If you had an English teacher like the one I did in high school, you might recall her saying, “Cakes are done, people are finished.” Does this apply to controversies, too?
The leadership in Virginia’s Republican Party is hoping that the recent controversy over its lieutenant governor nominee is done but that the party’s chances of winning the top three spots in Virginia government come November aren’t finished.
This past week, two Republican Party leaders had called for a special meeting of the state party’s governing body to address the controversy between the executive director of Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s “Spirit of Virginia” political action committee and the GOP’s presumptive nominee for lieutenant governor over pornographic images posted to a social media page that some people had alleged belonged to the nominee.
How did we get here? Just days after Fairfax County Supervisor Pat Herrity dropped out of the race for the Republican Party’s nominee for lieutenant governor—leaving former Gov. George Allen aide John Reid as the de facto nominee—a story appeared April 25 in the news outlet “The Richmonder” that a social media account under the name “JRdeux” was found on the site Tumblr and contained pornographic images. “JRdeux” is a screen name that Reid uses on other social media sites.
In the media frenzy that ensued, Reid, an openly gay man and popular talk radio host, immediately and vehemently denied these accusations but also reported that Youngkin had called him that morning on behalf of his political action committee to suggest that he step out of the race.
On Monday, Reid’s attorneys had filed a cease-and-desist order naming Matt Moran, the executive director of the “Spirit of Virginia” PAC, and citing “the false and defamatory statements he continues to disseminate.” Reid had accused Moran of being the one who told the media about the pictures in an attempt to force him out of the race.
Then, in the span of 12 hours between Thursday and Friday, Moran issued a sworn affidavit, stating that while Reid’s timeline of events was correct, Moran was simply communicating advice to Reid to step out of the race out of concern for the candidate. He said he was offering his advice based on his experience working with other politicians involved in scandals, real or not, like this one. A few hours later, Moran had stepped down from his position at the PAC.
Sixth Congressional District Republican Party Chairman John Massoud told The Daily Signal that he and 5th Congressional District Chairman Rick Buchanan had written a letter to state Sen. Mark Peake, chairman of the Republican Party of Virginia, calling for all the evidence to be presented to the Republican State Central Committee, the state party’s governing body. They were seeking evidence from both parties regarding the alleged pornographic images and allegations Reid made in a social media video post that he was told that “if he got out of the race,” the PAC could “make it go away.”
Thursday night, Peake told The Daily Signal that a meeting of the State Central Committee would not take place, saying that it’s “not our role. He [John Reid] is the nominated candidate,” and that “RPV supports all three of our statewide candidates” for governor, lieutenant governor, and attorney general.
So, at this point, the story seems to be done. But the worry is, are the GOP’s chances for a victory in November finished? Has the acrimony left many voters with a sour taste in their mouths, either because they believe the story of the pornographic images or the story of the allegations that the executive director of the governor’s PAC had tried to force a candidate out of the race?
Polls show the top-of-the-ticket race between current Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears and former Democrat U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger is closer than past gubernatorial races at this point in recent history. That may be due to the Washington, D.C., media (which also covers neighboring Virginia) not being able to take anyone off the coverage of the Trump administration and its breakneck pace.
In March, a Cygnal Group poll reported that Spanberger was leading by only six points, which is not a substantial margin when one considers that Virginia’s governor’s races often favor the party out of power in Washington. An aggregate of polls shows that 21% of voters are undecided about who they want for governor. Large crowds at rallies featuring Reid seem to indicate that Virginians might rally around an embattled candidate.
It’s important to note that in 1976, pundits said that Republican voters would never vote for a candidate who had been divorced. Four years later, they elected Ronald Reagan president. Pundits in 2024 also were sure that voters would never vote for someone that had been convicted of a crime. The November elections proved they were wrong yet again.
