Before Governor Glenn Youngkin won the 2021 election, most thought this Virginia would remain a Democrat stronghold, but after Youngkin’s win, party leaders realized this southern state was purple. Now, with all 140 seats in the Virginia Legislature up for grabs, both parties have put a huge amount of money and effort to win as many seats as possible, particularly in the state Senate and in suburban areas.
A College of William & Mary Government Professor John McGlennon described Virginia’s elections in 2023 as “the big game in town,” and why there is so much money being poured into them.
“Virginia is really a magnet for money right now. It’s a good chance for the parties to test themes and techniques, and so they’re investing heavily in it, knowing that they will spend much, much more next year during the presidential and congressional races, and this is a good chance for them to see what is more likely to work in those races,” McGlennon told the W&M News.
Leaders Invest in Virginia
While Governor Glenn Youngkin has been leading an effort to get Republicans elected to the state’s House of Delegates and Senate, Democrats have top leaders, including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), campaigning and holding fundraising for Virginia’s state senate candidates and former President Barack Obama encouraging Virginians to vote.The latest figures from Virginia Public Access Project (VPAP), which cover funds raised between Oct. 1 and Oct. 26, show Democrats outraising Republicans, more so in House races but with a smaller margin between the parties’ totals in the Senate.
The November 7 election is being called a bellwether for 2024 of how the electorate may lean in congressional and presidential contests and the reason the two parties have poured millions into these midterm elections because whoever controls Virginia is more likely to win the White House.
Governor Youngkin called the upcoming election one of the most important, not just for Virginia but the nation.
Youngkin said he is hopeful Republicans can win the state Senate majority, and it is the next natural step since before he was elected, Democrats had a trifecta. Still, he was able to win his election, and right after that, Republicans won back the House majority.
In just a few days, it will be decided if Republicans achieve their trifecta, Democrats hold onto the Senate and take back the House, or if each party controls one chamber for another two years.
Top Suburban Districts
McGlennon said suburban voters were key to Youngkin’s win and is the reason why so much attention is being paid to certain suburbs.“I think the Democrats have increasingly been reliant upon building majorities in suburbs, and if that has been blunted by Governor Youngkin or the Republicans here in Virginia, I think you’ll see the Republicans looking for ways to emulate that strategy in other suburban districts,” McGlennon told the W&M News.
Although Republicans need to keep the majority in the House of Delegates, the state Senate races are getting much more attention from both sides of the aisle.
Youngkin has been campaigning alongside various GOP candidates, including Juan Pablo Segura, who is running in one of the most competitive Senate races against opponent Ms. Russet Perry. The contest is also one of the most funded, with both raising over $2 million.
District 31 is in Northern Virginia and includes parts of Loudoun County, which Youngkin carried by less than 1 point and Democrats won by nearly 6 points in 2022.
Perry, a former Central Intelligence Agency officer and prosecutor, has criticized Segura’s support for Youngkin’s 15-week abortion ban proposal, while 35-year-old entrepreneur Segura has slammed Perry for supporting groups that called to defund the police.
Different Priorities
According to their election websites, a top priority for Perry is a woman’s right to abortion, while Segura lists parental rights and school safety as a top priority.Democrats have been running ads claiming Republicans will ban all abortions if they win the Senate and keep the House, which the GOP responded to in an ad in which they try to set the record straight, that there is no ban, only a limit to abortion during the first trimester.
McGlennon said abortion is very important to suburban voters and the reason Youngkin ran out a counter ad to the Democrat’s abortion ban claim.
“Campaign ads reflect the idea that both parties see abortion as a powerful force driving the electorate,” McGlennon told the W&M News.
Nonetheless, Virginia Democrat Senator Mimi Locke told her followers Friday morning on “X” to vote because it’s a matter of “life and death”.
Parental rights and school safety are also a major concern to voters in District 31 since the Loudoun County 2021 sexual assault case involving two students and, more recently, drug overdoses in district schools.
Segura said while Senate Republicans tried to enact legislation to prevent overdoses by stopping Fentanyl dealers, Democrats blocked the measure.
“Republicans wanted stiffer penalties for fentanyl drug dealers. The radical leftist-controlled state senate struck that down again. They partnered with fentanyl drug dealers instead of families. That’s crazy,” Segura told Fox News during a Nov. 2 interview.
Loudoun County voter, Ms. Anne Miller told The Epoch Times one of the issues she is most concerned about this election cycle is parental rights and protecting students from having to share bathrooms with the opposite sex.
Abby Platt, another Loudoun voter, told The Epoch Times that she will be voting for Segura because he understands what matters to the local community.
Other Suburban Districts
Meanwhile, in a Richmond suburban, District 16, incumbent Republican Sen. Siobhan Dunnavant is trying to fend off attacks about her wanting to ban abortion by making it clear she, as an OB-GYN, does not want to make that decision for women.In the 24th District in southeast Virginia, including Williamsburg and Poquoson, incumbent Democratic Sen. Monty Mason is facing off against Republican Danny Diggs, a retired sheriff.
While Democrats, like Roem, are focused on abortion rights, providing more funding to public schools, and enacting stricter gun control, Republicans, including Woolf, are focused on improving the economy and adding funding to law enforcement agencies to better hold criminals accountable.
However, Woolf told The Epoch Times that in the few days heading into Nov. 7, he is focused on talking to as many people as he can.
“Our strategy is to talk to as many voters across the district as we possibly can between now and 7:00 p.m. on the 7th, we just want to make sure that people are informed,” said Woolf.
Crossing Party Lines
Woolf said voters have been telling him that public safety is of major concern to them.Ms. Shamim Sagar, a Manassas voter in Woolf’s district, told The Epoch Times that her main concern is the rising crime and believes Republicans can solve this problem so, for the first time will be voting Republican.
“I’m living in a peaceful area, it used to be very peaceful. Now we have to lock our car, lock our house other[wise] than something happened every day,” said Sagar.
In addition, another Manassas voter, Joe Para, told The Epoch Times that his main concern is the economy so he will vote for the candidate that will help bring down inflation and taxes, but his friends and family vote along party lines no matter the issue.
Mr. Nigel Chinemilly a Loudoun County voter told The Epoch Times that he is most concerned about the economy and his children’s future.
“Are we going be like Europe, where we’re paying 65% into taxes, not have been able to own a house, [and] not live the American dream like we were supposed to live,” said Chinemilly.
Meanwhile, a Fairfax County voter Ms. Camy Owens, told The Epoch Times, that she is voting early in the Virginia midterms to help ensure that school board members who support providing more money to public schools are elected. She said she is a devoted Democrat who is very concerned about who will win the 2024 elections.
However, Mr. Chinemilly had a different view and said people should look not at the party but at the solution the candidate is bringing forth, especially when it comes to which candidate supports parents, transparency from schools, and will keep children safe.
“When it comes to stuff like that, I think you should just leave party lines out of it,” said Chinemilly.
