Creigh Deeds’ post-primary bump has elevated the Virginia Democratic gubernatorial nominee over his Republican opponent, a new poll suggests, a sharp reversal of earlier surveys that showed Deeds would be the weakest candidate against former state Attorney General Bob McDonnell.
The poll, though just a daily snapshot of 500 likely voters, was good news for a Democratic Party looking to heal divisions from a bare-knuckled, three-way primary and align against McDonnell, who maintained substantial leads in the polls during the Democratic nomination contest.
Deeds, a state senator from Bath County, leads the Republican 47 percent to 41 percent, with a scant 10 percent of voters undecided, according to the Rasmussen Reports poll.
An April 16 Rasmussen survey put McDonnell 15 points ahead in a matchup against Deeds, a wider margin than those of both of his primary opponents, former Del. Brian Moran and former Democratic Party chief Terry McAuliffe.
How Virginia’s opinion of the candidates changes as November approaches will depend on the success of the campaigns and their surrogates in defining the two men.
Republicans are testing out early attacks on Deeds’ record on taxes, especially his support for raising the gas tax to raise revenue for transportation.
“At a time when we’re looking at oil prices over $70 a barrel and we’re getting into the summer season, the fact that Creigh Deeds has repeatedly voted to increase the gas tax, that’s a big issue,” said Crystal Cameron, a McDonnell spokeswoman.
Democrats hope to tether the Republican candidate to a decision in the Republican-led Virginia House to reject $125 million in federal stimulus benefits for the unemployed, a decision McDonnell supported. Receiving the money was contingent on expanding the number of people eligible for jobless benefits. Also a target will be McDonnell’s ties to televangelist Pat Robertson. McDonnell is a graduate of Robertson’s Regent University Law School and has appeared alongside him on “The 700 Club.”
“As voters in Northern Virginia learn of Bob McDonnell’s opposition to helping unemployed Virginians and as they learn about his close ties to Pat Robertson and his opposition to abortion, even in the case of rape and incest, they’re going to be more troubled by Bob McDonnell’s campaign and his misplaced priorities,” said Yoni Cohen, spokesman for Common Sense Virginia, a political action committee funded by the Democratic Governors Association.
