Poll: A majority of Virginia Voters Want Democrats to Control the General Assembly

I was a Republican activist back in the 1990's when the Republicans won back control of the Virginia General Assembly.  At the time I was thrilled by that takeover.  What I had not factored in was the coming Christofascist - and more recently, open white supremacist - takeover of the GOP both in Virginia and nationally. During the intervening quarter of a century under these toxic influences, instead of making life better for a majority of Virginians, the Virginia GOP has endeavored to hold Virginia back from progress and pandered to Christian extremist, gun nuts, and those who would see their neighbors starve of die for lack of medical care rather than pay a dollar more in taxes. It has taken time for a majority of Virginians to realize that the Virginia GOP - like the national party - has become a reactionary, racist, and sectarian party (something I recognized as beginning to happen two decades ago).   Hence, it is little surprise that a new CNU poll found that a majority of Virginians want Democrats to take control of the General Assembly via the state elections next month.  A piece in the Washington Post looks at the poll findings.  Here are story excerpts:

By a hefty margin, Virginia voters favor having Democrats take control of the General Assembly in November elections over leaving it in GOP hands, according to a poll released Monday by the Wason Center for Public Policy at Christopher Newport University.

Fifty-three percent of likely voters say they want the Democrats to lead the legislature, the poll found, compared to 37 percent who’d like to keep Republicans in power.

The GOP is defending slim majorities in the state Senate (20-19) and House of Delegates (51-48), with one vacancy in each chamber. All 140 seats are on the Nov. 5 ballot.

Voters sided with Democrats on a range of issues on the front burner in Richmond this year, including gun control, with 83 percent saying they would be more likely to support a candidate who favors requiring background checks for all gun purchases and 67 percent saying the same about banning assault weapons.

Seventy-six percent said they would be more likely to vote for someone who supports ratifying the federal Equal Rights Amendment, while 66 percent said they would be inclined to back a candidate who supports a $15 minimum wage.

But the poll showed markedly little appetite for the “Medicare for All” healthcare plan embraced nationally by some leading Democratic 2020 presidential contenders.

Other national political factors – President Trump chief among them – seemed to be working against Republicans. Trump’s low marks in the survey – 37 percent approve of the job he’s doing -- has potential to spill over to state legislative candidates. Fifty-nine percent of voters said they would be less likely to vote for someone who supports [Trump] the president, while 37 percent said they would be more likely. . . . . “Like or not, there’s no way for state legislative candidates to run in a vacuum -- their national party brands influence their fortunes.”

Most of the survey was conducted before the release of detailed notes of a July call between Trump and Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelensky in which Trump urged Zelensky to investigate former vice president Joe Biden and his son, Hunter.

Turnout for Virginia’s “off-off year” elections, when there is no statewide contest on the ballot, typically favors Republicans. But Christopher Newport pollsters see indications that the anti-Trump backlash that drove up Democratic turnout over the past two years has not subsided.

They note that, among likely voters, 62 percent of Democrats say they are “very enthusiastic” about voting in the election, compared to 49 percent for both Republicans and independents. They also found a 10-point advantage for Democrats who say they will “definitely” vote (84 percent of Democrats, compared to 74 percent of Republicans).

The poll found Democrats held a 13-point advantage of the “generic ballot” question, which asks voters if they will support the Republicans or Democrats running for the legislature.

“Given the significant interest and enthusiasm gaps measured in this survey, we expect some version of the Trump Bump to manifest in the 2019 Virginia state legislative elections,” said Rachel Bitecofer, the Wason Center’s elections analyst.

Note two things: (i) Elizabeth Warren's and Bernie Sanders' "Medicare for all" is not moving voters to support Democrats, and (ii) Trump is continuing to destroy voter support for the GOP in Virginia - at least outside of the racist and ignorance embracing rural areas.  Should Virginia Democrats triumph next month, one has to wonder if national Republicans may realize their best move would be to support impeachment of Trump and his removal from office.