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Seven in ten residents of Northern Virginia approve of the way Virginia Governor Ralph Northam is handling the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new poll from VCU’s L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs. Conversely, nearly six in ten disapproved of how President Trump is managing the crisis. (You can read detailed results here.)
Overall, 76 percent of Virginians approve of how Northam has taken on the crisis, while 50 percent said the same about Trump. Virginia voters statewide showed a clear preference for Joe Biden over the President in the same survey: 51 percent said they would vote for Biden if the election were held now, and 41 percent said they would vote for Trump. In Northern Virginia, 62 percent said they’d vote for Biden today, and 28 percent said the same about Trump. Support for Biden has increased by 7 points since December, and the former vice president has a 21 percent advantage among women in the commonwealth.
The findings represent a remarkable turnaround for Northam, whose governorship was nearly sunk last spring by a blackface scandal. Last June, the Wilder school found Northam’s approval rating to be 37 percent.
Andrew Beaujon joined Washingtonian in late 2014. He was previously with the Poynter Institute, TBD.com, and Washington City Paper. He lives in Del Ray.
