From the NY Times:

The opt-out question was raised in the final week of those campaigns. In New Jersey, Gov. Jon S. Corzine, a Democrat, announced he would not opt out, while Christopher J. Christie, the Republican who defeated him, said he did not favor a public option. In the final debate of the Virginia race, the Republican candidate, Robert F. McDonnell, said he would opt out, and his Democratic opponent, R. Creigh Deeds, said he would consider it.

Some Democrats running in red states have come out against the public option, like Representative Artur Davis, who is campaigning for governor of Alabama and voted against the House bill on Saturday.

Others will not take a stand until the legislative picture in Washington becomes clearer.

In Florida, Attorney General Bill McCollum, the Republican front-runner for governor next year, said he believed a public option would “put the viability of private health insurance in grave question.” But Mr. McCollum also said he was not prepared to support opting out. He said he feared that once insurers could not deny coverage based on pre-existing conditions — a centerpiece of the Democratic legislation — private insurers might not survive without a government plan to share the riskiest customers.

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