Seeking Minority Groups' Support

Florence Wood runs the table for the group Chinese American Republicans of Virginia at a GOP rally in Alexandria. (By Dayna Smith -- For The Washington Post)

Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D-Del.), Obama's running mate, spent his second consecutive day campaigning in the state. Biden, who spoke in Loudoun County on Friday, joined Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D) in southwestern Virginia yesterday. They attended a United Mine Workers union fish fry in Russell County, in the heart of Virginia's coal country.

But many of Obama's Virginia events yesterday were aimed at reaching out to women.

Susan Eisenhower, a Republican and granddaughter of President Dwight D. Eisenhower, spoke at a Women for Obama tea at a private home in McLean. She was accompanied by Kaine's wife, Anne Holton.

Eisenhower told the audience that she decided to endorse Obama during the primaries because he has the "intelligence and temperament" to bring people together. In an interview after the event, she made a pitch for other Republican women to get behind Obama, noting the upheaval on Wall Street last week.

"This is the first open election with no heir apparent since 1952, when my grandfather was on the ballot," Eisenhower said. "This gives the country an opportunity to think outside of party lines. This country is facing some issues of such fundamental importance as our standing in the world and on our own prosperity, so we have to think as Americans first."

Several surrogates, including former secretary of state Madeleine K. Albright and former national security adviser Richard A. Clarke, were to appear at town hall meetings across Virginia yesterday focusing on national security.

Staff writer Tim Craig contributed to this report.