Story by Chris Graham
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Democrat Barack Obama has a five-point lead on Republican John McCain, according to polling done by Zogby International.
Obama leads by a 44 percent-to-39 percent margin. Libertarian candidate Bob Barr is at 5 percent in Virginia, and independent Ralph Nader is at 1 percent.
The key factor in the numbers, according to Zogby – defections from Republicans. McCain has the support of 80 percent of self-identified Republicans, while Obama has the support of 91 of self-identified Democrats.
Perhaps surprisingly, the defections aren’t all going to Barr, the former Republican congressman nominated by the Libertarian Party earlier this year to be its national standard-bearer. Barr does get 5 percent of the self-ID’d Republicans, but Obama gets 7 percent, according to the Zogby data.
Obama also leads McCain by seven percentage points among independent voters in Virginia, according to Zogby.
Republican George W. Bush won Virginia in 2004, defeating Democrat John Kerry by a 54-45 margin.
Virginia has gone Republican in its presidential voting in every election since 1968.
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