Virginia’s citizens will have an opportunity to vote for their preferred candidate on November 2nd. In a shocking turn of events, Republican candidate Glenn Youngkin has taken the lead from Democratic candidate Terry McAuliffe in the final days of the campaign.
It has been rare to see Republicans perform well in statewide elections in Virginia in recent years due to the changing demographics. With that being said, it appears that all stars have aligned to generate a competitive statewide race in Virginia once again.
For many months, it has appeared that Democrats would easily defend the governorship in Virginia with their candidate Terry McAuliffe. Now, political betting sites have rapidly shifted in favor of Glenn Youngkin as early voting comes to a close.
Republicans are riding a wave of momentum as Joe Biden’s administration continues to face harsh criticism over his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and vaccine mandates. He also has struggled to contain the border crisis and hasn’t managed to resolve several domestic political issues. The debt crisis and worker shortage are just a few examples from the list of issues that Americans are frustrated about.
Even more concerning for Democrats is the fact that Joe Biden’s approval ratings have plummeted into the low 40% range in recent weeks. This is much lower than the previous administration’s approval ratings at this point in the presidency.
These are all factors that are creating the perfect formula in Virginia for Republicans to have enough momentum to win the statewide election for Governor. As shocking as it is, there’s no doubt that Republicans are the favorites going into election day, despite demographics that are overwhelmingly in favor of the Democrats. Even with the advantage in Virginia, momentum appears to be enough to give Republicans a significant chance at winning.
McAuliffe has had several moments throughout his campaign that have harmed his chances at winning. This includes a problematic comment about parents having control of their children’s education. Almost all parents in Virginia gasped at his suggestion that ‘parents should be left out’ of the education system that teaches their kids.
As insane as that comment was from McAuliffe, it’s not surprising that the race dramatically shifted towards Youngkin in the days that followed. Now Youngkin has taken advantage of education as a political issue that he believes he can solve and according to the recent polls, parents and independents are strongly siding with Glenn Youngkin.
When the polls close on November 2nd, it could take hours to count all of the votes and determine a winner. A few weeks ago, it would have seemed impossible to even consider that a Republican had a chance of winning, but now it seems more likely than any other scenario, especially if you factor in the betting odds, early voting date, and general momentum of the campaign at this moment in time.
