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McCain, Obama returning to Va.

October 16, 2008 12:22 am

RICHMOND

Republican Sen. John McCain will hold a rally in Woodbridge this Saturday, while Democratic Sen. Barack Obama will have a rally in Roanoke on Friday.

This is Obama's eighth stop in the state since being nominated; he was last in Newport News two weeks ago.

It's the third event here for McCain, who was in Virginia Beach this past Monday.

Polls lately show Obama inching ahead of McCain in Virginia, where the two have been neck-and-neck for weeks. Virginia hasn't voted for a Democratic presidential candidate since Lyndon Johnson.

Public interest in the election is high--the state Board of Elections reported that it has recorded the largest number of registered voters in state history--more than 5 million.

That includes 436,000 new voter registrations since January, the biggest surge in registration the state has ever had, according to a press release from the state board.

Almost 40 percent of those newly registered voters are under age 25, and women are in the majority of new voters across all age groups.

Area localities saw increases in registered voters ranging from around 9 percent to more than 15 percent.

The McCain rally will be at the Prince William County government complex in Woodbridge at 2 p.m. Saturday. It's open to the public, but tickets are required. The gates open at 1.

Obama's rally will be at 12:30 Friday in Roanoke at the Roanoke Civic Center coliseum.