ASHLAND, Va. (AP) _ Republican U.S. Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky is campaigning in Virginia for Senate candidate Ed Gillespie and House candidate Dave Brat. Paul headlined a rally Wednesday at a small auditorium in Ashland. He told his supporters that Gillespie and Brat would help repeal the Affordable Care Act and rein in federal spending. Paul has been weighing a potential 2016 presidential bid and campaigning for other Republican candidates across the country. Gillespie is the former chairman of the Republican National Committee and is considered an underdog in his bid to unseat Democrat Mark Warner in the senate election. Brat became an overnight political sensation when he defeated former U.S. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor in the GOP primary in June.