A former member of ex-Gov. Terry McAuliffe’s administration and a two-term mayor of the capital city, Stoney said he had wrestled with the decision since he and his wife welcomed their first child in March. While his campaign had sought to make the case in a memo just weeks ago that a Stoney-Spanberger primary would be competitive, he said Tuesday that “while there was a path to victory it was a narrow path.”
Spanberger, a former CIA officer who launched her campaign in November, was first elected to Congress in 2018 as part of a wave of female candidates who helped Democrats retake the U.S. House that year.
All three of Virginia’s statewide state government offices — governor, lieutenant governor and attorney general — are currently held by Republicans and will be on the ballot next year. Gov. Glenn Youngkin, like all Virginia governors, is prohibited from seeking a second consecutive term.
While no Republicans have formally announced statewide campaigns yet, Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares and Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears are seen as likely contenders in the gubernatorial race.
Rich Anderson, chairman of the Republican Party of Virginia, suggested Democrats were “prematurely” jumping into the 2025 races amid the current federal election cycle due to concerns about what he said would eventually be a strong GOP ticket.
Virginia Republicans ”look forward to building on our groundbreaking wins of 2021.
