Our Take on Virginia’s Election
Proud, frustrated, and determined.
These were the thoughts I had this morning following last night’s “off-off-year” General Assembly elections, in which, for the first time in two decades, pro-abortion Democrats seized control of both the House of Delegates (55-45) and the Senate (21-19).
PROUD: Over the past several months, I’ve watched thousands of pro-life and pro-family volunteers working hard to champion those values for yesterday’s election. Going all the way back to May, The Family Foundation Action team has poured countless hours into educating, motivating, and mobilizing our base to vote through the 2018-2019 Report Card and 2019 Regional and Individual Voter Guides. We also worked side-by-side with an amazing coalition of around 20 pro-family organizations to influence key House and Senate districts.
To everyone who volunteered, who poured their time and resources into this effort, and who literally went the extra mile to knock on doors to reach their community, I could not be more proud. The Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:58: “Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” You all did an amazing job, and your work was certainly not in vain. Yesterday saw record-breaking turnout numbers because of what you did.
FRUSTRATED: What happened last night was not for a lack of effort or missed opportunities. As the dust settles, it appears to be largely due to several unfortunate factors outside of our control.
This year, out-of-state political groups and Hollywood dumped over $9 million dollars into Democratic campaigns all around the state, a 600% increase from just two years ago. Compare that with the reported $1.5 million from outside groups that were donated to Republican campaigns, only a 48% increase. That’s a significant amount more that was used to run TV and social media ads, create campaign literature, and pay people to knock doors and make phone calls. Having to contend with those kind of numbers makes it nearly impossible to be competitive in those races, let alone take back lost territory.
Yesterday’s election was largely a repeat of 2017 for the House of Delegates in terms of the historic turnouts on both sides, as well as the outcomes of most of the races. But this time, instead of the rabid Anti-Trump backlash of 2017, the massive influx of outside money seems to account for the high Democratic turnout in the districts Democrats picked up that year. As for the Republican House seats that flipped last night, it’s significant that 4 of the 6 were districts in which a federal court recently imposed new district lines that turned them from red-leaning to blue-leaning districts. (HD 76, 83, 91, and 94) (Did I mention that those lines were drawn by one political science professor from California?) No doubt the Democrats’ gains in the House can significantly be attributed to the redrawing of 11 House seats by a federal district court judge, which the U.S. Supreme Court later failed to correct. Another seat was Del. Tim Hugo’s, who was the last remaining Republican in an otherwise solid-blue Fairfax, and his was always going to be the toughest to defend. Lastly, District 28 was a competitive race in Stafford (close to NOVA) with no incumbent running. The Democrat won that with just 51% of the vote.
Finally, there is also something to be said about the fact that most of the Republican incumbents who lost re-election were the ones who had run away from pro-life, pro-family, and limited government principles that define conservatism. Some of them, like Sen. Glen Sturtevant and Del. David Yancey, embraced the so-called Equal Rights Amendment, which would enshrine abortion into the U.S. Constitution, evidently believing they could pull away enough “swing voters” to help them stay in office. Others, including Delegates Chris Jones and Chris Stolle, were among the handful of Republicans who voted for the massive Obamacare Medicaid expansion, likely turning off voters who believe in limited government. Meanwhile, bold conservatives running in races that were expected to be extremely close, like Sen. Amanda Chase (R-11, Chesterfield), won with solid margins. Elections like this year’s present a valuable opportunity for learning and reflection, but unfortunately the lessons learned in this case will have severe consequences for many years to come.
DETERMINED: At The Family Foundation, we’ve been preparing for the upcoming General Assembly session and the political climate regardless of Tuesday’s election outcome. We remain committed to advancing the principles and the values we share, even as we understand that this new political environment will make it more difficult. No doubt, the abortion industry and LGBTQ groups that spent millions in this year’s elections expect a return on their investment. So, we fully expect the Left to pursue a robust legislative agenda that will include passing the “ERA”, elevating “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” to a specially protected class in every part of society, rolling back informed consent and safety standards for abortion clinics, and even doctor-assisted suicide (among many other things).
It can be tempting to walk away from the battle after suffering a defeat, but now more than ever we need you to stand with us against the darkness that is about to descend over our Commonwealth. I urge you to remain committed to the work of bringing Godly, founding principles to our culture, and to help us do everything we can to reignite a movement of teaching these principles to the next generation who will soon inherit the fallout of these destructive policies.
And while it may sound crazy, I remain hopeful after last night’s election outcomes because of promises like this one in Isaiah 55:11: “so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.” All the work we put into defending family values and the sanctity of life during this election will not return void. I believe that wholeheartedly!
Let’s continue to pray for our Commonwealth and all of our newly elected government leaders, that they will carry out their duties in accordance with the Constitution, but most importantly underneath the divine authority of God, to whom they are always and ultimately accountable.
