By The Associated Press
The economy topped voter concerns in a preliminary exit poll of 1,520 Virginia voters conducted for the Associated Press and the television networks by Edison Research.
Highlights from the exit poll include:
TOP ISSUES: The economy was the top issue for about half of voters, followed by health care and abortion.
ETHICS: Thirty percent said neither major party candidate for governor has high ethical standards. The rest split on whether either candidate was ethically sound.
GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN: About one-third of voters had someone in their household affected by the recent government shutdown, and more voters blamed Republicans in Congress than President Barack Obama for the closure.
HOW THEY’RE PERFORMING: A slight majority disapprove of Obama’s performance, while a similar percentage approve of Gov. Bob McDonnell’s performance.
ABORTION: Six in 10 voters said abortion should be legal in most or all cases.
The exit polling involved a random sample of 39 precincts statewide. Results were subject to sampling error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.