Washington Post: As voting starts in Virginia, a tense scene turns chummy between candidates

Virginia Democrat Abigail Spanberger, running for governor, and Republican lieutenant governor nominee John Reid made an impromptu case for political detente Friday.

By: Greg Schneider

HENRICO, Virginia — It turns out that even in today’s divisive climate, political confrontations can still be civil.

On Friday morning, a crowd of Democrats came together at the county government center here in suburban Richmond to see Abigail Spanberger, their nominee for Virginia governor, cast her ballot on the first day of early voting. Then someone crashed the party.

A reporter had just asked Spanberger about a recent poll showing that Virginians are worried about the state of democracy, given the harsh political rhetoric in Washington and the recent killings of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk in Utah and a Democratic lawmaker in Minnesota.

“All of us have an obligation to really focus on changing the tone and the tenor of where we are in our political discourse,” Spanberger said. “Our children deserve better than what they are witnessing from some of the adults around them.”

At that moment, Republican lieutenant governor nominee John Reid stepped out from behind a Spanberger campaign staffer and strode to her microphones. “Well, let me do that, too,” Reid said, drawing exclamations of shock and then boos from the crowd.

It was jarring, for a moment, until Spanberger got over the initial surprise.

Stakes and tensions are high in Virginia’s races this year, which along with New Jersey’s are the only statewide elections in the country. Both national parties have loaded the elections with significance — and money — as a referendum on the Trump White House and a proving ground for messages in next year’s congressional midterms.

The campaigns are intensifying with Friday’s kickoff of 45 days of early voting ahead of Election Day on Nov. 4. Spanberger is running against Republican Winsome Earle-Sears for governor; Reid is vying with state Sen. Ghazala F. Hashmi (D-Richmond) for lieutenant governor; and Attorney General Jason S. Miyares (R) is seeking reelection against Democrat Jerrauld “Jay” Jones. All 100 seats in the House of Delegates are on the ballot, as well.

Earle-Sears planned her own early-voting event for later in the day. Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) — who like all Virginia governors is prohibited by the state constitution from seeking a second, consecutive term — was slated to join the GOP ticket at the rally in Chesterfield. They were set to be joined by Vivek Ramaswamy, the former Republican presidential contender now running for governor of Ohio.

Spanberger has criticized Earle-Sears for inviting Ramaswamy because of his role in initiating the U.S. DOGE Service effort to slash the federal workforce, which has had an especially great impact on Virginia, home to 320,000 federal workers as of last year.

On Friday morning, Reid said in a brief interview that it was “racist and offensive” to criticize Ramaswamy, who is of Indian heritage, and who Reid said has had great success in business.

Reid had strolled up to the Henrico government center before Spanberger got there, walking past dozens of signs for the Democratic ticket and just a couple for him and for Earle-Sears.

Reid — a conservative talk radio host in the Richmond area and the first openly gay candidate to seek statewide office in Virginia — told reporters he’d been up since 4 a.m.

“We’re ready to rock and roll,” he said. “I’m going to win a lot of Democrat voters too. I’m a new kind of Republican.”

Behind him, the crowd began cheering and chanting “Ab-i-gail! Ab-i-gail!” as Spanberger arrived and made her way to the front of her sign-waving supporters. She hugged, she waved, she bent to speak to a young girl, then went and stood in line to vote.

Afterward, Spanberger took questions from reporters before a line of TV cameras. She kept her message upbeat, mentioning President Donald Trump only to note that he had signed some of her legislation. If she had seen Reid earlier, she didn’t seem to realize he was still there until he stepped out and approached her at the microphones.

“It’s always good to see you,” Reid told Spanberger, as several onlookers began jeering him. “You’re working hard, and I appreciate it.”

Spanberger — quickly composing herself — shook hands and, maintaining her grip on Reid, turned and shushed the crowd. And what seemed like a tense confrontation turned chummy.

“Listen, John Reid has put his name on the ballot,” Spanberger said, then turned back to Reid. “I hate to be the one telling you this — I did not vote for you today.”

Both laughed. “I know that!” exclaimed Reid, who had also just voted.

“And I returned it, but that’s okay. I’d like to demonstrate that we can still be friends,” Reid said, adding that both live in Henrico County.

“But we’re too busy for coffee anytime soon,” Spanberger said. Both laughed again, they posed for photos together, and Reid waved and walked away.

He was going to visit polls in Fairfax, he said. Spanberger continued her news conference then traveled to the other end of Henrico County before she, too, planned to go to Fairfax. The countdown to Election Day was on.