The question came at Tim Kaine again, this time in a Sept. 13 debate between the Democratic nominee for governor and his Republican rival, Jerry Kilgore.

In a jampacked hotel ballroom in Fairfax County, debate moderator and Sunday talk-show host Tim Russert described Kaine's long-standing opposition to the death penalty and pointedly asked whether Kaine would use the power of the governor's office to outlaw executions in Virginia.

"If you became the governor, would you, in effect, because of your moral convictions, seek to outlaw the death penalty in Virginia; no matter what the odds, take on that crusade because you believe in it so strongly from a moral perspective?" asked Russert, the host of NBC's "Meet the Press."

Kaine replied that, as a Roman Catholic, he opposes the death penalty and abortion. But, he added, "I've had to put my hand on a Bible and I've had to swear to uphold the laws of the commonwealth of Virginia and I will."

And, he added, he would not spend political capital trying to change a law that most legislators support.

In the 2005 governor's race, the death penalty arguably has been the most provocative of campaign issues at the intersection of faith and politics. Debates over abortion rights also have been part of the crossfire, with the candidates sometimes framing their positions in moral terms rather than public policy terms.

It's too soon to tell how much these issues will affect the outcome of an apparently close race. But they continue to spark heated exchanges between the candidates as the campaign enters its final weeks.

"We don't seem to have an election campaign where a hot-button issue is really driving the electorate right now," said Mark Rozell, a professor of public policy at George Mason University and a veteran Virginia political analyst.

But, Rozell added, issues such as the death penalty and abortion could be critical in a very close race. That could subject Kaine to even greater scrutiny on issues where his personal beliefs and policy positions appear to clash.

Kaine, the lieutenant governor, calls attention to his faith in ways that few statewide Democrats have in recent elections. His first radio ads aired on rural and Christian-oriented radio stations and featured Kaine talking about the importance of his faith. On the campaign trail, he rarely misses an opportunity to tell audiences about his experience working with Christian missionaries in Honduras during a sabbatical from law school.

Rozell, who has written extensively about the role of Christian conservatives in Virginia and national politics, said Democrats are playing catch-up after years of conceding "values votes" to Republicans. National Democrats will be watching closely to see if Kaine can make inroads on that front, he said.

Questions about Kaine's position on the death penalty have followed him since his successful run for lieutenant governor in 2001. As a private lawyer, Kaine twice received court appointments to handle the death row appeals of convicted killers. One of those clients was Lem Tuggle Jr., who was sentenced to death for the 1983 rape and murder of a Smyth County woman and was executed in 1996.

During the 2001 campaign, Kaine joined calls for a moratorium on executions while the state examined issues such as racial and geographic sentencing disparities, the effectiveness of defense lawyers, and limits on introducing evidence of innocence. But Kaine's opposition to the death penalty goes deeper than any legal or technical question.

"I'm not opposed to the death penalty because of its unfairness," Kaine during an August interview. "I just don't think, you know, that humans ought to take life unless we absolutely have to -- under any circumstances. Self-defense? OK. Just war? OK. But I just think we ought to avoid it if we can."

Yet Kaine insists he can put aside those personal beliefs when confronted with a request to halt an execution.

"It will be hard, but it will be something I can do," Kaine said. "I wouldn't run for office and take an oath if I felt otherwise."

A recent statewide poll suggests that most voters accept Kaine's position. In a July survey of registered voters conducted by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research, 55 percent said they would consider voting for a candidate who opposes the death penalty on moral grounds but indicated he would not block executions. Only 27 percent said they would not consider a candidate who held that view.

Kilgore, the former attorney general, cites Kaine's opposition to the death penalty as evidence that the Democrat is out of step with Virginia's generally conservative electorate. In a July debate before the Virginia Bar Association, Kilgore compared Kaine to former Illinois Gov. George Ryan, who commuted the sentences of every inmate on that state's death row just days before leaving office in 2003.

Kaine has responded forcefully to Kilgore's criticism, even accusing the Republican of attacking his Catholic faith. Kilgore, a Baptist, insists the quarrel is strictly about policy.

"He's always been against the death penalty," Kilgore said of Kaine. "He always has, he always will be."

Kaine also has drawn fire from critics for his position on abortion rights. Kaine has said he has a faith-based objection to abortion and supports "common-sense" restrictions now on the books. He also said he would support a ban on a late-term procedure known as "partial-birth abortion" as long as the law contains an exception for protecting a woman's health.

Kilgore supported and defended a 2003 Virginia law banning partial-birth abortion, but federal courts have ruled it unconstitutional because it lacks a health exception. State Sen. Russ Potts, an independent candidate for governor, voted for the measure.

Kaine insists the state can reduce abortions by enforcing its restrictions and providing greater access to health care and contraception.

Kilgore argues that the Democrat has tried too hard to appease both supporters and opponents of abortion rights and "can't be trusted" on the issue.

But Kilgore refuses to say whether he would sign legislation outlawing abortion if a reconstituted U.S. Supreme Court gives states such power. When Russert put the question to Kilgore at the Fairfax County debate, Kilgore dismissed it as "hypothetical" and refused to answer it.

"You don't know what any Supreme Court in the future is going to do," Kilgore said. "I am going to work within the parameters laid down by the Supreme Court. That's what attorneys do."

Kaine said he would veto "any legislation that criminalizes women or doctors for their health care decisions." And he has criticized Kilgore for statements the Republican made during the 2001 campaign for attorney general, when Kilgore said he would preserve abortion rights for victims of rape or incest if the crimes were promptly reported to authorities.

Democrats argue that voters demand to know whether Kilgore would sign a law outlawing abortion, because a Republican-controlled General Assembly could pass such a measure if the Supreme Court overturns the landmark Roe v. Wade decision.

"It's not a hypothetical," said Del. Brian Moran, the chairman of the House Democratic Caucus. "It's a reality that, with the changes on the Supreme Court, we could be expected to address that issue."

But Republican Sen. Jay O'Brien of Fairfax County said voters who feel strongly about abortion likely have made up their minds -- at least about Kilgore.

"If abortion is your issue in November and if you're pro-life, you're going to vote for Jerry," O'Brien said after the Fairfax County debate. "If you're pro-choice, you're going to have to choose between these other two."