Most states have big elections in the 2022 midterms, but not Virginia. No, their big elections happen THIS November and both parties are working hard not only to make sure their party wins, but also to use those wins to fuel even more electoral victories in 2022.
The Republicans will be desperate to demonstrate that they can win elections without Trump on the ballot, and that they can win in “blue” states. (Virginia only recently turned blue thanks to amazing work by activists and organizers in ’17 and ’19.)
The Democrats will be defending all 5 of the statewide elected executives (including the governorship) and the state legislature, which means they must both defend their record of accomplishments, and not just run against the GOP. We also know they’ve been winning thanks to voters in suburban areas trending to the left.
Since most everyone reading this post will not be from Virginia, I thought I’d look a bit more closely at the candidates for governor. Pouring our energies, donations, and actions into that race is one way we can all row in the same direction.
Terry McAuliffe (D)
McAuliffe was the governor of Virginia from 2014 – 2018. (In Virginia, governors can’t serve consecutive terms.) He is an excellent fundraiser — he fundraised for most of the last several Democratic presidential candidates going all the way back to the 80s. He served as the Chair of the DNC in the early 2000s, and was a co-chair of Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign.
While he was governor, he had a majority Republican legislature. He vetoed a record 120 bills. He pushed hard for healthcare, economic development, and voting rights. As governor, he maintained neutral to positive approval ratings.
Here’s a clip from the primary debate when he spoke about restoring voting rights:
Glenn Youngkin (R)
Youngkin is a political newcomer. He is a big GOP donor and is the former CEO of a private equity firm. Instead of having a primary, the GOP chose him to be their gubernatorial candidate at a nominating convention. He played basketball at Rice University and got his MBA at Harvard Business School.
He is worth roughly $300 million, and is self-funding his campaign so far. He is running on his “outsider” status and success as a businessman. (Side note: Sounds kind of familiar, doesn’t it?)
It’s Very Competitive
Early polling for this race has shown that it is going to be close. Only 2 polls have been done for this race so far, and shows that McAuliffe is only 2-4 points ahead of Youngkin. So we need to do everything possible to promote this race, share positive information about McAuliffe, and fund turnout operations all over the state.
Follow McAuliffe on Twitter or Facebook
For more information about the other elections in Virginia this November, read: 2021 Elections: Focus on Virginia
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