Virginia Democrats coalesce as primary election sets statewide ticket. Will Republicans?
Virginia Democrats solidified their statewide ticket Tuesday, voting for state Sen. Ghazala Hashmi as the nominee for lieutenant governor and former Del. Jay Jones as the nominee for attorney general in the state's primary elections.
Before the lieutenant governor's primary had been called, Democratic gubernatorial nominee Abigail Spanberger issued her congratulations, calling Hashmi a 'proven leader.'
With the stage set for Virginia's bellwether election, Spanberger, Hashmi and Jones put out a joint statement Wednesday emphasizing their unified campaign.
'As the Democratic ticket running to serve as Virginia's next Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and Attorney General, we are united in our focus on the issues that matter to our fellow Virginians,' they wrote.
Hashmi and Jones are scheduled appear at stops along Spanberger's planned eight-day bus tour around the commonwealth, according to a spokesperson for her campaign. The tour kicks off Saturday in Richmond, making its way throughout the state until ending in Hampton Roads on June 28.
That's a markedly different strategy from Virginia Republicans, who have had a set statewide ticket since April but have thus far been going it alone. Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, incumbent Attorney General Jason Miyares, and conservative radio host John Reid are the party's nominees for governor, attorney general and lieutenant governor, but have yet to appear together in public.
The parties' tickets are notably diverse — without a straight white man nominated for any of the positions.
In an interview at the end of May, Reid said he had not spoken to Gov. Glenn Youngkin since the governor asked him to step down as the nominee. At the time, Youngkin cited a social media account that posted risqué images of men that matched the username of other accounts Reid used.
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On Wednesday, Reid for the first time shared a graphic of the Republican statewide ticket to social media with the caption 'The GOP ticket is ready to lead.' Neither Earle-Sears nor Miyares had posted anything similar at press time. In the aftermath of Youngkin's phone call and Reid's refusal to step down, Earle-Sears briefly acknowledged that Reid was the nominee, but has not mentioned him on social media since.
'We all have our own race to run,' she said at the time.
In Tuesday's Democratic and Republican primaries, Hampton Roads voters also decided who will represent them in the November general election for House Districts 70, 89 and 97.
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Hashmi, who will be the first Muslim and first Indian-American to appear on a ballot for statewide office, emerged victorious from a field of six running for the party's nomination for lieutenant governor with 27.5% of the vote.
'Today, we've made history yet again, not just by winning this primary, but by declaring with one voice that Virginia is not going to be bullied or broken or dragged backwards by the chaos that's unfolding in Washington,' she said Tuesday night.
The next closest candidate, former Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney, conceded the race Wednesday morning with 26.7% of the vote. State Sen. Aaron Rouse of Virginia Beach finished in third with 26.1% of the vote and conceded Tuesday night. Three other Democrats trailed, each earning less than 10% of the vote, according to unofficial results from the state Department of Elections.
In a video Tuesday night, Reid congratulated Hashmi, welcomed her to the campaign trail — then went on the attack.
'Sen. Hashmi, sadly, has been one of the biggest cheerleaders for the high taxes, anti-business, trans radicalism, and government-knows-better-than-parents attitude that's crushing our families and endangering our future,' he said.
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Two Hampton Roads candidates will compete in November's election. Jones, of Norfolk, won a close race with 51% of the vote against Henrico Commonwealth's Attorney Shannon Taylor. He will face Miyares of Virginia Beach in the general election.
At a party in Norfolk, Jones said Tuesday he was ready to fight and to win and called Miyares Donald Trump's 'pro bono lawyer.'
'We deserve better,' said Jones, who represented parts of Norfolk in the House of Delegates from 2018 to 2021. 'We can do better, and we will get better this November.'
Miyares, who represented parts of Virginia Beach in the House from 2016 to 2021, fired shots of his own in a statement posted to X.
'My opponent's ideological record makes Virginia families less safe and our streets more violent,' he wrote. 'The law is a shield to keep people safe, not a sword for social justice warriors or a platform for grand social experiments.'
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In Newport News, Republicans voted for Cynthia Scaturico to represent the party against incumbent Democrat Del. Shelly Simonds to represent House District 70. Scaturico beat Hailey Dollar, a newcomer to politics, with 74% of the vote.
Scaturico previously held a board of supervisors seat in Iowa before moving to Newport News. She said her priorities included protecting workers' rights, education reform and local homelessness.
Voters in Chesapeake and Suffolk chose also Democrat Karen 'Kacey' Carnegie and Republican Mike Lamonea to meet in the November House District 89 race.
Carnegie beat Blaizen Buckshot Bloom with more than 77% of the vote as of Wednesday.
'With tonight's win, we're one step closer to flipping HD-89 — one of the most competitive districts in Virginia — and expanding the Democratic majority in the House of Delegates,' Carnegie said in a release.
Lamonea beat Kristen Shannon with 66% of the vote as of Wednesday.
'As we turn our focus to November, I look forward to continuing the conversation with voters about lowering taxes, improving education, protecting our constitutional rights and ensuring safe communities,' he said Tuesday night.
And Virginia Beach Republicans overwhelmingly voted for Tim Anderson to compete against Democratic incumbent Del. Michael Feggans. Anderson, an attorney, won the House District 97 primary against Christina Felder with about 92% of the vote.
The attorney and former delegate said he wants to substantially lower the car tax, and instead use Virginia's budget surplus to reimburse localities for the lost revenue.
'We ran a clean message on eliminating the car tax, and it resonated overwhelming with the district,' Anderson said by phone Tuesday night. 'Virginia has the surplus to do it. That's going to be our campaign promise.'
Staff writers Trevor Metcalfe, Stacy Parker, Natalie Anderson and Devlin Epding contributed to this report.
Kate Seltzer, 757-713-7881, kateseltzer@virginiamedia.com
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