If you think the television, radio and online advertising in the Virginia governor’s race is increasingly negative, you’re not alone.

With the election a mere three weeks away, Democrat Abigail Spanberger and Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears are doing their best to link their opponent to the most negative elements of their national parties, according to a political communications expert from Virginia Tech.

“The thing about negative advertising is that everyone says they don’t like it, but the reason why we have negative ads is because they work,” said Cayce Myers, director of graduate studies in the school of communications at Virginia Tech.

The Republican lieutenant governor has flooded the airwaves with ads focused on the cultural divide that helped President Donald Trump win the presidency last fall, casting Spanberger as unwilling to protect Virginia’s children from sexual predators.

Earle-Sears’ team even replicated some of the same messaging used against former Vice President Kamala Harris, saying Spanberger is “for they/them, not for us.”

“They work because it allows people to frame their opponent in a particular way,” Myers told WTOP. “It also allows them to build a narrative in the election. And we know that people just in general respond, in a political sense, more to negative than to positive.”

Myers said Republicans want the election to be a referendum on far-left progressive politics, especially parental rights and education. On the other side of the aisle, Democrats want the election to be about the chaos of Trump’s administration, including the government shutdown.

“There’s a lot to be said for people who are motivated to vote against someone than to vote for someone,” Myers said. “That’s one of the reasons why the race has become much more negative than we normally see.”

He pointed to last week’s debate in which Earle-Sears continuously interrupted Spanberger in an attempt to throw her off balance and make an unintentional comment, despite being admonished by the moderators.

“It’s this kind of off-the-cuff remark that a lot of politicians seize upon that they can then repackage into advertising and also leverage for viral content,” he said. “I don’t think (Earle-Sears) really got that.”

Spanberger faced forward throughout the debate, avoided eye contact and rarely addressed Earle-Sears directly. She did not speak during Earle-Sears’ answers, even when her opponent asked direct questions, resulting in moments of awkward silence.

In any case, Virginia’s gubernatorial campaign will be historic, as it could result in the first woman being elected the Commonwealth’s 75th governor.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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