DNC ad emphasizes free speech, critiques Trump, targets Virginia’s 1st, 2nd Congressional Districts

The Democratic National Committee launched a five-figure digital ad campaign Wednesday focused on the First Amendment’s protection of freedom of speech, in a campaign targeting Virginia’s 1st and 2nd Congressional districts where incumbents Rob Wittman, R-Westmoreland, and Jen Kiggans, R-Virginia Beach, have been perceived as vulnerable by Democrats.  

The ad begins by reminding voters President Donald Trump signed an executive order when elected to his second term to “stop all government censorship.” It then references how Trump’s administration has pressured media companies to crack down on broadcasters critical of the administration. 

The ads follow the fatal shooting of conservative influencer Charlie Kirk, which spurred weeks of heated debate in the commonwealth and across the country about what is and is not considered acceptable free speech. Virginia’s top schools superintendent said educators who think Kirk’s killing was acceptable should be investigated and “disqualified from teaching or working with children again.”

Chesterfield County school board member Dorothy Heffron announced her plan to resign over her inflammatory comments following Kirk’s shooting, which she has since deleted. 

Nationally, talk show host Jimmy Kimmel was briefly suspended for a joke he’d made alluding to Trump’s flippant attitude in a press event following Kirk’s death.  

The new ads are geared towards voters in the 1st and 2nd Congressional Districts who may be ready for a change in representation, organizers said, and tie incumbents Wittman and Kiggans to Trump amid the free speech debacle. Last year, Kiggans campaigned with Trump in Chesapeake while Wittman campaigned with then-Republican National Committee co-chair Lara Trump in Chesterfield. 

Kiggans’ district has long-oscillated between partisan control while Wittman’s reliably red district has seen shades of blue in recent years. While the DNC ad is focused on areas that could be critical in next year’s congressional midterm elections, the matter of free speech is timely, party officials said.

“Donald Trump’s administration has amassed a chilling record of restricting speech, extorting private companies, and dropping the full weight of the government censorship hammer on Americans simply exercising their First Amendment rights,” DNC chair Ken Martin said in a statement. “This is no exaggeration, and it’s splintering the coalition that got Trump elected. That’s why today, the DNC announced a new digital ad campaign in VA-01 and VA-02 targeting conservative and independent voters.” 

A series of Democratic candidates have already lined up to challenge both candidates next year after a Democratic primary. Wittman’s challengers include former Richmond Times-Dispatch meteorologist Sean Sublette and current Henrico Commonwealths’ Attorney Shannon Taylor.

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