Dental health across the U.S. has improved steadily in recent years and most Virginians receive more frequent preventive care than the national average. But some segments of Virginia’s population have clearly been left behind in access to dental care, according to the authors, Terance Rephann and Tanya Wanchek.

This report briefly reviews Virginia’s political history, analyzes trends within key demographic groups over the past twenty years, and simulates the 2012 presidential election based on patterns seen in the last two presidential contests.