RICHMOND, Va. β Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin said he was "incredibly concerned" about Virginia Attorney General-elect Jay Jones's ability to do the job based on the text messages that he sent.
Jones, a Democrat, was elected Tuesday as Virginia attorney general, riding a wave of voter dissatisfaction with the White House to overcome the revelation that in 2022 he sent widely condemned texts embracing violence against a fellow state lawmaker.
The former Virginia delegate defeated Republican incumbent Attorney General Jason Miyares weeks after it emerged that Jones had texted a fellow delegate suggesting the then-House speaker should get βtwo bullets to the head.β
Jones apologized for the private messages both in statements and at a debate in October.
"I have to say, I am incredibly concerned about the Attorney General-elect's ability to do the job based on the text that he sent," Gov. Youngkin said Wednesday morning while addressing Virginia's election results. "[The texts] were abhorrent, and I think that they once again reiterate that you can't come into this job if you are espousing death on a political enemy, the death of children and the death of law enforcement. And I believe, just as I've always believed, that that disqualifies him for the job."
Many Democratic leaders across Virginia condemned the text messages, but stopped short of calling for Jones to exit the race as early voting in Virginia had already started when the 2022 text messages were made public.
Youngkin does not believe the controversy of text messages will go away despite Jones's election victory.
Watch: Attorney-general elect Jay Jones victory speech
"The next administration is going to have to figure out how to deal with that, because they have law enforcement that they're going to need to make sure feel good about doing the job. They're going to have to make sure that parents with children feel safe. And that's going to be a challenge going forward," Youngkin said. "We live in a society today that I think has lost its way some, at least some folks have, on their willingness to almost accept violence and political violence as a solution."
Jones did not overtly address the text messages during his 5-minute victory speech Tuesday night but did thank supporters for sticking by him throughout the campaign and his family who helped pave his path.
"My ancestors were slaves. My grandfather was a civil rights pioneer who braved Jim Crow. My father, my mother, my uncles, my aunts endured segregation all so that I could stand here before you today. My father was one of the first to integrate classrooms in Norfolk, Virginia, even as the Attorney General of Virginia tried to shut those same schools down. I know that I walk in the footsteps of those generations before me who fought and bled to guarantee the freedoms that we have in this democracy right now, and I know that it's because of all of them and all of you tonight that I am honored and ready to be your next Attorney General of Virginia," Jones said. "Now you all know this was a hard-fought campaign, but at the end of the day, this election has never been about me or my opponent. It has always been about every single one of us and the future of Virginia."
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