Jones’s victory comes as fears of political violence reach a fever pitch across the country
Virginia voters elected Jay Jones (D.), who once fantasized about putting “two bullets” in the head of a GOP lawmaker, to be their next attorney general at a time when political violence is heating up across the U.S.
Jones led his incumbent opponent, Republican Jason Miyares, by 4.5 points with 86 percent of the vote reported when the Associated Press called the race just after 10 p.m. Tuesday.
The race exploded into the national spotlight after National Review uncovered text messages Jones sent in 2022 to Virginia house Rep. Carrie Coyner (R.), in which he fantasized about shooting his Republican colleague, Todd Gilbert.
“Gilbert gets two bullets to the head,” Jones told Coyner as he laid out a hypothetical “three people, two bullets” scenario, listing Gilbert alongside Adolf Hitler and Pol Pot. Jones also wrote that he would go to Republican colleagues’ funerals to “piss on their graves” and “send them out awash in something.” He then suggested in a call with Coyner that he wished Gilbert’s wife could watch her own children die so that Gilbert would change his political views.
Jones’s victory comes as political violence reaches a boiling point. In September, for example, conservative commentator Charlie Kirk was assassinated, with his alleged killer, Tyler Robinson, plainly stating his desire to eliminate Kirk because “some hate can’t be negotiated out.” Robinson scrawled “hey fascist! CATCH!” on one of the bullets found with the murder weapon.
A Politico poll published Monday showed that nearly a quarter of Americans believe there are cases when political violence is justified, with an even greater share of younger adults saying the same. The poll also showed there was little partisan divide, with Republicans and Democrats about evenly sharing that sentiment.
Jones, set to become Virginia’s top cop, had his commitment to law and order repeatedly called into question. Additional texts came to light showing Jones telling Coyner that police might “move on” and “stop shooting people” if “a few of them died.”
An investigation surrounding community service hours Jones reported as part of a 2022 reckless driving conviction was also launched as the attorney general race reached the final stretch. After police caught him driving 116 miles per hour on a highway, he was ordered to pay a fine, complete a “rigorous” driver improvement course, and complete 1,000 hours of community service. But he logged 500 of those hours by doing work for his own PAC and alleged he completed them within a calendar year while also working full-time at a law firm and campaigning around the state.
On Sunday, Jones launched a canvassing event alongside Swing Left, an activist group that has called for “divesting resources away from policing” and has pushed bail funds that have freed violent criminals. Among them was the Minnesota Freedom Fund, which secured release for murderers and rapists—and received a donation from Jones’s wife, Mavis, in May 2020, the Washington Free Beacon reported.
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