Northam was asked at the breakfast what he would say to people in Buena Vista, who wouldn’t see him at Monday’s other events.

“It’s all about our economy, and we’ve done a lot of great work over the years — again, bringing in 200,000 jobs,” Northam said of his work with Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe. “Is there room for improvement? Absolutely. We’re going to put a lot of focus on rural Virginia.”

Old Dominion voters will go to the polls on Nov. 7 in what is widely regarded as a referendum on the first months of Republican Donald Trump’s presidency. Virginia was the only Southern state Trump lost in 2016.

The parade and speeches by both parties in Buena Vista — a Blue Ridge city about an hour northeast of Roanoke — are a long tradition leading up to the November election. But the public events Monday were dominated by the GOP.

Republican signs lined the parade route and covered the grounds of Glen Maury Park. Inside the park pavilion, where candidates gave their stump speeches, Republican supporters held signs that read “No Show Northam” and chanted the phrase between speakers.

Buena Vista resident Missy Brown, who described herself as a Democrat-turned-independent, said she was on the fence about who she would support for governor.