Stories from this week
A look at our coverage from the week
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A look at coverage from Virginia Scope this week:
Winsome v. Jason poll
A new Cygnal poll asked respondents if they would support Lieutenant Governor Winsome Sears or Attorney General Jason Miyares for the Republican nomination for governor next year.
Sears announced her bid for governor earlier this year, but Miyares has not officially jumped into the race.
In her likely final move of the race, Kiggans accuses Democrats of election interference
Rep. Jen Kiggans, R-VA02, in the campaign's final days, is attacking Democrats and accusing them of interfering in the election.
She is citing an article from The Hill that details shadowy attempts at promoting an Independent candidate to possibly siphon votes away from Kiggans to her Democratic opponent, Missy Cotter Smasal.
Former Republican state Senator Frank Ruff passed away after a battle with cancer.
Ruff served in the state Senate from 2000 until he announced his retirement in December. Prior to that, he served three terms in the House of Delegates.
“Virginia has lost a legend of public service whose legacy will be felt across the Commonwealth not for years—but generations to come,” Gov. Glenn Youngkin said in a statement. “Senator Frank Ruff has always believed that his public service was about finding good policy solutions to improve the lives of Virginians in rural communities.”
Harris is up by 10
The Institute for Policy and Opinion Research (IPOR) at Roanoke College interviewed 851 likely registered voters in Virginia between October 25 and October 29, 2024 – just days before Trump’s scheduled campaign rally in Salem. The survey has a margin of error of 4.6%.
Vice President Kamala Harris holds a 10-point lead over former President Donald Trump (51%-41%) in Virginia.
Independent Cornel West and Libertarian Chase Oliver both poll at 2%, and Jill Stein, the Green Party candidate, takes 1% of the vote.
In the U.S. Senate race, Democratic Senator Tim Kaine leads his Republican challenger Hung Cao (51%-40%).
Only 2% of likely voters say they are undecided, and another 2% say they will vote for someone other than the five presidential candidates on the ballot.
Just less than half (47%) say they are almost certain to vote, while 40% report they have already voted. One-fourth (24%) still plan to vote prior to Election Day.
A large majority (85%) of those who have not yet voted are very certain of their vote choice, and another 9% are somewhat certain. Two-thirds (66%) are very enthusiastic about voting, and another 17% are somewhat enthusiastic.
The economy was named as the most important issue by 43% of respondents. Abortion (20%) and immigration (12%) were cited as most important more frequently than foreign affairs (8%) and crime (3%).
Likely voters trust Harris to do a better job on abortion (57%, compared to 36% for Trump), but the candidates are viewed about equally on other issues (tied at 48% on immigration; Harris favored 49%-45% on both crime and foreign policy; and Trump seen as doing a better job on the economy 49%-46%).
Asked if the candidate understands and cares about people like them, only 37% think that Trump understands and cares compared to 46% for Harris. Respondents are closely divided regarding the impact of the federal government, with 44% thinking the government makes their life worse and 40% thinking it makes their life better.
Job approval for President Biden (38%) is up three points from August.
“Kamala Harris has increased the slim lead she held in the August Roanoke College Poll,” said Dr. Harry Wilson, senior political analyst for IPOR and Professor Emeritus of Political Science at Roanoke College. “She is claiming 95% of Democrats and leads 49%-36% among independents. Trump is supported by 90% of Republicans, but that might not be enough for him to win in Virginia. With so few undecided voters, it’s a tough uphill climb for Trump. Democrats continue to take advantage of early voting. Republicans are catching up, but they need massive turnout on Election Day.”
A new ad from the Kiggans campaign
Rep. Jen Kiggans, R-VA02, released a new ad for her reelection campaign,
Speaker Johnson is coming to Spotsylvania
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson is headlining a rally for VA-07 Republican candidate Derrick Anderson in Spotsylvania County on Nov. 4.
You can sign up to attend here.
Jeffries stopped by VA-07
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries and other prominent Virginia Democrats stumped for VA-07 Democratic candidate Eugene Vindman Sunday.
Crusade for Voters withdraws support for Floyd
Richmond Crusade for Voters announced Monday morning that they are withdrawing their support for City Council candidate Tavares Floyd.
Floyd has recently been dealing with several stories detailing his lying about his work history, faking a connection to George Floyd and reporting false campaign donations.
“Given the circumstances around Mr. Tavares Floyd, candidate for the 6th District City Council seat, and considering the inability to make contact with him to get clarification and understanding of circumstances made public, The Richmond Crusade for Voters is withdrawing our endorsement,” the group said in a press release Monday morning. T”he Crusade’s decision came after a stream of revelations revealed questions regarding campaign donors and his relationship to George Floyd, amidst other allegations. We regret what has occurred in his campaign and cannot in good conscience continue to offer support to Mr. Floyd.”
A roundup of the coverage of Floyd recently:
5 reported donors to Tavares Floyd say they never made contributions
Funeral home founder refutes Tavares Floyd’s ownership claim
Tavares Floyd's connection to George Floyd called into question
Richmond City Council candidate accused of lying about being a lawyer, relation to George Floyd
Floyd is running for the 6th District City Council seat against his former boss, Ellen Robertson.
