Potential Bellwether Va. Shades From Red to Blue

Virginia will have its critical primary moment tomorrow, but the state may play an even bigger role in November—that of a red state turning blue, reports the Wall Street Journal. The former Confederate seat has voted Republican in every election but one since 1952, but lately has elected two consecutive Democratic governors, a Democratic senator, and a Democratic state senate.

An October poll showed Virginians preferred a Dem in the Oval Office by a margin of 11 percentage points; and nearly twice as many Democratic absentee ballots were requested as Republican ones for tomorrow's vote. And Virginia, with its disparate geographic regions, may also serve as an indicator for later results in similarly moderate states like Pennsylvania and Texas. (More Virginia stories.)