Virginia governor race tests support for Democrats in Biden era

RICHMOND, Va. (CN) — Virginia Republicans are hoping to break their decade-long losing streak for statewide office Tuesday in an election that is being closely watched nationwide as a test of voter support for Democrats and President Joe Biden.

Democrat and former Governor Terry McAuliffe is hoping to reclaim his seat in the race against Republican businessman Glenn Youngkin, who hopes to secure the GOP’s first statewide win since 2009. The two have been neck-and-neck in polling despite McAuliffe's early advantage and the state's shift to the left in recent years, which has inspired heavy hitters from both parties to throw their support behind their respective candidates.

Former President Donald Trump has made several statements endorsing Youngkin over the course of the campaign. In a final plea during a phone call billed as a tele-rally Monday, he called the Republican “a good man, a hardworking man, a successful man.”

But Trump lost Virginia in both 2016 and 2020, losing by 10 points last year. McAuliffe has bought billboard ads linking Youngkin to the former president in the hopes of dashing his chances.

Meanwhile, President Biden spoke at a campaign event for McAuliffe last week in Arlington.

“You don’t have to wonder what kind of governor Terry will be because you know what a great governor he was,” Biden said. “It wasn’t just because of what he promised. It’s what he delivered.”

Biden also called Youngkin "an acolyte of Donald Trump,” hoping to drum up the same voter enthusiasm that put him in the White House.

Former President Barack Obama, who won Virginia in his successful 2008 and 2012 elections, also stumped in person for McAuliffe. Speaking at a rally in Richmond last month, he described the candidate as “the Energizer bunny.”

“He does not sleep. He does not stop,” Obama said.

Early in the campaign season, McAuliffe promised to expand health care access and paid family sick leave, among other progressive policies, but Youngkin and his surrogates quickly shifted the narrative to the issue of critical race theory being taught in public schools.

While no evidence exists to suggest Virginia’s schoolchildren are learning about the theory that racism is embedded in American institutions, the issue has animated voters like Julie Bailey of Manassas.

"I am dead set against critical race theory,” Bailey said after voting Tuesday. “I want that out of here.”

It was also a motivating factor for retired Henrico County resident Paul Loomis.

“The school stuff, it seems like that’s an important thing for a parent to be involved in,” the military veteran said as he left his suburban Richmond polling place.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Glenn Youngkin gestures as he speaks to supporters during a rally in Chesterfield, Va., on Nov. 1, 2021. (Steve Helber/AP)

Loomis said he voted for Republicans straight down the ticket, something he’s done for years, except for his local House of Delegates member, Democrat Schuyler VanValkenburg.

“He spoke to me before I went into the polls,” Loomis said, admitting he doesn’t usually trust Democrats and thought McAuliffe was "a bag man for the Clintons," but VanValkenburg seemed different.

The incumbent Democrat smiled as he watched Loomis speak. VanValkenburg was a few feet away and said the Short Pump-area polling place was his 10th stop on a busy morning as he defends his seat.

“You see the culture war issues on TV and in ads, but when you talk to folks it's the kitchen table issues,” VanValkenburg said of Youngkin’s strategy to focus on critical race theory in public schools.

As VanValkenburg sees it, it's things like health care and having enough money to put food on the table that animated voters he spoke with. A high school civics teacher, he’s also uniquely positioned to confirm the lack of critical race theory in the classroom.

“Trying to divide people on education is unfortunate and I hope it doesn't work,” he said.

Loomis’ vote will be important for VanValkenburg, but that split ticket is bad news for McAuliffe who needs to win the formerly red suburbs like Henrico County in order to win his old job back. McAuliffe is hoping to become one of only a handful of Virginia governors to serve a second term in a state where consecutive terms are banned.

Still, other school issues appear to have worked for Youngkin. Dana Jackson was volunteering for the Republicans at a Fairfax County polling place Tuesday, a choice she made after speaking with Youngkin at an earlier event.

She said she was concerned about the amount of schooling her daughter, a high school student preparing for college, missed due to Democratic Governor Ralph Northam’s coronavirus-related school closures. Students are back to in-person learning but Youngkin promised to never close schools in the future.

"She wants to keep an 'A' average,” Jackson said of her daughter as a chilly drizzle fell around her. “But there are things she hasn't learned."

Jackson also said Youngkin's demeanor helped convince her, praising his mild-mannered nature as opposed to the fiery outbursts from Trump.

"He's more down to earth. He's a businessman and a dad,” she said. “You can feel it's authentic.”

Youngkin’s reserved attitude has undoubtedly been his biggest asset as Virginia Republicans look back on the devastation Trump caused. The former president was used by Democrats in 2017 to fuel a “blue wave" election in which they took control of the Virginia House of Delegates for the first time in over 20 years.

While Youngkin may have convinced Jackson, other voters see him as a continuation of a presidency they voted against.

“Coming out of the presidential election, a lot of it was about issues of race and equality,” said Richmond voter Victor, who asked that his last name not be used. He said he saw the city’s streets full of anti-racism protestors in the wake of Trump and that energy got him back to the polls Tuesday.

“I think CRT should be taught in schools, especially in the South where there’s a long history,” he said, referring to critical race theory and pushing back on Youngkin’s tagline.

Victor also sees McAuliffe as a defender of civil rights, the LGBTQ community and abortion rights – all things he supports.

The election marks the first time Virginia voters had easier access to early voting without a pandemic emergency order. The overhaul of election laws was passed this year, largely in part to VanValkenburg, who carried the bill to the governor’s desk.

Though Trump and some Virginia Republicans have claimed early voting is rife with fraud, numbers from the Virginia Public Access Project show it's been embraced across the state.

“Democrats and Republican voters like it because it makes voting more convenient and they can skip the lines,” VanValkenburg said.

Over 1.1 million early votes were cast as of Tuesday morning. During the last Virginia gubernatorial election in 2017, less than 200,000 people voted early.

VanValkenburg’s legislative effort also empowered polling precincts to begin counting their votes earlier in the day, addressing an issue of delayed results the state faced criticism for last year.

In a press conference Tuesday morning, Virginia Department of Elections Chairman Chris Piper said there had been few issues so far, and the early vote counting could give the public answers earlier than they expect.

“We feel confident, as long as everything goes well, results should be reported as normal and quickly,” he said.

Polls in Virginia close at 7 p.m.

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Virginia governor race tests support for Democrats in Biden era

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