VA Democrats Win Full Control Of Statehouse In Setback For Youngkin

RICHMOND, VA — Virginia Democrats retained control of the state Senate and won back a majority in the House of Delegates Tuesday in a setback for Gov. Glenn Younkin's conservative agenda.

The Democrats’ victory in the state Senate ended the prospect of Republican control of the Senate, House and the governor's mansion, which would have allowed Youngkin (R) to move on his policy priorities, including a proposed 15-week abortion ban, AP said.

“It’s official: there will be absolutely no abortion ban legislation sent to Glenn Youngkin’s desk for the duration of his term in office, period, as we have thwarted MAGA Republicans’ attempt to take total control of our government and our bodies,” Virginia Senate Democratic Caucus Chair Mamie Locke said in a statement Tuesday night.

“Tomorrow is the first day of a new Virginia,” House Minority Leader Don L. Scott Jr. (D-Portsmouth), who could be in line to become the first Black person to serve as speaker in the state’s history, told the joyful crowd, according to The Washington Post.

Virginia Democrats who campaigned on protecting abortion rights swept Tuesday’s legislative elections, retaking full control of the General Assembly after two years of divided power. The outcome is a loss for Youngkin and his fellow Republicans, who exerted a great deal of energy, money and political capital on their effort to secure a GOP trifecta, the Associated Press said.

“It’s official: there will be absolutely no abortion ban legislation sent to Glenn Youngkin’s desk for the duration of his term in office, period, as we have thwarted MAGA Republicans’ attempt to take total control of our government and our bodies,” Virginia Senate Democratic Caucus Chair Mamie Locke said in a statement referencing Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan.

(See real-time election results at the bottom of this story.)

“This is a huge sign of Democrats’ continued momentum heading into 2024. With so much on the line, voters showed up at the ballot box and sent the GOP a stark warning — betting big on the MAGA agenda doesn’t fly with everyday Americans, and it will cost them once again in 2024,” Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison said of Virginia’s results in a statement.

As the night wore on and races were called, Republicans grew somber. “We are still monitoring a couple key races and will fully assess where things stand in the morning,” Dave Rexrode, Youngkin’s top political adviser, said in a statement on X (formerly Twitter). “We had hoped for a stronger outcome this evening but are proud of the effort all our candidates put in to these extremely competitive districts.”

Two years ago, blue Virginia moved to purple with the election of Youngkin over Democrat Terry McAuliffe. Tuesday, Virginia’s GOP failed to solidify its hold on the state by wresting control from Democrats, which would have put all three branches of state government under Republican control.

A major talking point in the campaign for control of the Virginia Senate was to restrict abortion access. Ads run by Youngkin’s Spirit of Virginia PAC avoided the term “banning abortion,” CNN said, which could be done if the GOP is in charge of all three branches of state government.

“Here’s the truth: There is no ban,” a woman says in a Youngkin ad. “Virginia Republicans support a reasonable 15-week limit.”

Youngkin said on ABC's "This Week" on Sunday Virginia can "lead" on abortion rather than "fight" it if enough Republicans are elected to enact a 15-week ban with exceptions for rape, incest and saving the life of the mother. Current law bans abortions after 26 weeks.

Virginia is the southern-most state that hasn't widely banned or restricted abortion access since the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade.

Youngkin won the Virginia governor's race in 2021 over Terry McAuliffe — a former Virginia governor, Democratic National Committee chairman and close friend of Bill and Hillary Clinton — by tapping into culture war fights over schools and the race to unite former President Donald Trump's most fervent supporters with enough suburban voters to become the first GOP candidate to win statewide office in a dozen years.

The win marked a sharp turnabout in a state that had shifted to the left over the past decade and which President Joe Biden captured by 10 points in 2020.

A look at Youngkin’s positions in his first two years at the state’s helm might hint at topics the Legislature will take up in its next session.

He has advocated for permanent tax cuts and the abortion limits. Such a change in Virginia’s political landscape could energize a possible last-minute bid for the White House, The Washington Post said.

If Democrats hold their edge in the state Senate and flip the House, they will try to preserve abortion rights and block Youngkins’ plans to loosen environmental standards, the Post said.

“In this election, it’s absolutely true that access to abortion is on the ballot,” Bob Holsworth, a political analyst, told the Post. “What’s at stake for Youngkin is: Is he going to have relatively free rein in his agenda, or will it be at the sufferance of Democrats?”

Youngkin’s administration last fall applied for federal funding meant to help Virginia continue to implement its red flag law, a gun control measure opposed by many Republican lawmakers and gun rights activists, the Virginia Mercury reported. State officials said the estimated $5 million hasn’t been formally accepted.

Virginia’s system of substantial risk orders — known as the red flag law — has generated calls for its repeal by conservatives, but that has been stymied by the Democratic Senate.
Youngkin’s position on red flag laws is unclear, said the Mercury, which received no answer when it asked where he stands on the issue.

On his first day in office in January 2022, Youngkin signed an executive order that banned the teaching of critical race theory and other subjects, characterizing them as "political indoctrination." No public K-12 school curricula in Virginia teaches critical race theory, according to an American Oversight release.

Later in January, Youngkin announced the launching of the email tip line (helpeducation@governor.virginia.gov), where people could report school officials who were teaching banned subjects. It generated protests from teacher organizations and lawsuits from media companies.

In April 2022, dozens of media outlets, including the Washington Post, sued Youngkin after his administration refused to release any records about the tip line. The Post and other news organizations had filed Freedom of Information Act acts seeking the records, but Youngkin's administration denied the requests, saying they were exempt as the governor's "working papers and correspondence," according to the Post.

Real-time results are below — use the scroll on the right if all races are not visible. Patch will be updating the results throughout the night as votes are tallied — be sure to refresh the page for the latest updates.

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