The Republican State Leadership Committee (RSLC) unveiled a six-figure ad buy on Monday to warn voters of awarding unified control of Virginia to Democrats ahead of the commonwealth’s Nov. 4 general election.
The 30-second spot, running as early voting is underway, urges viewers to reject Democratic candidates who would decide the commonwealth’s immigration enforcement, energy and schools’ bathroom and locker room policies if elected in November. The ad campaign comes as Republicans are looking to defy a trend in Virginia’s off-year elections, which tends to benefit the party who does not control the White House.
Republicans are hoping to maintain GOP holds in open races for governor and lieutenant governor while flipping control of the House of Delegates. Voters will also choose whether to grant Republican Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares a second term in November.
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“If Democrats gain full control of Virginia, they will rush to implement policies that mirror California’s — with higher taxes, lenient approaches to crime, and radical mandates that undermine the authority of parents and local communities,” RSLC President Edith Jorge-Tuñón told the DCNF. “This ad serves as a crucial warning: one-party Democrat leadership in Richmond would impose a far-left agenda with no checks or balances, silencing the voices of everyday Virginians.”
“We are determined to fight back and ensure that common-sense leadership thrives in our Commonwealth,” Jorge-Tuñón added.
The ad campaign is running in Democratic-leaning Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William counties, which partly comprise the northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C. and swung toward President Donald Trump in his 2024 election win.
The three counties have largely doubled down after the Trump administration accused their policies of violating civil rights law by allowing biological males to access girls’ spaces and athletic programs. The Department of Education announced on Thursday that it would withhold nearly $3.5 million in grant money for magnet schools in Fairfax County over its bathroom and locker room policies.
Former Democratic Virginia Rep. Abigail Spanberger, the Democratic nominee for governor, has repeatedly declined to express where she stands on transgender issues in schools.
The RSLC video also warns that Democrats will turn Virginia into a sanctuary state if elected in November. Spanberger has committed to ending the commonwealth’s cooperation with federal immigration authorities, such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The RSLC PAC, Republican Attorneys General Association (RAGA) Action Fund and Republican Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin’s Spirit of Virginia PAC announced a joint seven-figure investment in a get-out-the-vote effort in August.
Republicans appear to hold an edge in early voting, which began on Sept. 19 and will continue through Nov. 1. Of the 20 House of Delegates districts with the most ballots cast thus far, 13 are considered strongly Republican or leans Republican, according to the nonpartisan Virginia Public Access Project.
The GOTV campaign is focused on helping Miyares stave off a Democratic challenger and assisting GOP candidates running in critical House of Delegates races.
Miyares and former Virginia House of Delegates member Jay Jones, the Democratic Attorney General nominee, are neck-and-neck in polling with both candidates capturing 46% of the vote, according to a September survey conducted by the GOP firm OnMessage Inc.
All 100 seats of Virginia’s Democratic-controlled House of Delegates are up for grabs in November. Democrats hold a narrow 51-49 majority in the chamber.
The RSLC is also working to defeat three Democratic Pennsylvania state Supreme Court justices seeking reelection and assist down-ballot GOP candidates in New Jersey’s off-year elections in November.
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