Since October arrived on the calendar, the election has been rocked with several surprises.
The Republican candidate for lieutenant governor is facing allegations of Nazi fetishism.
And the Democrat running for attorney general faced questions about a reckless driving conviction. That is, until another October surprise hit.
Text messages sent from Democratic candidate for attorney general Jay Jones to Republican Delegate Carrie Coyner back in the summer of 2022 are now at the center of election 2025. In the text messages, Jones talks about shooting former House Speaker Todd Gilbert.
While numerous politicians on both sides of the aisle have condemned Jones’ words, at least one Democrat has gone even further. Risë Hayes is the Democratic candidate running against incumbent Republican Delegate Wendell Walker in Lynchburg. She says she regrets her vote and will no longer appear with Jones at fundraisers.
"He should have never run and never done a primary against Shannon Taylor. I did vote for him versus Shannon Taylor," Hayes admitted. "And if I had known those messages even existed, I would have voted for Shannon Taylor instead. It is disheartening to see that the attorney general position for the Democratic side that we have to choose from is Jay Jones instead of Taylor."
Jones defended himself to Tyler Englander of WRIC-TV Friday night.
"The bottom line is that the language is unacceptable," Jones said. "And again, I deeply, deeply, deeply wish that it hadn't happened. I have spent the entire day really regretting all of it. I certainly wish that it hadn't happened. And I'm sick to my stomach when I read those words. Certainly, they are objectionable. They are abhorrent. They have no place in Virginia, and no place in this country's discourse."
Usually, the focus is at the top of the ticket, but now Virginia politics is squarely focused on the race for attorney general. The candidates are scheduled to debate next week in Richmond.
This report, provided by Virginia Public Radio, was made possible with support from the Virginia Education Association.
