Virginia’s top Democrats rally behind Biden despite national post-debate skepticism
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Photo illustration: Lindsey Bailey/Axios. Photos: Virginian-Pilot, Anna Moneymaker, Andrew Harnik, The Washington Post via Getty Images.
Some of Virginia's most influential Democrats publicly announced their support for President Biden this week.
Why it matters: It bucks the dominating post-debate headlines of Democrats either staying silent about where they stand or questioning Biden's fitness for office and whether he can win against former President Trump.
Driving the news: The wave of solidarity largely began Monday with the 32-person Virginia Legislative Black Caucus, which includes House Speaker Don Scott and Sen. Louise Lucas, one of the most senior legislators in the General Assembly.
- In a letter from caucus chair Sen. Lamont Bagby, who represents Richmond, Bagby wrote, "The only candidate I trust with this responsibility is Joe Biden. … We have full faith that a second Biden presidency would keep us moving forward."
- Shortly after, Virginia Rep. Jennifer McClellan — the first Black woman to represent Virginia and the Richmond area in Congress — posted a statement on X that she's "#RidingWithBiden."
- The backing from Virginia's Black Democrats also aligned with Biden's first sustained show of support in Congress Monday, which included the Congressional Black Caucus — Biden's strongest base on Capitol Hill.
Yes, but: Virginia's legislative Black caucus represents about 44% of the GA's 72 Democrats, so not yet the majority of Virginia Dems.
- It's also a more complicated story with Virginia's eight Democratic representatives in Congress.
- Half — Sen. Tim Kaine, Sen. McClellan, Rep. Don Beyer and Rep. Bobby Scott — have expressed support either privately or publicly, though Punchbowl News reported Beyer sharing doubts in a private call.
- Beyer's team has denied the story. Rep. Jennifer Wexton hasn't made public comments.
Zoom in: Rep. Abigail Spanberger, who's running for Virginia governor, told the Times-Dispatch on Tuesday that she supports Biden but wants "to see more evidence" that he's capable of beating Trump.
- Sen. Mark Warner had reportedly planned to organize a Monday meeting with Democratic senators about whether Biden should remain in the race before calling it off.
- And Rep. Gerry Connolly has stopped short of saying Biden should drop out but told CNN he's unsure that Biden is the Democratic party's best shot to win in November.
What's next: Eyes are on Biden at the NATO summit in D.C. this week to see if he can prove skeptics wrong.
- "If he can't do that, then I think we are looking at some very hard judgments and hard choices we're going to have to face as a party," Connolly told CNN.
Go deeper: Trump thinks he can win Virginia.