Former Governor Terry McAuliffe has a narrow lead over Republican Glenn Youngkin among registered voters, although Youngkin is pulling ahead of McAuliffe with likely voters. All of that is within the margin of error, according to a new poll from the University of Mary Washington. So this race is deadlocked for now
"I think Virginia Democrats are starting to miss Donald Trump,” says Stephen Farnsworth, director of the Center for Leadership and Media Studies at the University of Mary Washington. "When he was president, he was a very useful foil for Virginia Democrats to run against, and that created a cycle that was very favorable to Virginia Democrats."
Farnsworth says the most important takeaway from the poll is the enthusiasm gap. “The issue is good news for Republicans when Democrats are not really motivated. That’s the key thing I think Democrats have to work on.”
Click here for full poll results
The poll also shows Liberation Party candidate Princess Blanding has the support of 2 percent of likely voters, which means she might end up being a spoiler if the race comes down to a few thousand votes.
This report, provided by Virginia Public Radio, was made possible with support from the Virginia Education Association.
