Latest news out Virginia today:
Widespread opposition to President Trump and his policies has heightened the challenge for Republicans hoping to retake the Virginia governor’s mansion this year, with GOP front-runner Ed Gillespie trailing both Democratic contenders by double digits in a new Washington Post-Schar School poll.
The Virginia governor’s race offers a significant test of how much Trump’s sagging job approval ratings could hurt Republicans in the 2018 midterm elections and gauges whether anti-Trump activism will benefit Democrats. Although the general election isn’t until November, the poll suggests a hostile environment for Republicans.
Republican favorite Gillespie, who has a wide lead in the party’s three-way primary race, trails both Democratic candidates by almost identical margins: Tom Perriello by 50 percent to 37 percent, and Ralph Northam by 49 percent to 38 percent among registered voters.
Voters seem to be punishing Gillespie for Trump’s performance, which they don’t like. Trump’s job approval rating is at 36 percent, while 59 percent of Virginia residents disapprove of his performance as commander in chief. More than half say they “strongly disapprove,” according to the poll, which was co-sponsored by The Post and George Mason University’s Schar School of Policy and Government.
Lets punish Republicans at the polls big time this year and next year. Click below to donate and get involved with the Democrat you support:
Ralph Northam
Tom Perriello