With Three Weeks To Go, The Knives Are Out For Cao’s “No Show Campaign” 

From the Democratic Party of Virginia:

With Three Weeks To Go, The Knives Are Out For Cao’s “No Show Campaign”

Richmond, VA – Election Day is less than three weeks away and Republicans have the knives out for Hung Cao’s “lazy,” “horrible,” and “terrible” campaign. Hung Cao is facing intense criticism from Republicans for his poorly run campaign, with former Trump Virginia Chair John Fredericks saying that Hung Cao will lose Virginia.

Here’s what folks are saying about Cao and his campaign strategy heading into the homestretch:

• “Hung Cao has run an absolutely horrible and terrible campaign up until this point, and maybe he can turn it around. Daniel Gade had one leg and he covered the state 50 times more than Hung Cao has done. It’s been lazy campaigning… You’re going to have to get your butt up and get in gear.” – Tim Anderson, former member of the Virginia House of Delegates
• “Even Republicans complain that Cao hasn’t been seen enough on the trail.” – Larry Sabato, Virginia Mercury
• “For a challenger, taking the opposition to task is one thing. That’s about accountability. But trivializing yourself in the process; that’s something else.” – Jeff Schapiro, Richmond Times-Dispatch
• “With the election only weeks away, television viewers are seeing a parade of political ads. One race is seeing lopsided ad spending. Campaign finance documents compiled by the Virginia Public Access Project show political ad spending in favor of incumbent U.S. Senator Tim Kaine is outpacing ads in favor of Republican challenger Hung Cao by more than 16 to one.” – WVTF
• “My dad used to say, ‘The world is run by people who show up.’ I am puzzled by the strategy.” – Ed Lynch, chairman of the political science department at Hollins College and former chairman of the Roanoke County Republican Committee
• “What may be the most onerous burden for Cao — beyond a near-bare treasury, the skimpiest of organizations and little messaging beyond what he pumps out on social media — is the menacing ticket-mate on whom he depends to drive the Republican base: Trump.” – Jeff Schapiro, Richmond Times-Dispatch
• “Hung Cao is not going to win this seat, Harris is going to carry Virginia.” – John Fredericks
• “But Youngkin, in narrowly defeating Terry McAuliffe in 2021, is evidence that candidate quality matters. And Youngkin can’t graft that to Cao, whose inexperience — despite an unsuccessful go as a congressional candidate in Northern Virginia in 2022 — consistently shows.” – Jeff Schapiro, Richmond Times-Dispatch
• “He’s [Cao’s] even insulted part of the commonwealth where Republicans have their largest advantage,” – Bob Holsworth, a Richmond political analyst.

“As we head into the homestretch, it’s no secret why Hung Cao is hiding from Virginians: he’s trying to hide his extreme, out-of-touch agenda that would ban abortion with no exceptions, forcibly relocate thousands of Virginia workers, and rip away healthcare from hundreds of thousands of Virginians with a pre-existing  condition,” said DPVA Chairwoman Susan Swecker.