See below for some video and a few highlights from the DLCC’s virtual press conference, which ended a few minutes ago, “on its
Virginia strategy,” featuring DLCC Spotlight candidates Del. Nadarius Clark and Lindsey Dougherty, plus Democratic nominee for Lieutenant Governor Senator Ghazala Hashmi.
DLCC President Heather Williams:
- “The Virginia House was won, a Democratic majority was won by a margin of 975 votes. In November of 2024, Senator Tim Kaine won 62 districts in the state and Vice President Harris won 59. That tells us that there’s opportunity for growth and that we must absolutely work towards expanding the map while ensuring that we are returning all of our incumbents um back into their legislative offices.”
- “We are going to get such a good pulse on how Americans are experiencing this Republican leadership and how they are going to hold them accountable as we move through the summer and then into the fall election. So, I think the thing to note about that that’s really important, and as we think about it is, we want to look to protect and expand this Democratic majority to ensure that we have a Democratic lieutenant governor so that we go into power in Virginia ready to fight. But also Virginia is such an important moment when thinking about what comes next in the midterms and how people feel about Democrats’ ability to win, how they feel about our messaging, and our proof points, that we can win elections, that we can connect with voters around the things that they care most about – affordability, cost of living, good-quality communities, good health care, good education – and that we’ve got a message that is compelling. And I think the Speaker says it best when he says Virginia can send a love letter to everyone else as we head into the midterms. And that is a really important moment. So, you know, I think that’s that’s alongside…the firewall that our Democrats in the states are providing everywhere. So, Virginia is this first moment of this election cycle to really prove that we are in it and that we can show voters the path forward.”
- Lindsey Dougherty: “What I’m hearing and what I’m seeing across my district and across the Commonwealth is that my neighbors are also losing their jobs and losing their ability to provide for their families. And when you couple that, you know, with just overall unemployment claims going up, prices
going up with no end in sight, quite honestly to this manufactured chaos that’s happening from our president, we need a delegate that will be a very strong brick in this firewall that need to protect uh our families across the Commonwealth.” - Nadarius Clark: “We know we have an uphill battle as we try to mitigate some of the the blows that’s happening. I’m proud that Speaker Don Scott has started the special select committee for the federal workforce and veterans, to address what’s happening in real time. And I know they already been hard at work. But I’m proud to also run alongside our statewide Democratic ticket that’s willing to stand up and
fight for our working families. So our next lieutenant governor, Senator Ghazala Hashmi, I know she will fight to improve our lives every day. She has been a partner in the General Assembly and a tireless advocate for working families since she’s been elected in the state senate.” - Ghazala Hashmi: “My opponent, John Reid, actually supports Trump’s federal job cuts, which have had disproportionate and devastating impacts on Virginia’s economy and on our working families. John Reid, we know, he has already publicly declared this, would also break any ties to ban abortion and break ties to slash funding for our public schools. In Virginia, we can’t risk the possibility of electing John Reid. We must maintain and grow our Democratic legislative majorities, and we need new statewide leadership that’s going to move us forward, that’s going to protect our families, and that’s going to chart an important course and response to the chaos that we see in Washington in these next four years. And that’s why I’m running for Lieutenant Governor.”
- Sen. Ghazala Hashmi: “What I’ve been seeing on the ground here in Virginia, I think voters are keenly aware of what has been happening [in Washington, DC] and what’s been proposed in the in the budget bill. We’ve seen in the leadup to the passage of the bill strenuous efforts to hold our Republican congressional elected officials responsible. And yet they’ve refused to hold town halls; our Virginia [Republican] congressmen have refused to step up and respond to constituents. And as a result we’ve seen massive rallies all throughout Virginia demanding accountability, demanding that we have protections in place for our veteran communities and that we have a meaningful response to the federal job cuts that we are seeing. And so voters are quite aware. They are responding and they’re ready to take action. And the first step in action that we are going to see in Virginia is the November elections.”
- Sen. Ghazala Hashmi: “We’re seeing such a economic impact because of the loss of federal jobs. But in addition to that, I think one of the key metrics is also the loss of skills and talents – you know, the federal workforce is among our very best in the entire country, these are individuals who have devoted their life to public service, many have spent 20 30 40 years serving our country. Many of them are veterans. And as these cuts are impacting Virginia all across the Commonwealth, we are going to see a loss of talent and skills and expertise as individuals relocate to find other opportunities. And that’s going to continue to be devastating for Virginia. That’s not something we can rebuild easily within a year or two. But let’s also keep in mind, you know, CNBC identifies its metrics on some key factors, and one of them is education. And Virginia continues to rank first in education as an important part of the ranking that it has achieved in past years as the number one place for business. Sadly, however, what we’re seeing under the Trump administration and with the rubber stamp and the green light of Governor Glenn Youngkin is that the attacks on our education system are going forth unchecked. You know, just a couple of weeks ago, we saw the attack on our flagship institute, the University of Virginia, and the Trump administration’s deliberate efforts to oust our president from that university. And just this morning also, DOJ has announced it’s scrutinizing George Mason and the leadership of George Mason University. These are deliberate undermining of our institutions of higher education. These are the bedrocks of building our strong workforce, of attracting businesses, corporations to come to Virginia, because they know that Virginia produces talent, top-notch talent. And if our governor is not going to stand up to the wholesale attack on our education system that we’re seeing from the Trump administration, it will take quite some time for Virginia to regain its footing and to be a top state for business as it has been for so many years.”
- Ghazala Hashmi: “I am delighted that we are in a position to make history in Virginia this year. As the Democratic nominee for Lieutenant Governor, I’m the first AAPI – not just South Asian but AAPI candidate – to be the nominee for a statewide office. And I think my role is twofold. is to highlight the ways in which our AAPI and other minority communities continue to grow in Virginia and the kind of ways in which our AAPI communities are having an impact on Virginia electoral politics. This is significant because as our communities have been expanding, the AAPI communities in particular have brought such a a wealth of talent and professional services throughout Virginia. We see communities that are leading as entrepreneurs and small business owners, impacts in education and medicine and the role that AAPI communities are now playing in state-level politics is also significant. So we have the opportunity to make history as South Asians here in Virginia. And I’m certainly looking forward to continuing to be a representative voice for many, many diverse communities.”
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