Attacks Grow In Va. Race, And So Does Voter Anger

"What we need is somebody with a vision," he said at Macaroni Grill, not far from the Mixing Bowl. "That's what's seriously lacking here, is anybody with a vision. They are punching around with these small issues, but you've got nobody saying, 'Here's how I'm going to fix this state.' "

Norris and the others said they are tuning the ads out because they don't find them helpful. When they walk into the voting booth Nov. 8, they said, the ads probably won't help them make up their minds.

"There's nothing in any of these ads that would sway a decision," said Suffolk accountant Rick Eddleman, 53. "There's nothing of content that would help me make a decision. I'm inclined not to believe anybody."

Emotional Appeals' Power

Despite the protests from voters, however, West and others who have studied campaigns say attack ads are used for one reason: They usually work.

"What kinds of emotional hot buttons are pressed can really influence in dramatic ways how individuals act," said Ted Brader of the University of Michigan, who wrote the book "Campaigning for Hearts and Minds: How Emotional Appeals in Political Ads Work."

Kilgore's death penalty ads are aimed at pushing those buttons. They feature ominous music, dark backgrounds and sharp noises that sound like gunshots.

Kaine's responses seek to counter the emotion. In one, he talks directly to the camera, telling voters that he wants to "set the record straight" and saying he will enforce the death penalty. In another, he uses headlines in newspapers last week to undermine the power of the Kilgore ads.

"Jerry Kilgore's attacks are a vile attempt to manipulate an emotional issue for political gain," an announcer says. "Newspapers say Kilgore tars a decent man. Jerry Kilgore should be ashamed."

Brader said Kilgore's death penalty ads are typical of crime ads nationwide, which are "a staple in political campaigns, especially when they want to rouse fear."

He called Kilgore's version "understated and effective" but said that "there's a danger of backlash. People get angrier with the sponsor, and that reduces what might have been the positive aspects of the ad. Not everyone responds that way, but some do."

West agreed. "With an ad like that, you are betting the ranch," he said. "Voters are either going to be swayed by it or they are going to be upset."

Kilgore advisers say they believe the ads do not cross the line. They say reports from across the state suggest that the ads are weakening support for Kaine among death penalty supporters and emphasizing Kaine's liberal credentials.

"The feedback we get is tremendous. These are ads that compel the viewer to watch," said Kilgore spokesman Tim Murtaugh. "They are serious and powerful ads."

Kaine strategists, by contrast, say their feedback from voters indicates that the Kilgore death penalty ads might have gone too far. Communications director Mo Elleithee said many voters viewed the ads as a manipulation of the relatives' emotions for crass political gain.

"The more people hear these ads, the more turned off they get to Jerry Kilgore," Elleithee said. "He crossed the lines of decency and failed the credibility test."

The Post's interviews with voters support the idea that they disapprove of what they see.

Richard O. Harrell III, who runs a trucking company in South Boston, said he believes that both Kilgore and Kaine are "personable, smart" candidates and that either would make a decent governor. But he said he is disappointed by the "tone" of the contest between them.

"It has reverted," he said, "to the lowest common denominator."