As part of a late-summer onslaught against Chris Christie meant to narrow a steep gap in the polls, Gov. Jon Corzine's campaign hammered the Republican for a health care plan they said would lift a state regulation on insurance companies mandating that all policies cover mammogram screenings. When the polls soon tightened, Democrats thought they had found a silver bullet that shored up support among a key demographic -- women voters – and soon amplified that message in advertisements.

Yet on Election Day, Chris Christie performed better than expected among women overall, and won a commanding two-to-one vote among independent women. Ultimately, both in New Jersey and Virginia this Tuesday, pocketbook concerns trumped all issue-based appeals Democrats made, a warning sign for the party as focus turns to the midterm races of 2010.

“You do the math: if a Republican ties with women, they win the election,” said Glenn Bolger, a Republican pollster who advised Virginia Gov.-elect Bob McDonnell's campaign.

McDonnell did better than that, winning by 6-points among women despite Democratic efforts to highlight what they argued were the out-of-touch views expressed on the role of women in a thesis from their opponent. Yes, the McDonnell campaign “made a concerted effort to reach women voters,” Bolger said, highlighting the endorsement of “credible women leaders” in television ads to rebut Democratic charges. But more importantly, McDonnell's unyielding focus on the economy ensured that he was the choice of the plurality of voters who identified that as their top concern.

The same held in New Jersey. A Quinnipiac Poll showed Corzine leading among women by 20 points in late October. But on Election Day, he only won that 50-45 in the final vote. Christie won 60-30 percent among independent women, the very target of the mammogram issue campaign. President Obama, in carrying New Jersey in 2008, won 58 percent of the women's vote.

“The economy was the number one issue in our polling among women by a significant margin,” Bolger said. “Women are very concerned, and there was not much of an issue-gender gap” because of that.

Democrats seem aware that appeals like the ones Deeds and Corzine hoped would draw women out simply won't cut through in 2010 if the party's candidates first do not hold firm on the economy. In New Jersey, 31 percent of voters cited that as their top concern, compared to just 13 percent who said health care.

“We as Democrats still carry a burden of proof [on the economy],” said Nathan Daschle, executive director of the Democratic Governors Association. “[Voters] need to see results. We need to show that we're not just a party of rhetoric, we're a party of action.”

Democratic women's groups are also pointing to the depressed turnout among women as a key factor, and are seeking to raise money. “Republicans made gains this week for one reason: we saw crucial groups of voters staying home or, worse yet, moving to the Republicans,” EMILY's List president Ellen Malcolm wrote to supporters Thursday.