Election Day 2021: Virginia governor's race in spotlight as voters across U.S. head to the polls
CBSN
Voters in Virginia and New Jersey are going to the polls Tuesday to choose governors while there are also contests in New York City, Buffalo and Minneapolis.
In Virginia, former Governor Terry McAuliffe is hoping to reclaim the governor's mansion. Historically, the party that wins the White House usually loses the governor's race the following year, a trend that McAuliffe bucked in 2013. Governors in Virginia are barred from more than one consecutive term, and Democratic Governor Ralph Northam kept the statehouse blue in 2017.
A Republican hasn't won statewide in Virginia since 2009, and early polls had McAuliffe with a single-digit lead. But in the closing weeks of the campaign, Republican Glenn Youngkin has focused on local issues like education and the economy, gaining momentum.