(May 26, 2009)--Citing their strong leadership and support of animal protection policies, the Humane Society Legislative Fund announced Tuesday its endorsement of Brian Moran, D, and Bob McDonnell, R, for their respective party nominations in the Virginia gubernatorial race.

“Brian Moran and Bob McDonnell have demonstrated strong leadership in protecting animals from cruelty and abuse,” said Michael Markarian, president of the Humane Society Legislative Fund. “Virginians who care about the humane treatment of animals should support the nomination of these animal protection leaders.”

In a dozen years in the Virginia House of Delegates, Brian Moran has been a co-patron and lead advocate for several animal protection bills, including measures to upgrade the penalties for illegal animal fighting, ban the sale of dog and cat fur, require counseling for convicted animal abusers, and ban the use of gas chambers to euthanize pets at animal shelters. In addition to his active leadership, he has voted for nearly every animal protection bill that has come up during his time in office, including legislation to crack down on abusive puppy mills and strengthen Virginia’s anti-cruelty statute.

As Attorney General, Bob McDonnell was awarded the 2008 Humane Law Enforcement Award for his leadership in establishing felony-level penalties for cockfighting, and helping to transform the commonwealth from having one of the weakest animal fighting laws in the country to one of the strongest. When he previously served in the House of Delegates, McDonnell also supported a number of animal protection bills, including measures to strengthen the penalties for animal cruelty, ban the possession and training of fighting dogs, give students the right to choose not to dissect animals in classroom education, and ban the inhumane and unsporting shooting of live animals remotely over the Internet.

HSLF urges Virginians to support Brian Moran in the June 9 Democratic primary election, and urges Republican Party delegates to support Bob McDonnell’s nomination at the party convention this weekend.

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Media contact: Heather Sullivan: 301.548.7778; hsullivan@hslf.org

Paid for by the Humane Society Legislative Fund. Not authorized by a candidate.

The Humane Society Legislative Fund is a social welfare organization incorporated under section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code and formed in 2004 as a separate lobbying affiliate of The Humane Society of the United States. The HSLF works to pass animal protection laws at the state and federal level, to educate the public about animal protection issues, and to support humane candidates for office. On the web at hslf.org.