ROANOKE, Va. • As Terry McAuliffe made his case for the Democratic nomination for governor of Virginia this summer, he argued the state wanted “seasoned” leadership.

The former governor, like the new President Joe Biden, had broad appeal that would keep up Virginians’ enthusiasm for voting against Republicans, his campaign argued.

Less than a week before Election Day, even McAuliffe’s allies are wondering if he was wrong.

Publicly, McAuliffe is confident in his campaign against Republican businessman Glenn Youngkin, but the finger-pointing and handwringing has begun among Democrats who are openly contemplating the possibility of a worst-case scenario on Nov. 2.

Internally, there is fear that they may have overestimated voters’ desire for an experienced politician.

And some allies worry that McAuliffe’s hyper-focus on former President Donald Trump might not energize voters in the same way it did when he was in office.

The Democrat is locked in a dead heat against a political neophyte who is threatening to become the first Republican to win statewide office here in more than a decade. This, in a state Biden won by 10 percentage points last year.

“Everybody is nervous,” said Abbi Easter, who lives in the Richmond suburbs and sits on the state Democratic Party’s steering committee.

A McAuliffe loss on Tuesday would reverberate across the national political landscape, likely triggering all-out panic among Democrats.

For Republicans, it would be a burst of confidence and a roadmap for finding their way through post-Trump divisions ahead of 2022 midterm elections, which will decide control of Congress and dozens of state capitals.

McAuliffe’s team privately points to the drag of Biden’s weakened standing among Virginia voters, a shift that began in August after the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.

That exacerbated traditional headwinds for candidates whose party occupies the White House. In 2013, McAuliffe himself became the first Virginia candidate in 40 years to win the governor’s office while his party was in power.

And within the campaign, there is concern that McAuliffe’s experience, thought to be an asset when he got into the race, may actually work against him in a political environment that continues to favor outsiders.

Even before becoming governor, McAuliffe had been active in national politics for decades. He served as a former Democratic National Committee chairman and a chief fundraiser for Bill and Hillary Clinton.

In the 2021 election’s closing days, one McAuliffe aide conceded Republicans are more excited about scoring a dramatic upset that would send a message to the country than Democrats are about preserving the status quo — especially as many polls suggest that voters believe the country is on the wrong track.

McAuliffe’s first event on Wednesday in the southern edge of the state drew fewer than 40 people.

State delegate Chris Hurst, a McAuliffe supporter, acknowledged the so-called enthusiasm gap at a get-out-the-vote rally this week in the state’s rural southwest corner.

“You don’t have to be enthusiastic to go to the doctor or the dentist to still do it every single year,” Hurst said.

“It’s time for us to go out and do our jobs.”

Trump may be about to give Democrats an unexpected burst of energy, however.

The former president issued a cryptic statement Wednesday afternoon indicating he may visit Virginia “soon.” Trump spokesman Taylor Budowich followed up with a statement reminding voters that Trump has endorsed Youngkin, adding, “President Trump looks forward to being back in Virginia! Details will be released when appropriate.”

President Joe Biden, right, reacts after speaking Tuesday at a rally for Democratic gubernatorial candidate, former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe in Arlington, Va. McAuliffe will face Republican Glenn Youngkin in the November election.

the associated press