Virginia Governor’s Race a Toss-Up in Closing Days, Poll Shows

(Bloomberg) -- One of the final polls in the Virginia governor’s race shows the contest essentially tied with education at the top of voters’ concerns. 

In a Washington Post-Schar School poll released Friday, 49% of likely voters backed former Governor Terry McAuliffe, while 48% backed former Carlyle Group Inc. co-CEO Glenn Youngkin, well within the margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.

McAuliffe held a comfortable lead in polls over the summer, but Youngkin has since drawn even in several polls, and a Fox News poll released Thursday showed him ahead by 8 points among likely voters.

In the Post-Schar School poll, Youngkin had an 18-point lead over McAuliffe with independent voters, who both campaigns consider key to winning the election. 

In addition, 24% of likely voters cited education as their top concern and the voters who were focused on that issue favored Youngkin by nine points. Previously, respondents more focused on education favored McAuliffe. The economy came in close behind education as the top issue at 23%. 

The poll of 918 likely voters in Virginia was conducted between Oct. 20 and 26.

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