Whatever else you might say about them, the Commonwealth’s candidate lineup is exceptional by one significant measure: family size.
Both the Republican and Democratic candidates have an above average number of progeny – although the GOP lineup is still out-reproducing their counterparts on the left.
Dem
Creigh & Pam Deeds – 4
Jody & Alan Wagner- 4
Steve & Abby Shannon – 2
Average: 3.3
GOP
Bob & Maureen McDonnell – 5
Bill & Jean Ann Bolling – 2
Ken & Teiro Cuccinelli – 7
Average: 4.6
[1]
According to the US Census [2], the average family in the Commonwealth has just 1.74 children and the nationwide average is 1.86. The replacement fertility rate for developed nations is 2.1 – that’s how many children the average family needs to have to keep the population from declining. Without children, the labor force shrinks and there are not enough workers in the tax base, paying social security for the aging or meeting the nation’s other obligations. France has taken to incentivizing child-bearing. The UK is surviving on foreign immigration. Meeting the challenges of sub-replacement fertility and an aging population has become a major public policy concern in developed countries.
With this information, we can conclude that all of our statewide candidates and their spouses are doing their part to prevent Virginia’s population from declining. Not only are they raising the next generation of Virginians, they are delaying the collapse of social security!