Va. Dems hire communications director, unveil new Web site

Walloped in last year's state elections, Virginia's Democrats are taking steps to beef up their public relations and messaging as the November midterms approach.

This week, the Democratic Party of Virginia debuted a new Web site. It features a nifty photo of the State Capitol, along with lots of information about upcoming Democratic events. And ways to give money, of course.

Also, after going without a full-time communications director since December 2009, the party has now hired Brian Coy, who worked as press secretary for Steve Shannon's run for attorney general last year, to help handle media.

Coy has also worked for Tigercomm, a Democratic political communications firm. And he more recently served as communications director for Ned Lamont's unsuccessful campaign for the Democratic nomination for governor in Connecticut. Coy starts work Nov. 1.

In a statement, DPVA Executive Director David Mills said the new Web site has additional tools to facilitate the use of social media, will feature more videos and should run faster than the previous version.

"Our new Web site is just a small part of the effort we're making at the DPVA to reach out to Virginians in every corner of the state and talk to them directly about the great work Democrats are doing to create jobs and move Virginia forward," he said.

For those interested in comparing the two party's sites, you can take a look at the website for the Republican Party of Virginia here.