John —
The primary election in Virginia is just over one week away — and this year, the future of reproductive rights in the Commonwealth are at stake.
Anti-abortion Democrat and scandal-ridden State Senator Joe Morrissey is facing a competitive primary challenge from Lashrecse Aird — a pro-choice Black woman and former higher-ed professional who has been a fierce advocate for working families in the Virginia House of Delegates.
Virginia is the only state in the South to not pass an abortion ban in the one year since Roe v. Wade was overturned. But with Republicans in control of the governor’s mansion and the state House of Delegates, the future of reproductive rights is in jeopardy. Democrats only maintain a slim 22-18 majority in the State Senate, and can’t rely on Joe Morrissey, who just last year co-sponsored an unsuccessful bill with Republicans that would have banned abortion in Virginia after 20 weeks.
When reproductive rights are on the line, we can’t let anti-choice Democrats off the hook. Will you contribute $10 now to help defeat anti-choice Democrats and replace them with progressive leaders like Laschrese Aird?
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The contrast between Joe Morrissey and Lashrecse Aird couldn’t be any more stark.
On the one hand you have Lashrecse who has increased funding for public schools, held polluters to account, and passed criminal justice reform legislation. On the other you have anti-choice Joe Morrissey, who has a long history of corruption and predatory behavior — including a conviction for "contributing to the delinquency of a minor" who he married and who now claims he abused her.1 Joe Morrissey simply has no business being in elected office and definitely should not be in the position to make a pivotal vote on reproductive rights in the Commonwealth.
Next Tuesday’s primary election will be the first significant election in Virginia since new districts were drawn — including 11 new State Senate districts without incumbents. Virginia’s Republican Governor Glenn Younkin wants to ban abortion — and Morrissey has signaled a willingness to work with him.
With only a razor-thin majority in the Senate standing in the way of an abortion ban, it’s imperative that we defeat Joe Morrissey in the primary next Tuesday, then redouble our efforts in the general to flip the House of Delegates and defend the Democratic majority in the State Senate to ensure abortion rights are protected.
Will you stand up for abortion rights in the South by helping defeat the last anti-choice Democrat in the Virginia State Senate? Your contribution will help support our organizing to elect candidates like Lashrecse Aird and lay the groundwork to protect abortion rights in Virginia in November.
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In solidarity,
Working Families Party
Source:
1. Scoop: Myrna Morrissey files for divorce, Axios, May 24, 2023
