Democrat Northam leads Republican Gillespie in race for Virginia governor, new poll finds
By Gregory S. Schneider and Scott Clement October 5 at 12:01 AM
A relatively unified party base gives Democrat Ralph Northam a clear lead over Republican Ed Gillespie heading into the final month of the Virginia governor’s race, according to a new Washington Post-Schar School poll.
Northam leads Gillespie by 53 percent to 40 percent among likely voters, with 4 percent supporting Libertarian Cliff Hyra. The advantage is similar to a Post-Schar School poll this spring but larger than in other public polls of likely voters released over the past month, most of which found Northam up by single digits. But the race is still fluid, with a sizable number of likely voters — one in four — saying they could change their mind before Nov. 7.
“There’s a lack of intensity right now,” said Mark Rozell, dean of the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University, which co-sponsored the survey. “Many fewer people than typically at this stage are paying close attention, and the candidates at this point have really not excited the electorate. . . . A lot can change in the next month. If I were the Northam campaign, I would not feel too comfortable right now.”
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Gillespie could close the gap by consolidating support among Republicans, who historically have been more apt than Democrats to vote in low-turnout, off-year elections.
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https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/democrat-northam-leads-republican-gillespie-in-race-for-virginia-governor/2017/10/04/a62425e6-a78e-11e7-b3aa-c0e2e1d41e38_story.html
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