Newt Gingrich Commentary: Youngkin vs. McAuliffe and Their Two Opposing Strategies

Terry McAuliffe and Glenn Youngkin

Virginia was supposed to be a solid blue state. Joe Biden carried it by 10 points. Since 2013, Democrats have won 13 straight statewide elections. Terry McAuliffe is a former governor who started this race with a massive name recognition advantage and presumably a substantial advantage in knowledge about state government.

Yet, today the race is too close to call. If McAuliffe does win, he will barely squeak through in a state the Democrat should be carrying handily.

And, of course, there is a distinctly real possibility (I would say a probability) that Glenn Youngkin will become the next governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia.

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Cook Political Report: Virginia Gubernatorial Race Is a Toss Up

Glenn Youngkin and Terry McAuliffe

Glenn Youngkin’s tightrope walk between suburban moderates and hard-right Republicans seems to be paying off — on Friday the Cook Political Report (CPR) announced a rating shift in the gubernatorial contest from Lean Democratic to Toss Up. That matches with polling from a variety of sources that show an increasingly close race.

“We can no longer say this is a contest where the Democrat has the advantage. While many of the fundamentals favor [Terry] McAuliffe — and we expect he still has a slight edge — it’s Youngkin who seems to have the enthusiasm on his side,” CPR reported.

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Youngkin Rails Against Northam/McAuliffe Mask Mandates at Southwest Virginia Rally

Claytor Lake, Virginia- Republican nominee for Governor of Virginia Glenn Youngkin railed against the McAuliffe-Northam mask mandates at a rally in Pulaski County on Saturday. Youngkin sat down with The Virginia Star after his rally to discuss school mask mandates.

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President Biden Schedules Early Campaign Stop for Former Governor McAuliffe

McAuliffe & Biden

Former Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe has announced that the 46th President will take a hop across the Potomac this upcoming Friday. According to an event page released by Governor McAuliffe’s campaign, President Joe Biden will be coming to Arlington, Virginia on Friday, July 23rd to campaign for Governor McAuliffe. The former Governor is locked in a tight race between himself and former Carlyle Group Executive CEO and the Republican nominee for Governor, Glenn Youngkin.

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Youngkin, Miyares, Sears Stop in Chester for Take Back Virginia Rally

CHESTER, Virginia – The GOP candidates for governor, attorney general, and lieutenant governor stopped in Chester on Saturday afternoon for a rally with about 350 attendees. In 90-degree heat Glenn Youngkin, Delegate Jason Miyares (R-Virginia Beach), and Winsome Sears spoke, mentioning Juneteenth, opposed Critical Race Theory in schools, and called for tough-on-crime policies.

“Virginians for the last eight years have been crushed. And I’ll say right here, right now, eight is enough,” Youngkin said.

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Gubernatorial Candidate Terry McAuliffe Makes Transition from Primary to General Election

With three weeks to go before the Democratic Party primary on June 8th, former Virginia Governor and Clinton confidante Terry McAuliffe transitioned his campaign to the general election with a series of social media posts attacking Republican gubernatorial nominee, Glenn Youngkin.

On the heels of the Youngkin announcement, McAuilffe blasted his Republican opponent by tweeting, “Let me introduce you to Glenn Youngkin: Glenn’s a Ted Cruz and Corey Stewart-endorsed, self-funding, Big Lie believing Trump loyalist who’ll stop at nothing to advance the GOP’s extreme agenda.

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Virginia Democratic Gubernatorial Candidates Face off in Debate

Four of the five Democratic candidates for Governor discussed legal reform, racial justice, environmental justice, and good government in a debate hosted by The Virginia People’s Debates. Delegate Lee Carter (D-Manassas), Jennifer Carrol Foy, Senator Jennifer McClellan (D-Richmond), and Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax participated; front-runner Terry McAuliffe was absent.

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Senator Amanda Chase Still Dominates Virginia Gubernatorial Conversation as Other Candidates Announce New Policy Plans, Make Campaign Stops

More gubernatorial polls this week show most voters are undecided, allowing contest leaders to continue to claim front-runner status while allowing everybody else to claim theoretical wins. But there’s more gubernatorial news than that — this week’s campaign news features new policy announcements, major endorsements, messaging controversy, and a late-night television mention.

First, the poll: 49 percent of Democratic voters and 55 percent of Republican voters are undecided, according to a Christoper Newport University/Wason Center Poll. Former Governor Terry McAuliffe leads Democrats with 26 percent, while Senator Amanda Chase leads Republicans with 17 percent.

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Virginia Delegate Jones Files Bill to Automatically Reinstate Felon Voting Rights

Attorney General candidate Delegate Jay Jones (D-Norfolk) has pre-filed a bill that would automatically reinstate felons’ voting rights after completion of their sentence. Governor Ralph Northam is also pushing for passage of the bill, HJ546.

“If you break the law in Virginia, you’ll be punished. But right now, part of the punishment follows you for the rest of your life—even after you’ve paid your debt to society. ” Northam said in his State of The Commonwealth address. “You lose your civil rights—like the right to vote—and you don’t get them back unless the governor acts to give them back.

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Follow The Money: Who Is Investing in the Richmond Mayor’s Race?

Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney has passed the $916,255 he raised in 2016 campaign, hitting $1.07 million in 2020 by raising $302,294 in the first three weeks of October, according to data from The Virginia Public Access Project (VPAP). Alexsis Rodgers has now raised $415,760 in total, despite beginning her race in June. Kim Gray has raised $391,502.

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Portsmouth NAACP Tries Again to File Charges Against Council Members Moody, Psimas

The Portsmouth Magistrate has again rebuffed Portsmouth NAACP leaders in attempts to file charges against Portsmouth council members Bill Moody and Elizabeth Psimas. NAACP branch President James Boyd and Vice President Louie Gibbs went to the magistrate on Friday to present emails that they said showed Moody and Psimas committing a misdemeanor violation of the city charter.

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After Five More Charged in Connection with June 10 Protests, Leading Virginia Democrats Appear at Rally Supporting Senator Lucas

Senator Louise Lucas (D-Portsmouth) appeared alongside former Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe (D), Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax, and U.S. Congressman Bobby Scott (D-Newport News) at a rally of over 100 people outside a Portsmouth church on Tuesday, according to reporting by The Associated Press. The rally came after police charged five more people in relation to a June 10 protest.

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Amid a Crowded Field, Democrat Terry McAuliffe Moves to Run for Governor Again in 2021

Former Governor Terry McAuliffe filed paperwork to run for governor in 2021, joining field of four other Democrats and another four Republicans who have filed or declared serious interest in running in the 2021 primary.

Strategist and Democratic political pundit Ben Tribbett told The Virginia Star that filing to run is not the same as an official declaration as Virginia does not allow exploratory committees.

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Commentary: Democrats Don’t Fear Brett Kavanaugh – They Fear the Constitution

Bernie Sanders

by David Harsanyi   Sure, some of the anger aimed at President Donald Trump’s nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court is partisan bluster meant to placate the activist base. Still, most Democrats were going to get hysterical about any pick, because any conservative pick was going to take…

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