Clearly, the John Reid controversy involving Gov. Glenn Youngkin is at the top of every Virginia politico’s mind. However, the controversy has three antecedents that those of us in 2025 might find interesting.
First, let’s go back to 1957. Why? That’s the last time that a major party nominee for one of the three statewide constitutional offices abandoned a nomination. In 1957, former U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Virginia Howard Gilmer was the only candidate who qualified for the Democratic attorney general primary to be held on July 9, 1957.
However, in May of 1957, Gilmer was censured by both the Roanoke and Virginia Associations of Life Insurance Underwriters for alleged influence peddling related to letters of introduction he wrote to prospective life insurance customers. Gilmer faced intense public scrutiny after the censure resolutions and formally withdrew as a candidate for attorney general on June 22, 1957. He still received over 62,000 votes in the Democratic primary, but his withdrawal negated the voters’ choices. Eventually, the Democratic State Central Committee endorsed Albertis Harrison as the Democratic candidate for attorney general in 1957. Harrison won the general election for attorney general, then won the 1961 election for governor of Virginia and finally was elected to the Supreme Court of Virginia in 1968.
1977 is also relevant to the John Reid situation. While Gov. Youngkin has not stated he will endorse the Democratic candidate for attorney general, the statements from his political action committee indicate that he may not campaign for Mr. Reid. Which leads to the question: When was the last time a sitting governor refused to campaign for their own party’s statewide constitutional officer nominee? The answer is 1977. In September of 1977, Gov. Mills Godwin, a Republican who previously served as the Democratic governor of the commonwealth, announced his endorsement of Edward E. Lane for attorney general.
Gov. Godwin stated in the September 29, 1977, edition of the Suffolk News Herald, “My own personal vote will be cast for Mr. Lane. We have been personal friends for over a quarter of a century. This is no reflection of his opponent whom I think is a bright, young Virginian.” That opponent was J. Marshall Coleman. It is worth noting that Coleman’s 1977 campaign focused on Lane’s support for some Massive Resistance measures in the General Assembly that both Lane and Godwin supported when both were members of the Byrd Organization. Coleman’s attacks on Lane’s Massive Resistance record, coupled with Godwin’s longtime friendship with Lane, ultimately led to the strange situation in 1977.
Finally, let’s go back nearly a quarter of a century to 2001, the last time the GOP found itself in a similar “default” situation for one of its statewide constitutional officer nominees. In 2001, two individuals were campaigning for the Republican lieutenant governor nomination. Those individuals were Randy Forbes and Jay Katzen. However, in March of that year, Fourth District Congressman Norman Sisisky passed away, and a special election was conducted in June of that year. Forbes was the successful candidate in that election. Katzen, much like Reid this year, upon Pat Herrity’s withdrawal from the primary election, was the default Republican lieutenant governor nominee in 2001 as Forbes went to Congress.
While that lieutenant governor’s election was twenty-four years ago, it’s quite remarkable how many connections that contest has to Virginia’s politics in 2025. Who was Forbes’ opponent in that 2001 special election to fill the remainder of Sisisky’s term? Current Virginia Senate President pro tempore Louise Lucas. Who was Katzen’s opponent in the 2001 lieutenant governor general election? Current U.S. Senator Tim Kaine. And, in 2001, Kaine won the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor in a primary. One of Kaine’s opponents in the primary was Jerrauld Jones, the father of Jay Jones, a 2025 candidate for the Democratic attorney general nomination. As William Faulkner once observed, “The past is never dead. It’s not even past.”