What's at stake when Spanberger and Earle-Sears debate Thursday night
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Former Democratic Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger and Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears are set to debate on television Thursday in their first and likely only meeting of the Virginia gubernatorial race.
Spanberger — a Democrat critical of the Trump Administration and Republicans in Congress over Medicaid cuts and federal workforce layoffs — will be defending not just her policy ideas, but also her ticket, following the recent revelations of scandals involving Democratic attorney general nominee Jay Jones, according to longtime CBS6 political analyst Dr. Bob Holsworth.
Jones came under fire last week after it was revealed that in 2022 he once texted his former colleague in the General Assembly that in a hypothetical thought game, he would "put two bullets" in then-Speaker of the House of Delegates Todd Gilbert. President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Virginia Republicans have called for Jones to exit the race based on those comments. While condemning the comments, Virginia Democrats have not pushed the issue further.
Just days before the texts came to light, a reckless driving conviction, also from 2022, came to light. Jones pleaded guilty to driving 116 mph on Interstate 64 in New Kent County in January 2022. He was fined $1,500 and sentenced to 1,000 hours of community service. He served 500 of those hours at his own political action committee, Meet Our Moment.
“Abigail Spanberger, a week ago, had one purpose for tonight's debate, which was not to make a big mistake,” Holsworth said. “Now it's a different night. The biggest story coming out of [tomorrow] evening is going to be ‘what does Abigail Spanberger say about Jay Jones?’ Or you might say, ‘how far under the bus does she throw him?’”
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