Democrats Continue to Prioritize Virginia State Elections With More Funding

Jaime Harrison, chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), speaks at the DNC Winter Meeting in Philadelphia on Feb. 4, 2023. (Timothy A. Clary/AFP via Getty Images)

With a little less than a month until the Nov. 7 elections in Virginia, the national Democratic Party continues to invest heavily in the state contests, with more than $2 million given to the Virginia Democrats fighting for seats in the General Assembly.

“If national Republicans continue to show they won’t govern, why would Virginia Republicans be any different? That’s why the DLCC is announcing another six-figure investment in Virginia, following the $2 million we’ve already invested this cycle into both the Virginia House and Senate caucuses,” said Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC) communications director Abhi Rahman in a statement.

“It’s time to elect Democrats who will do the job they were elected to do, safeguard our fundamental freedoms like access to an abortion, and put the needs of their constituents over petty, political games,” he said.

Because all 140 seats in Virginia’s House of Delegates and Senate are up for grabs this election, there is the potential to change the balance of power to either party. Democrats are focused on fundraising, with former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton even weighing in.

Ms. Clinton wrote in a recent X post that Republicans taking control of the Virginia Assembly would be “scarier than a Friday the 13th in October.”

According to The Virginia Project, a Republican political action committee (PAC), while the DLCC is investing in Virginia state elections, the Republican National Committee (RNC) has given no money.

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“Democrats continue to pour money into Virginia to avoid a rout. Meanwhile, Ronna McDaniel is giving state Republicans a big fat zero,” the PAC stated on X, referring to the RNC chairwoman.

Instead, Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s Spirit of Virginia PAC has supported various Republican candidates ahead of the Nov. 7 elections, according to the Virginia Public Access Project (VPAP).

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin at a "Back to School" rally in Annandale, Va., on Aug. 31, 2022. (Courtesy of Spirit of Virginia)

Balance of Power

Currently, Democrats hold a 22–18 advantage in the state Senate and Republicans hold a 49–46 majority in the House of Delegates. There are five vacancies.

Putting aside inflation, crime, and education, Democrats have chosen to focus on the issue of abortion, with ads that claim Republicans are trying to ban abortion altogether. In recent ads, they claim that the GOP is extreme on this issue, but Republicans are hitting back, saying that Democrats want absolutely no limit on abortion.

“Virginia Democrats are abortion extremists,” the Virginia GOP said in a recent X post.

According to a report from the University of Virginia (UVA) Center for Politics, there are 16 key races in this election—six in the state Senate and 10 in the House of Delegates—that will determine the balance of power.

For example, Virginia Beach is one of the areas that could swing either way. The city voted 52 percent for Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election, and a year later, Mr. Youngkin won the city by 54 percent, according to VPAP.

Democrats are warning that if Republicans get complete control of the Virginia General Assembly, the state will look more like Florida or Texas, where the laws limit government involvement in areas like education and abortion.

Even if Democrats win control of the state House of Delegates, they can only limit the Republican agenda.

“Democrats won’t be able to pass many of their desired big-ticket priorities until the next Democratic trifecta comes along, which would be after the 2025 elections at the earliest,” the UVA report states.

Virginia is considered a “purple” state, having had both Republican and Democrat governors. Former President Donald Trump won more counties in the commonwealth but lost the popular vote by about 10 percent in 2020. He also lost the state in the 2016 election against Ms. Clinton.