(Scypre.com) – Democrats are poised to maintain control of the Virginia state Senate and have successfully flipped the state House of Delegates from Republicans, as per projections by the Associated Press. Despite Governor Glenn Youngkin’s efforts to secure total GOP control of the state legislature, the AP projects that at least 21 Democrats have secured seats in the state Senate, and 51 Democrats have been elected to the state House of Delegates. The extent of the Democratic majority in each chamber remains uncertain.
The Virginia legislative elections garnered substantial national attention, with both Democrats and Republicans investing millions in these races. These elections were perceived in political circles as a crucial gauge for the 2024 presidential elections and the battle for control of Congress. Notably, Virginia’s previous Republican victories in the gubernatorial, lieutenant governor, and attorney general elections two years ago marked a significant shift, energizing Republicans nationally.
Observers from both parties closely scrutinized results in Virginia’s northern suburbs of Washington, D.C., and around Richmond to assess whether Republicans made any inroads with suburban voters, particularly women, who had distanced themselves from the GOP in recent elections. However, there is limited evidence to suggest such inroads.
Virginia’s elections also served as a significant testing ground for Republicans on the contentious issue of abortion. The Supreme Court’s conservative majority overturning the nearly half-century-old Roe v. Wade ruling last year shifted the debate back to the states, placing Republicans on the defensive in elections nationwide. Democrats made abortion a focal point in their campaign to mobilize voters in Virginia.
Governor Youngkin, despite not being on the ballot, emphasized the issue by proposing a 15-week abortion ban with exceptions for rape, incest, and the life of the mother. Democrats successfully campaigned to maintain the state’s existing restrictions, allowing abortions through the second trimester, and highlighted Virginia as the only southern state without a ban on abortion.
The election results signify a setback for Governor Youngkin, who invested considerable political capital in supporting Republican legislative candidates. These results curtail Youngkin’s ability to push through a conservative agenda in his final two years in office and are seen as a setback for a governor considered a rising star in the GOP.
Abhi Rahman, the national communications director for the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, declared that they, along with their allies, had “stopped Glenn Youngkin, protected fundamental freedoms in Virginia, and ensured that Youngkin will never be President.” According to Rahman, Virginians demonstrated that the Republican message to voters is not resonating.
Beyond Virginia, abortion featured prominently in other states, including Ohio, where voters approved a ballot measure to protect abortion rights in the state constitution. In Kentucky, Democratic Governor Andy Beshear won re-election by criticizing his Republican challenger’s opposition to abortion. A closely watched state Supreme Court race in Pennsylvania saw a Democrat winning by campaigning on a pledge to uphold abortion rights.
Notably, longtime GOP strategist David Kochel acknowledged that abortion remains a challenging issue for Republicans and urged the party to focus on areas where they can win, such as the economy, foreign policy, and competence.
Democratic National Committee member Maria Cardona, reflecting on the 2023 results, likened them to the Democrats’ overperformance in the 2022 midterms and predicted that abortion would continue to be a mobilizing issue in upcoming contests.