Virginia is having a gubernatorial contest this year, pitting former Governor Terry McAuliffe (D) against businessman Glenn Youngkin (R). The latter is more or less a Trump devotee and has been endorsed by Trump, but I have to wonder if he crippled his already-slender chances with this:
The topic of faith in the security of Virginia’s elections was more sensitive for Youngkin. The Republican made “election integrity” an early centerpiece of his campaign, playing to a belief among Trump supporters that Biden stole the 2020 election. McAuliffe noted Youngkin’s focus on the issue several times, at one point deriding the issue as “the Trump crazy 2020 stuff.”
[Moderator Susan] Page sought to pin Youngkin down on election fraud, noting that Youngkin has embraced an endorsement from Trump, who has raised questions about the integrity of the upcoming governor’s race.
“Do you believe there has been significant fraud in previous Virginia elections and do you agree with President Trump that Democrats may cheat [in this race]?” she asked.
“I do not believe there’s been significant fraud in Virginia elections,” he said. Youngkin sought to turn the tables on McAuliffe, noting that as Democratic National Committee chairman, he claimed that George W. Bush was not the rightful winner in 2000. [WaPo]
The dynamic is how to balance between the biases of the GOP, many or even most of whom passionately believe elections are rigged, as does the former President. But independents, by and large, do not.
So did Youngkin, desperate for votes, just lose some on this rolling of the dice? Or did he pick up some?
