Deeds Closes in on McDonnell in Virginia Governor's Race

Former Virginia Attorney General Robert McDonnell holds a slim 48 percent to 46 percent lead over Democratic state Sen. Creigh Deeds with 5 percent undecided, according to a Rasmussen Reports poll conducted Sept. 16. The margin of error is 4.5 percentage points. Other polls in recent weeks had McDonnell ahead by between five and nine points.

McDonnell is seen favorably by 54 percent of voters while Deeds is regarded favorably by 50 percent.

Voters trust McDonnell more than Deeds on taxes, 50 percent to 36 percent, and cutting government spending, 49 percent to 31 percent. But he has only a two point lead over Deeds on tackling Virginia's transportation problems, an important issue in the state's more urbanized, northern counties near Washington, D.C.

The poll of 500 likely voters also asked about the now-famous McDonnell master's degree thesis in which he said working women and "feminists" were "detrimental" to families and that government policies should favor married couples over "cohabitators, homosexuals or fornicators." Fifty-two percent of voters said it would be somewhat or very important in their decision on how to vote, compared to 38 percent who said it would not. But the poll didn't say whether the thesis made it more or less likely that voters would support McDonnell.