The Best Political Blog Around

Roanoke Times Editor Dwayne Yancey's local/state election blog is a must-read. Dwayne, who spent years covering Virginia politics and wrote When Hell Froze Over about Doug Wilder's unlikely win of the state lieutenant governorship in 1989, has considerable insight on how Virginia politics works (or doesn't work, as we saw Tuesday) and he's about as neutral as a veteran reporter can be.

Dwayne is the guy I always point to when I talk about how well reporters dress. He's the very personification of haute couture among the journalistic elite. You can see him coming blocks away in that calf-length woolen trench coat, frayed muffler, fop hat that has fopped one two many times, glasses from the early 1970s and hair that I swear was combed once and possibly even cut at one time or another. "There's something soothing about walking into the newsroom and seeing Dwayne looking the way he always looks," a Times reporter told me recently. "I just love the guy."

Dwayne's also one of the city's better playrights, having worked with No Shame Theater for several years. His "A Nice Relaxing Cup of Tea," performed recently at Studio Roanoke, was simply superb.

And you'll love the blog if you're a political wonk. It's here.