Fairfax County Supervisor Pat Herrity, one of two candidates for the Republican nomination for lieutenant governor, has announced he’s dropping out of the race for health reasons.
His withdrawal means the Republican statewide ticket for 2025 is now set: Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears had earlier been the only GOP candidate to qualify for governor and Attorney General Jason Miyares, who is seeking reelection, was the only Republican candidate to file for that office.
That had left an expected June 17 primary between Herrity and Richmond talk show host John Reid for the No. 2 slot on the ticket. Herrity had been off the campaign trail after undergoing heart surgery on March 13 but still led Reid (and all six Democratic hopefuls for the office) in fundraising for the first quarter. On Tuesday, Herrity told Cardinal News that he had suffered “some pretty significant complications” following the surgery and that “I’ve come to the realization that I’m not going to be able to get back to the 150% it takes to run a statewide race.”
In a prepared statement that he emailed out at 5 p.m., Herrity said “my doctors are still predicting a full recovery but I have come to realize it will be much slower than anticipated.” To continue in the race would not be fair to either the ticket or his donors, he said, so he had made the decision to withdraw: “As you heard me say repeatedly on the campaign trail, my campaign was less about me and the Lieutenant Governor position and more about doing well in Northern Virginia so we could elect Winsome Sears as our Governor and reelect Attorney General Jason Miyares. It remains critical that we elect Winsome as Governor so we can continue Governor Youngkin’s legacy of accomplishments and avoid a return to one party rule.”
Herrity said he would remain on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.
With the Republican ticket of Earle-Sears, Reid and Miyares now set, there will be no statewide Republican primary, although there will be scattered Republican primaries for various nominations for House of Delegates or local offices. There will be a statewide Democratic primary, with six candidates for lieutenant governor and two for attorney general, as well as local Democratic primaries in some places. Early voting in all those primaries begins May 2; for details, see our Voter Guide.
In a social media post, Reid called Herrity a “gentleman” who had made a “selfless decision” to forgo the race. As for himself, “I take my new responsibility as the Republican nominee for lieutenant governor seriously. I will continue to work hard to be worthy of this opportunity to earn every vote of Republicans, Democrats and independents and all those looking for a voice across Virginia.”
Earle-Sears posted: “Thank you to @PatHerrityVA for his many years of dedicated public service. We wish him a full recovery and look forward to working together to keep Virginia strong. Ever Forward!”
Abigail Spanberger, the Democratic candidate for governor, also posted a get-well message: “I’m sending my well wishes for a speedy recovery and good health to @PatHerrityVA. Regardless of party, I can only imagine how difficult of a decision this was for Supervisor Herrity and his family.”