The first public opinion poll conducted a little over a year before the Virginia gubernatorial election predicts a close race, with the Democratic and Republican candidates tied 39 to 39. According to a survey of 1,000 Virginia adults conducted by the University of Mary Washington (UMW) Center for Leadership and Media Studies from the 3rd to the 9th, Republican Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears, who is running for governor, was tied at 39%, followed by Democratic Representative Abigail Spanberger at 39%. The remaining 22% said they had not yet decided on a candidate to support.
Democratic candidate Spanberger has represented Virginia’s 7th District in the U.S. House of Representatives since 2019 but has given up on seeking re-election this year to focus on the gubernatorial election next year.
On the Republican side, Virginia’s first black female lieutenant governor, Earl-Sears, was the first to register as a candidate and begin her campaign earlier this month, but Attorney General Jason Miyares is also being mentioned as another candidate. Therefore, this poll also looked at it as a two-way race between Democrat Spanberger and Republican Miyares, and the Democrats are narrowly ahead, 40 to 39. Minister Miyares has not yet announced her intention to run, and Gov.
Glenn Youngkin cannot run again due to term limits in Virginia. Meanwhile, many Virginians responded that Democratic President Joe Biden’s state administration is going in the wrong direction, with 37% approving and 53% disapproving, but they gave Gov. Youngkin a better evaluation than the federal government, with 46% approving and 34% disapproving.
The UMW poll predicted, “The Virginia election, which will be held following the presidential election, will be influenced by the presidential election results, but regardless, it is expected to be a very interesting election.” “Since it was a close race that was often mentioned as a swing state, the gubernatorial election next year will also be a hot topic with the emergence of potential candidates who have not yet been revealed.”