The pace of in-person voting in Democratic Charlottesville, VA, has increased and provided a positive sign for Democrats.
Dave Wasserman of The Cook Political Report tweeted:
Update: the pace of in-person voting in Charlottesville increased *a lot* between 9am and 1pm, now putting it on track to perhaps slightly exceed 2017's 16.5k turnout – a relief for Dems. https://t.co/VbokbIcMMs
— Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) November 2, 2021
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Republicans Could Turn Out A Record Number Of Voters In Virginia And Still Lose
Because the political tilt of Virginia has gotten more and more blue, Republican Glenn Youngkin could turn out every Republican and Republican leaner in the state and still lose.
As Dave Weigel of The Washington Post pointed out:
A little illustration of turnout in Virginia:
Ed Gillespie lost two statewide races by single digits – by 1 point in 2014 and 9 points in 2017. Cory Stewart lost his statewide race, in 2018, by 16 points.
Stewart got more votes than Gillespie ever did.https://t.co/6Z5bH9wQuU
— David Weigel (@daveweigel) November 2, 2021
The only thing that matters in this race to be the next governor of Virginia is Democratic turnout. If Democrats get even a reasonable amount of turnout, Terry McAuliffe will win.
Democratic turnout in Northern Virginia and the college towns is the one metric that everyone should be watching.
As President Obama has famously said, “When Democrats vote, Democrats win.”
The Virginia election should be close, which given the current negative climate and how rabidly energized Republicans are by culture war issues, isn’t a big surprise, but in Virginia, if Democrats turn out to vote, it is very bad news for Glenn Youngkin and Republican candidates up and down the ballot.
Virginia is far from a lost cause for Democrats. Every vote counts, so a final Democratic Election Day push could be enough to destroy the GOP’s dreams of Virginia upset.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
