The outer suburb of Washington, D.C. has been trending Democratic. In 2001, Democratic Mark R. Warner lost the county by 7%, even as he won the state by 6%. In 2004 President Bush won the county by 12%, while he won the state by 8%. In other words, in three years Loudoun went from 13% more Republican than the state as a whole to only 4% more Republican than the state as a whole. That's quite a shift in three years.
The ever-increasing number of voters here, many of whom are obviously transplants from elsewhere, make this a critical battleground in the governors race. The results will be especially interesting because Kilgore has campaigned as a fast-growth candidate, while Kaine has advocated slow/"smart" growth. Not surprisingly, debates about growth are the only game in town in Loudoun. Today's vote will show which growth philosophy residents prefer.
