegates to cast their votes for Barack Obama as President of the United States and Joe Biden as Vice President of the United States. Their vote, a constitutional requirement, is both symbolic in nature as well as the formal declaration of the vote of the people of Virginia.

Governor Timothy Kaine addressed the Electoral College and those assembled and spoke of the progress Virginia has made, making the Virginia capitol building the center of his remarks.

We meet in the Capitol of Virginia. This building was designed by Thomas Jefferson, a Virginia Governor and U.S. President who wrote into the Declaration of Independence the great truth that all are created equal. Another President who once visited this building, Abraham Lincoln, declared that Jefferson’s simple words were the single proposition on which our nation was founded…

…For a time, this building was the Capitol of the Confederate States of America, the federal legislature of a nation formed in part to preserve the institution of slavery…

…But, this building also witnessed an inauguration in 1970 where a Governor pledged to make Virginia a “model of race relations.” It saw the writing of a new state constitution guaranteeing the equality of all and the passage of the first fair housing law in the South. And, it was here that the grandson of a slave was inaugurated as Governor in 1990, declaring himself proudly a “son of Virginia.”

Today, this building is home to another historic occasion—the meeting of presidential electors to cast Virginia’s electoral votes for Barack Obama and Joseph Biden as President and Vice-President of the United States. Each such election is important, but today, in a special way, we celebrate the slow but steady maturation of the noble human project begun on Jamestown Island 401 years ago. We rejoice in the moral power that has bent institutions, traditions, behavior and hearts ever closer to the equality principle. And, we proclaim our pride in Virginia’s role as a leader among the states. [Full Remarks]

Representing Virginia Beach (and other areas of Hampton Roads) in the Electoral College was Sandra Brandt, Democratic 2nd Congressional District Chair. She was elected at the 2nd Congressional Democratic Convention earlier this year.

After the votes were made, those assembled rose in a standing ovation to the successes of Virginia. The vote yesterday marked the first time in 44 years that the Virginia Electoral College cast their votes for Democratic candidates. As a member of the Alexandria Democratic Committee commented, “It may be the first time in 44 years, but we’re going to work to make sure this doesn’t just happen every 44 years.”

After the conclusion of the session, the electors were invited to a reception hosted by the Alexandria Democratic Committee at the Jefferson Hotel. This was an opportunity to celebrate the vote and connect with Democrats throughout the state.

Gov. Kaine addressed those in attendance, stressing the importance of Virginia in securing the election for Barack Obama and Joe Biden. He also shared that Obama understand the importance of the state, and that during a recent conference with state governors across the nation, Obama said something to the effect of, “You can blame Tim Kaine for the outcome of the election.”

For more pictures of the 2008 session of the Virginia Electoral College, click here.

Related posts:

1. Barack Obama to Virginia: Support Creigh Deeds for Governor
2. A Year of Virginia Beach Progressives
3. For Virginia Partisans, there really wasn’t a choice