Deeds Continues To Close

The latest PPP poll, released today, shows Deeds continuing to close on McDonnell, but the gap remains significant.

McDonnell leads by 48%-43%, which is considerably narrower than his 51%-37% lead two months ago, and tighter than his seven point lead a month ago. The question is whether Deeds can close the gap in the time remaining.

We talked briefly with Deeds by phone today. He's been riding Metro in NoVa the past couple of days, which is a good way for a slice of NoVa voters to see him. We get the sense that Deeds--a notoriously slow starter, but strong finisher--is starting to hit his stride in what remains an uphill battle for him.

The best news in the PPP poll was that a large majority of the undecided voters are Democrats. That gives Deeds an excellent opportunity to pick up additional ground, if he can connect.

Deeds has a fundamentally sound record as a legislator from the standpoint of most Democrats, and we urge him to help voters get to know him better.

Recently, Deeds penned an op-ed in the Washington Post specifically aimed at Northern Virginia voters. While it may not be what some wanted to hear, we applaud him for not pandering to NoVa voters. He is also uncharacteristically realistic--let's face it, the Governor in Virginia is a weak position, with power residing in the decidedly divided legislature. To get anything done, Deeds will have to persuade at least some GOP members of the House of Delegates to go along.

We hope those Democrats still sitting on the fence will give Deeds a good look, ultimately opting to come out and vote for him. If the undecideds break his way, he has a good chance of winning--a win that would give Obama a boost as well.