Creigh Deeds’ campaign hosted a handful of statewide “women to women” canvassing events throughout the Commonwealth on Saturday, as the Democratic candidate for governor seeks to bolster his standing among female voters.
Though the campaign billed the day as a series of “women to women” canvasses, Cecile Glendening of McLean said that she was just focusing on it as another canvassing day.
“Every day is important between now and election day,” she said. “I’ll talk to anybody.”
Glendening said that she appreciated Deeds’ honesty and straightforward nature, but that she’d like to hear from him more directly in the future.
Democratic Del. Margi Vanderhye, who represents the 34th district in the Virginia House of Delegates, was also out pounding the pavement in McLean. Vanderhye is facing challenger Barbara Comstock in the race for her seat.
“I think the basic message for me is an economic one,” Vanderhye said, standing on the fourth floor at the Deeds campaign regional office in McLean. She added that issues such as women’s access to employment opportunities and reproductive choices fit into that message.
Vanderhye said that Deeds fits the mold of former governor Mark Warner and current governor Tim Kaine, both Democrats — a message that his campaign has worked hard to drive home throughout the race.
The campaign hosted similar canvassing events in Richmond, Falls Church, Charlottesville, Norfolk, and Newport News on Saturday.
Deeds is seeking to boost support among female voters, as the latest Washington Post poll gave him a slight 50-48 advantage among women over Republican candidate Bob McDonnell. Conversely, 59 percent of men favored McDonnell, compared to just 38 percent for Deeds.
Overall, McDonnell held a sizable 53-44 lead in the poll, a five-point gain from September.
The poll also showed Deeds holding a 47-41 advantage on the question of who people trust to do a better job handling issues of special concern to women. The numbers are down slightly from the 48-38 advantage he held in that category in September.
