Disputed Virginia Poll Shows Pro-Abortion Deeds Catching Pro-Life McDonnell
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
September 16, 2009
Richmond, VA (LifeNews.com) — A new poll out of the state of Virginia, the location of one of two major off-year election contests, is showing Democrat Creigh Deeds closing the gap with Republican Bob McDonnell. However, the results are disputed because the survey only takes into consideration registered voters.
Deeds, Virginia’s Democratic nominee for governor who is pro-abortion, has supposedly narrowed the lead of his pro-life opponent to five percentage points, according to a new Clarus Research Group poll released last night.
Deeds, a state senator, now trails former Attorney General Bob McDonnell 42-37 percent after lagging by double digits throughout the summer. Twenty percent of those polled remain undecided.
However, the conservative publication National Review points out that "this poll is of registered voters, not likely voters" and is the first poll since June to not include only likely voters — which yields more accurate results.
Holly Smith, the political director for the Virginia Society for Human Life PAC, tells LifeNews.com that abortion is playing a role in the race.
"Incredibly, [Deeds] is attacking [McDonnell] for sponsoring common-sense, widely acceptable, pro-life legislation," she said.
The bills include "banning partial-birth abortion, requiring parental notification before a minor daughter has an abortion and our Women’s Right to Know law, which requires abortionists to actually tell their patients the medical risks involved in an abortion and the alternatives to it."
Smith says Deeds’ campaign has dubbed McDonnell “Backwards Bob,” for his efforts to protect unborn babies and their mothers from abortion.
"Yet, as technology and medicine have advanced leaps and bounds in the last two decades, Deeds’ position on abortion has regressed," she says.
"As a member of the House of Delegates, Deeds had a mixed record, generally voting to weaken but later ultimately to pass common sense laws," she explained. "As a state senator, Deeds veered left by opposing a parental consent law and the recently upheld ban on partial-birth infanticide. Deeds now lines up with a radical minority of pro-abortion extremists."
"McDonnell’s leadership in banning partial-birth abortion and assisted suicide, and in enacting parental notification and informed consent has established Virginia as one of the most protective states for the vulnerable unborn child, disabled and elderly," she continued.
"Isn’t unrestricted abortion the ultimate effort by pro-abortion fanatics to turn back the clock?" she said.
While pro-life advocates are on McDonnell’s side, the national NARAL office has decided to make the Virginia governor’s race their top priority as well.
They have just launched a national $45,000 fundraising campaign to contact their nearly 78,000 pro-abortion households in Virginia
Related web sites:
Virginia Society for Human Life PAC – https://www.vshlpac.org
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