McDonnell's Pollster Speaks...
... and it's worth hearing. He writes that his team
set out early to establish Bob as different than Republicans have been in the past few elections – strong on issues that matter most to people.
Our goal back in last winter/spring was to tie on the top issue of jobs/economy, stay close on transportation and education, and win on tax/spending. Ultimately, Bob would end up the campaign with double digit advantages on four of those five issues, and would be tied on education. ...
One of the most important ads we ran was relatively early in the campaign, and only ran in downstate markets (it was before we were advertising in the DC DMA). It was Bob to camera talking about his energy plan, which included green jobs. It defined Bob as a forward-looking leader, who is for all of the above – oil, coal, solar, wind – a blend of both traditional and alternative energy.