Gubernatorial candidate Abigail Spanberger hosted one of her final rallies of the election season in Falls Church yesterday (Sunday).
Helping the Democrat make her closing argument to Northern Virginia voters at the State Theatre ahead of Tuesday’s election were two men who previously held the governor’s seat: Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, the state’s incumbent U.S. senators.
Both men, who served sequentially as Virginia’s top executive during the 2000s, characterized Spanberger as a dogged campaigner with a keen understanding of the needs of residents across the commonwealth.
“I’ve been very impressed with the focus that Abigail has brought to this campaign,” Kaine said. “She’s talked about a lot of issues … but there are three big pillars to the campaign. It’s affordability, and it’s jobs, and it’s education. And on those three issues, folks, there could not be a clearer contrast between Abigail Spanberger and the other crew.”
Warner highlighted Spanberger’s skill in working with voters, not just in listening to what they say but in applying it to her work.
“I have never seen anybody with more natural talent,” Warner said, “and that talent is a willingness to listen, a willingness to understand people from different backgrounds and different aspirations, and say, ‘how do we do better together?'”
Speaking to the crowd of a few hundred attendees, Spanberger echoed Warner by talking about her approach to working with constituents during her three terms in the U.S. House of Representatives.
“When people are trying to get by, they can see the hurdles in their way, whether they are farmers or small business owners or young families trying to settle and buy a house,” Spanberger said. “And by asking, ‘if you could just wave that magic wand, what would you change?’ people can help you understand what it is that’s keeping them back.
“Then it’s up to us to actually make those changes,” she continued. “Look at what is working, and how do we make it better, and what is not, and how do we fix it? And ultimately, I decided to run for governor, because I see that so many of those things that aren’t really working can be fixed faster and quicker and more effectively.”
Headed into Election Day, recent polling consistently finds Spanberger with a consensus lead over her opponent, Republican Winsome Earle-Sears — potentially by double digits.
A poll released Thursday by Roanoke College found that Spanberger held a 10-point lead over Earle-Sears. Another poll, released Sunday by Emerson Polling, found Spanberger ahead 55%-44%.
On Friday, election forecaster Chaz Nuttycombe said that Spanberger was “as certain as the sun rising tomorrow” to win the race.
“You can bet the farm that Abigail Spanberger is going to be governor,” Nuttycombe, who operates State Navigate, told Fox 5.
If Spanberger were to win by 10 or more points, it would be the largest margin of victory in a Virginia gubernatorial election since Republican Bob McDonnell bested Democrat Creigh Deeds by 17 points in 2009.
“I am excited about what it will mean when we win on Tuesday, because on Tuesday we are going to send a message,” Spanberger told the crowd in Falls Church. “We are going to send a message that Virginia is turning the page, that Virginia is once again ready to set an example. And we are going to set an example for the rest of the country.”
