Larry Sabato, director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia, said that shift is apparent by looking at presidential election results: George H.W. Bush won Virginia by 20 points; his son, George W. Bush, won it by just 8 points in 2000. “Virginia, at least temporarily, has moved from purple to blue-ish,” he said. “[Republicans] have to accept reality and if they don’t they’ll continue to lose.”