As the Virginia gubernatorial race continues to rage on, negative campaigning strategies between Democratic candidate Tim Kaine and Republican candidate Jerry Kilgore can be seen in increasing amounts. According to The Washington Post, these advertisements -- many of which have recently focused on such issues as capital punishment -- are used by political candidates for one main reason: They have proven to be effective in influencing voter opinion.
Because of the negative political climate these advertisements foster, however, many University students said they try to avoid watching television and allowing these campaign techniques to have an influence on their political choices.
Second-year College student Josh Rachford said he does not rely on the various advertisements shown by political hopefuls.
"I avoid advertisements because I don't want to see people insult one another," Rachford said. "I feel like the political climate in Virginia is polarized enough that ads don't matter -- individuals are either apathetic or staunchly what they are."
Fourth-year College student Maria Kosut said the advertisements just promote negative views rather then explain the real issues that need to be addressed during an election.
"I have never seen an ad where a candidate says that 'I support something,'" Kosut said. "The ads are really negative and don't show either [candidate] in a positive light. They seem to find one issue like the death penalty and extort it."
Fourth-year College student Rebecca Sample also said she wants to see more campaign issues included in political advertisements because of the influence that the media has on voters.
"If I'm looking to endorse a candidate, I want to see more focus on what's positive about their campaign rather than what's negative about another candidate," Sample said. "The ads show how the candidates regard themselves and the other candidate, and it seems more petty to take the action of bringing the other person down."
Second-year College student Jason Grace said the use of these negative advertisements portrays both candidates in a negative light, and their willingness to continue this type of campaigning serves to undermine the importance of the election.
"A smear campaign of this sort is both frustrating and disconcerting to voters who would prefer to see the candidates distinguish themselves in a positive manner," Grace said. "In my view, both candidates are culpable to some extent, and their negative campaign strategies are evidence that the talent pool for executive leadership is very shallow. This is the sort of behavior that will perpetuate partisanship and destroy efforts at compromise in the future."
Although these negative advertisements may be likely to continue, second-year College student Brady Zedd said he supports Politics Prof. Larry Sabato's recent pressure on the candidates to focus more on positive campaigning and dispel negative media strategies.
"I liked that Sabato asked [the candidates] to keeps their ads 51 percent positive," Zedd said. "In the spirit of unity, I believe that these candidates should begin to tone down the negativity of their political ads."
While many students voiced discontent for the ads, others noted their critical role in service to the electorate. In a nation increasingly concentrating on mobilization of voters, especially in the younger crowd, negative advertising can be a positive influence in this sense, according to some.
"I am not in favor of viewing negative ads on T.V.," second-year College student Jackie Preville said. "However, in races that are really close, it can often sway people who wouldn't normally vote by getting to their emotions when maybe politics isn't enough."
Life Editor Michelle Jamrisko contributed to this report.
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