Last night the PBS show "NewsHour with Jim Lehrer" featured a debate between Gov. Tim Kaine (D) and Attorney General Bob McDonnell (R) on the U.S. Senate race in Virginia between incumbent Republican Sen. George Allen and Democratic challenger Jim Webb.
Kaine said the war in Iraq has significantly impacted the race.
"Americans have a deep concern about sacrificing young lives without a clear strategy for success," Kaine said. He went on to note that this concern "has made a lot of people really gravitate to Jim Webb."
McDonnell agreed the war has been a major issue in the race.
"Because of the Iraq War we haven't been able to put this incredible focus on [Allen's] economic achievements," McDonnell said, adding that Allen is currently shifting his campaign's focus toward his past achievements.
"People haven't really been talking about that distinguished record," McDonnell said.
Kaine and McDonnell also disagreed about whether recent elections indicate a change in Virginia's political climate.
"The term purple state is a fairly good description" Kaine said of party affiliation in Virginia. He said this is partly because Virginians don't register by party, so they focus more on individual candidates and issues.
When necessary, "Virginians are willing to make a change," Kaine said.
McDonnell countered Kaine's argument that Virginia is becoming more of a purple state. He said the trend over the last three decades "has been a decided movement toward Republican leadership."
He added that the recent success of the Democratic Party "has been a little bit of a blip on the screen."
Rodney Jones, minority and women's affairs coordinator of the University Democrats, said candidates can benefit from support from party leaders on shows like "NewsHour."
According to Jones, "Tim Kaine and Mark Warner supporting Jim Webb 100 percent" is an advantage for Webb.
Grayson Lambert, a writer for the University's conservative publication The Advocate, agreed that support of party leaders is helpful for a candidate's campaign.
"It's always a positive sign for voters to see that party leaders are excited about the candidate the party has nominated," he said.
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