Creigh Deeds, the former state senator and current Democratic nominee for Governor of Virginia, is falling further behind Republican Attorney General Bob McDonnell.  Though the Democrat has trailed for much of the race, he'd closed the gap at various points.  Now, however, it looks as though McDonnell is pulling away.

With election day set for November 3, Deeds now trails by an average of eight and a half points.  That's nearly double the 4.5% margin that McDonnell was averaging at the end of September.  One Survey USA study last week showed McDonnell with a commanding double-digit margin of 11 points.

Moreover, it appears that support for McDonnell is growing more fervent.  In a Washington Post survey, 41 % of Republicans reported feeling "very enthusiastic" about their party's nominee.  Just 21% of Democrats said the same about theirs.

The more surprising figures are the precise demographics where Deeds has lost ground.  More than a month ago, a masters degree thesis paper surfacd in which McDonnell condemned working women as "detrimental" to the family unit, and branded "illogical" the use of contraceptives by unmarried couples.  Deeds surged for a brief time, particularly among women and younger voters.  But now, his advantage in those categories is almost nill.

Unless the Washington Post writes another barn-burner of a story like the thesis coverage on the eve of the election, Deeds looks set for defeat.  As the New Jersey race has tightened with the coming of election day, the Virginia race has only seen more distance grow between the two candidates, to the point that McDonnell now very clearly appears to be the frontrunner.

If Deeds indeed finishes behind McDonnell, the election will be the first major loss for Democrats in that state in several years.  In 2001, Mark Warner overcame long odds to win the Governor's mansion, and was succeeded in that office by his Democratic Lieutenant Governor in 2005, current DNC Chairman Tim Kaine.  In 2006, Democrat Jim Webb narrowly edged George Allen for his Senate seat, just as Allen had been pondering a run for the White House.  In 2008, Democrats completed a sweep, taking a majority of the Old Dominion's congressional delegation, both houses of it's state legislature, and its other Senate seat, which Warner took with ease over former Governor and '08 Republican presidential hopeful Jim Gilmore.