"With a Senate race at a statistical dead heat and a House race that at least looks to be closer than last year, how many locals will actually turn out to vote?

Looking at the last off-year election, in 2002, voter turnout would earn a decidedly failing grade in both Albemarle and Charlottesville: Only 45 percent of registered voters came out in the county and a paltry 39 percent made poll appearances in the city. But voter registration is up to 60,963 in the county, an increase of over 2,000 from 2004, and the City marginally increased registration to 23,571 from 23,373.

Does Democratic challenger Al Weed stand a chance in the House race against incumbent Republican Congressman Virgil Goode? Though Weed earned 71 percent of the city vote in 2004, he narrowly lost the county by 238 votes and got crushed in the Fifth District as a whole: Goode won by nearly 30 percentage points. Weed spokesman Curt Gleeson swears it will be different in Southside this year and that Weed will win Danville, despite winning only 42 percent of the vote in 2004." (Will Goldsmith, C-VILLE Weekly, October 31 - November 6, 2006)