Republicans in the Virginia House of Delegates reportedly sought to strip the leadership position of Speaker Todd Gilbert (R-Shenandowoah) on Sunday for his failure to caution Governor Glenn Youngkin (R) against fiercely campaigning on abortion, and for demanding Virginia legislators appear at political events they reportedly said were part of a last minute presidential bid for the governor.
At least three Republican delegates anonymously told The Washington Post they planned to punish Gilbert, who was described as a “key ally” of Youngkin in 2022, for pushing legislators to comply with Youngkin’s demands “to appear at Youngkin-led rallies and other events,” which the legislators told the Post “were primarily meant to promote his last-minute bid for president.”
The Republicans are also reportedly upset Gilbert (pictured above) did not push back against Youngkin and the Spirit of Virginia political action committee over their decision to make a limit on abortions to 15-weeks a central part of Republican messaging with a $1.4 million advertising campaign, which was launched by Spirit of Virginia in the final weeks of the election.
“We literally ran on one of the third rails of politics,” one of the delegates reportedly told the Post, which reported the legislator urged Youngkin and his allies, “this is the year to run on inflation, grocery bills, gas bills, fuel costs, freakin’ child care,” and the lack of answers on those topics left voters frustrated with the abortion debate.
The Republicans reportedly made their effort to oust Gilbert from leadership during a closed door meeting on Sunday. Gilbert is expected to return to his position as Minority Leader of the House of Delegates, which he held prior to his party’s electoral victories of 2021. He became Speaker after the 2021 elections, which saw Republicans secure a majority in the House and Youngkin rise to the governorship.
A 2022 report revealed that Gilbert and Youngkin “confer on an almost daily basis,” and said Gilbert’s leadership of the Republicans’ slim majority in the House was “the clearest conveyance” of Youngkin’s agenda during his first year in office.
The Republican delegates are not alone in blaming Youngkin. John Fredericks, the radio, TV host, and publisher of The Virginia Star, said Youngkin “did a great job raising money and running around in his red vest” but Virginia Republicans “had no coherent message.”
However, some have defended Youngkin’s performance. Republican Delegate John McGuire called the governor “a heck of a leader, a heck of a quarterback,” and said Youngkin “put his heart and soul into this race.”
Youngkin advisor Dave Rexrode also defended Republicans’ performance in Virginia, despite the party losing control of the House and Democrats retaining control of the Senate.
“Despite difficult odds from the outset,” wrote Rexrode in a lengthy post on social media, “Governor Youngkin’s PAC contributed to these races in an unprecedented way, providing a roadmap for Republican success even in competitive or difficult environments.”
– – –
Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Georgia Star News, The Virginia Star, and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Del. Todd Gilbert” by Delagate Todd Gilbert.
