Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe’s lead over Republican opponent Glenn Youngkin dropped to within the margin of error in the latest Wason Center for Civic Leadership at Christopher Newport University poll.
McAuliffe leads Youngkin, 49% to 45%, in the survey, which has a margin of error of +/- 4.2 percentage points. Third-party candidate Princess Blanding garnered just 1% in the poll, while 5% were undecided.
“Democrat Terry McAuliffe maintains a narrow lead against Republican Glenn Youngkin, 49% to 45% in the race for governor. This represents a tightening in the race since our August 26 poll, which showed McAuliffe with a 9-point lead (50% to 41%),” reads the polling analysis.
“Independent voters have shifted significantly, with Republican Youngkin gaining 11 points since late August (from 39% to 50%), while McAuliffe has lost ground among Independents (from 44% to 41%).”
The poll also found that Democrat Attorney General Mark Herring holds a lead over his Republican challenger, Jason Miyares, 49% to 43%, with 7% undecided, and Lt. Gov. Hala Ayala, a Democrat, leads Republican Winsome Sears, 48% to 44%, with 8 percent undecided.
The survey notes that “with voting underway, Democrats hold small but narrowing leads in Virginia’s statewide races, according to our survey of likely voters in the Nov. 2 general election. Since we polled these races in late August, Democratic leads have shrunk, and the contests for governor and lieutenant governor now stand within this survey’s margin of error (+/- 4.2 percent). Independent voters have moved significantly toward all three Republican candidates. Republican voters are more enthusiastic about voting than Democrats, with 61% of Republican likely voters indicating they are very enthusiastic compared to 55% of Democrats.”
The Wason Center polled 802 registered voters who are likely to vote in the general election in Virginia from Sept. 27-Oct. 6.
