Virginia races heat up as candidates raise more than $20 million ahead of November

RICHMOND, Va. (WSET) — Three statewide offices and all 100 seats in the Virginia House of Delegates are up for grabs this November, and candidates are hitting the ground running. According to the Virginia Public Access Project, candidates for office have raised more than 20 million dollars in the first quarter, between Jan. 1 and March 31.

ABC13's political analyst, Dr. Dave Richards, said fundraising isn't everything, but it is significant.

It helps you get your message out, it helps you with commercials and running media and all of that kind of stuff, but really what it is, at this point, is an indicator of support from the party, from party faithful who are willing to put their money where their mouth is and support a candidate," Richards said.

The race for the Commonwealth's top lawyer has some familiar faces. Incumbent Republican Jason Miyares wants to serve another four years. Two Democrats, former Del. Jay Jones and Henrico Commonwealth's Attorney Shannon Taylor, hope to take the seat. Jones lost the Democratic primary election in 2021 in the race for AG.

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In the first quarter, Miyares brought in more than $1.5 million. That's despite not being able to fundraise during the legislative session from Jan. 8 to Feb. 22. Jones raised $931,000, with Taylor pulling in $534,000.

Richards said, based on fundraising metrics so far, he believes Jones has a slight edge over Taylor. However, he believes Miyares has the advantage when it comes to the general election because he won't have to fork out money for a primary.

Together with some pretty key endorsements that Jones has, that's why I kind of picture him as the frontrunner. Because he's gotten people willing to put up money to actually support him," Richards said. "(Miyares) does not need to spend a single penny until the election really gets up and running in mid-summer. Whereas, the Democrats right now need to spend some of that money to try to win that nomination.

There's another layer to this race when it comes to donors, specifically when it comes to energy companies.

Dominion Energy is backing both Miyares and Taylor. According to VPAP, they donated $150,000 to Miyares and $50,000 to Taylor's campaign.

Meanwhile, the organization 'Clean Virginia' states on their website that they want to fight 'utility monopoly corruption in Virginia politics.' That group donated $150,000 to Jones' campaign.

"It's always interesting once you get down into the weeds to see who is supporting which candidate," Richards said. "Sometimes those groups will be a little strategic, right? Maybe they will throw a lot of money behind a candidate that they think has a good chance, but they might actually contribute to multiple candidates, thinking 'Well, in the case if something happens or in the case that it is say, Taylor versus Miyares,' then they have both people in their good graces."

With current Lieutenant Governor Winsome Sears running for the governor's mansion, the Lieutenant Governor's seat is wide open. According to VPAP, nine candidates are throwing their hats in the ring for the spot.

Republican candidate Pat Herrity outraised his primary challenger, John Reid, by more than $360,000.

When it comes to the fight for the Democratic ticket, former Richmond mayor Levar Stoney leads the pack with just under $430,000. However, Aaron Rouse and Babur Lateef aren't far behind, with just under $400,000 raised. Current state senator Ghazala Hashmi is sitting at just over $300,000 this quarter.

Richards said at this point, it's anyone's race.

Right now, nobody has this commanding lead that it's theirs to lose. Right? It's everyone's still to win at this point," he said.

Primary elections will be held on June 17, with the General Election to take place on November 4.