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Virginia Democratic gubernatorial candidate Abigail Spanberger downplayed a fellow Democrat’s text-message scandal, calling it a “poor choice” in a new interview.
In 2022, Virginia attorney general candidate Jay Jones texted a colleague that he wished violence against former Republican House Speaker Todd Gilbert and his children. The private messages sparked outrage from Republicans and unease among Democrats, forcing Spanberger to navigate one of the most volatile moments of her campaign.
While some Democrats have called on Jones to drop out of the race, others — including Spanberger — appear to be standing by him. As of last week, Spanberger’s campaign website still featured merchandise endorsing Jones’ candidacy.
Spanberger was still selling merchandise in her campaign store endorsing Jones’ bid for office last week.
Spanberger was interviewed on Monday by WTVR CBS 6 host Bill Fitzgerald, who asked her directly about the controversy and its aftermath.
“So there’s been a bit of a distraction, as you’re well aware,” Fitzgerald said. “Last week there was a debate among the attorney general candidates. Were you satisfied with the Democratic candidate, Jay Jones’ apology for the texts that he had sent that were seemingly threatening the life of then-House Speaker [Gilbert]?”
“Well, I want to begin by, first, you know, condemning clearly the texts that he sent to a colleague. And I condemned them as soon as I learned of them and, you know, called on Jay Jones to publicly explain himself,” Spanberger replied. “And I think that he’s been quite clear in his apologies and in his taking ownership of that poor choice.”
She then pivoted to highlight the recent Virginia attorney general debate, praising its importance for voters.
“You know, importantly, at this point, we’ve got hundreds of thousands of Virginians who have voted. Certainly, I think that debate was an important one for being able to show the contrast in the difference between two different approaches for voters, [to] make a clear decision as they vote early or on Election Day for who will best defend them or work for them as attorney general.”
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