Dear People For Member,
The polls in Virginia are frighteningly close right now, and a Trump-endorsed far-right candidate could be two weeks away from seizing control of Virginia’s state government.
In public, Republican Glenn Youngkin likes to portray himself as a moderate, business-friendly newcomer to politics. But dig a little deeper and his ties to far-right extremism become all too clear.
- Just a couple weeks ago, Glenn Youngkin spoke to the Family Research Council’s “Pray Vote Stand” conference, urging the far-right activists there to “lock arms with [him].”[1] The FRC is well-known for its virulent anti-LGBTQ propaganda, such as demonizing all gay men as pedophiles, and has been designated an anti-LGBTQ hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.
Click here to donate to defeat Youngkin and protect LGBTQ rights.
- Youngkin has waffled on whether the outcome of the 2020 presidential election was legitimate … he now says it was, but is going to great lengths to send the exact opposite message from the other side of his mouth to his far-right base in Virginia, with repeated calls for “election integrity” and “audits” of voting machines.[2] Youngkin has also been campaigning with hard-right state Sen. Amanda Chase, who urged former President Donald Trump to declare martial law to stay in office and defended the “Stop the Steal” insurrectionists.[3]
- On abortion rights, Youngkin again paints himself as a moderate, has told reporters that he would not have signed Texas’s new abortion legislation into law, and that he supports exemptions to anti-choice laws for rape, incest and when the pregnant woman’s life is at risk. And yet, he still supports an abortion ban and has enthusiastically accepted endorsements in this race from the Susan B. Anthony list and the Family Foundation, groups that are well-known for advocating a total and complete ban on abortion.[4] And in July he said that he couldn’t talk about abortion on the campaign trail ... but would “go on offense” if elected.[5]
Click here to help defeat Youngkin and defend the right to choose.
- On COVID-19 vaccine mandates, Youngkin has tried to appeal to moderate voters by saying that he’s in favor of Virginians getting the vaccine. But pandering to his anti-vax and anti-mask base, he refuses to actually back any COVID vaccine mandates at all, including for nurses treating immunocompromised patients, and teachers. He even stumbled over a question in the Sept. 30th debate as to whether the measles vaccine, which has been required for decades for all Virginia schoolchildren, should continue to be mandatory.[6]
Click here to support science and sound public health policy in Virginia for the next four years.
People For has an ambitious electoral program teed up for the next two weeks in Virginia, including grassroots outreach, radio ads targeted towards groups less likely to turn out for the election, and volunteers pitching in on phone and text banks.
But we can’t execute all the components of this plan without your financial help -- and letting this bellwether state fall into the hands of the Far Right would set a very dangerous tone for next year’s midterm elections.
So we hope you’ll chip in today with a generous contribution to fund our grassroots efforts.
Thanks for all that you do,
—Ben Jealous, President
Sources:
1. "Pray Vote Stand Summit" October 6-8
2. "Opinion: Trump’s latest eruption at Republicans captures a core insight about GOP voters," Washington Post, 10/14/21
3. "Ahead of the Supreme Court Hearing on Roe v. Wade, Glenn Youngkin Spent the Weekend With Top Allies Amanda Chase and The Family Foundation," Blue Virginia, 10/4/21
4. "'Pro-Life' Group Endorses Youngkin After He Says Abortion Ban in Virginia Is 'Appropriate'," Newsweek, 9/17/21
5. "Video shows Glenn Youngkin saying he can’t fully discuss abortion or risk losing independent Virginia voters," Washington Post, 7/7/21
6. "Youngkin dodges vaccine question, drawing criticism from Democrats," The Virginian Pilot, 9/30/21
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