Deeds Losing Advantage In Va. Gov. Race, Latest Poll Shows

Main Category: Women's Health / Gynecology
Article Date: 12 Oct 2009 - 3:00 PDT

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The latest Washington Post poll on the Virginia gubernatorial race shows that Bob McDonnell (R) "has taken a commanding lead" over opponent Creigh Deeds (D), who has lost ground among female voters, the Post reports (Helderman/Cohen, Washington Post, 10/9). Female voters make up 54% of the Virginia electorate, and independent female voters are expected to play an especially critical role in the gubernatorial race. A Sept. 20 poll showed that independent female voters favored Deeds by a 50% to 47% margin, a major shift from the 59% to 31% lead McDonnell held the previous month.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Deeds earlier gains among independent female voters largely could be attributed to the release of McDonnell's graduate school thesis from 20 years ago, in which he wrote that the government should actively discriminate against "cohabitators, homosexuals or fornicators" in favor of married couples. He also called working women "detrimental to the family" and labeled feminism one of the "real enemies of the traditional family." Before the thesis surfaced several weeks ago, McDonnell held a 12 percentage point lead over Deeds, according to an average of multiple polls tallied by RealClear Politics. By Sept. 20, McDonnell's lead was down to less than five percentage points in the RealClear survey. However, more recent polls show that McDonnell might be regaining momentum. A SurveyUSA poll released Monday showed McDonnell leading 54% to 43%, though the latest RealClear survey shows his lead averaging 7.3 percentage points (Dade, Wall Street Journal, 10/8).

In the new Post poll, McDonnell leads 53% to 44% among likely voters, up from a four-point lead in the newspaper's mid-September poll. According to the Post, Deeds' lead among female voters "has all but disappeared, and McDonnell has grown his already wide margin among independents." The Post reports that McDonnell was able to regain an advantage by redirecting the debate from social issues toward issues like the economy and transportation (Washington Post, 10/9).

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