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Democrat Texted About Shooting Virginia Speaker

Jay Jones apologized for threatening texts about shooting a GOP colleague but refuses to quit Virginia attorney general race amid bipartisan backlash.

  • On August 8, 2022, Jay Jones, Democratic nominee for Virginia Attorney General, fantasized about shooting then-House Speaker Todd Gilbert, and National Review published the messages prompting withdrawal calls.
  • Angry about GOP eulogies for Joe Johnson Jr., Jones mistakenly sent the messages to Carrie Coyner, and complained about Johnson's centrism on August 8, 2022.
  • In explicit messages, Jones placed Todd Gilbert ahead of Adolf Hitler and Pol Pot in a hypothetical shooting and wished harm on Gilbert's children, prompting Carrie Coyner to push back.
  • Republicans and Democrats condemned the texts, and Jay Jones apologized, saying `Like all people, I've sent text messages that I regret, and I believe that violent rhetoric has no place in our politics`.
  • The timing compounds existing controversies for Jones, as the revelations have rocked the Virginia attorney general race and add to a 116 mph speeding incident controversy.
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Lean Left

Democrat in Virginia attorney general race apologizes for 2022 texts depicting political violence

Virginia’s Democratic candidate for attorney general has been widely condemned for text messages from 2022 that revealed him suggesting that a prominent Republican get “two bullets to the head.”

·United States
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  • 39% of the sources are Center, 39% of the sources lean Right
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Political Wire broke the news in New York, United States on Friday, October 3, 2025.
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