Virginia Republicans are pointing fingers in every direction after their new Democratic enemy, Gov. Abigail Spanberger, handed them a major loss on Tuesday night.
After two rounds of voting in the Virginia statehouse, voters approved new, temporary congressional maps for the commonwealth, giving Democrats an expected 10-1 edge in House seats for the next two federal elections.
The measure came after President Donald Trump instructed Texas Republicans last year to further gerrymander the state to create more GOP-leaning House seats—a move that has set off a nationwide redistricting battle.
Now, Republicans are looking to self-soothe and find excuses as to why they lost on Tuesday night in the Old Dominion.
Some have blamed the ballot language, asserting that voters who showed up to cast their ballot in the special election were deceived by the question. The state’s Republican Party Chair Jeff Ryer called the ballot language “blatantly dishonest.”
Other Republicans are blaming the national party for not investing more money into a campaign against the referendum.
John Massoud, GOP chairman of Virginia’s 6th congressional district, told The Inner Circle ahead of the vote that he had “heard multiple complaints about no help from the RNC.”
“I will say: the RNC has provided some field staff, which is greatly appreciated, but I will tell you with a straight face: The RNCs should have been more helpful,” he added.
MAGA activist Laura Loomer offered some anecdotal comments, claiming that she didn’t “see a single Republican ad combatting [sic] the redistricting of Virginia. Hate to say it but the GOP totally dropped the ball in Virginia.”
Others looked to Trump, with Mike Cernovich, the man who pushed the Pizzagate conspiracy theory, posting, “Republicans in Virginia got mad at Trump and sat out one election. Now they are going to lose everything.”
Will Chamberlain, a lawyer for a group that works to support the confirmation of right-wing judicial nominees, even suggested that Trump should declare that several Democratic-leaning Northern Virginia counties, where the majority of the state lives, should actually become a part of Washington, D.C. per the District’s original city limits.
“The proper response from Donald Trump to these Virginia shenanigans is to announce that the retrocession of Arlington and Alexandria to Virginia was unconstitutional and that they are and always will be part of the federal district,” he posted.
Another theory cooked up by the far-right outlet The Federalist blamed Senate Republicans on Capitol Hill for not putting the SAVE Act, MAGA’s voter ID legislation, up for a vote.
According to the article, the Senate not voting on that bill actually discouraged Republican voters from showing up to the ballot box on Tuesday, as the Senate GOP apparently gave Virginia voters “nothing to actually earn their vote.” Senate Majority Leader John Thune has repeatedly said that Republicans do not have the votes in the upper chamber to pass that legislation.
One columnist at the far-right outlet Blaze Media went as far as to suggest that the entire Republican Party actually exists to “enshrine Democrat power.”
“You’re left with two conclusions,” Auron MacIntyre posted after the loss. “The GOP is controlled opposition that exists to enshrine Democrat power. “The GOP is too stupid to be allowed to continue.”
Many conservative commentators are now, after fighting against the measure for weeks, throwing their hands up and saying it will all be struck down in court anyway.
“This is not over. I think the courts will rule in our favor. Remember, the Virginia Supreme Court hears this case on Thursday,” Julie Perry, a Virginia GOP congressional candidate, posted.
Other MAGA Virginians blamed the loss on their former Gov. Glenn Youngkin. He had participated in several rallies against the measure, but that was seemingly not enough for them.
“Maybe someone who had some money could’ve made some difference in Virginia. Sorry, @GlennYoungkin was sitting on his wallet like the absolute fail he is,” Benjamin Domenech, an editor at The Daily Wire, complained online, adding in a follow-up post, “D--kless. Utterly d--kless.”
And some MAGA personalities just directed their complaints to Democrats overall.
“Adiós, Virginia,” Fox News host Laura Ingraham posted, “The new California.”
