Virginia’s Republican attorney general from 2022 to 2026, opens with a political maxim: Republicans fear permanent defeat when they lose, while Democrats govern as if they will never need to win again. He cites Virginia as proof.
Under Gov. Glenn Youngkin, the state reversed decline (poor post-COVID job ranking, late school reopenings, high murder and fentanyl death rates, and net population loss). Achievements included rising to the top tier in job creation, annual budget surpluses with over $9 billion in tax relief, more than $156 billion in new business investment, falling murder rates, and leading the nation in reducing overdose deaths. This was dubbed the “Virginia Renaissance.”
Democrats, led by Gov. Abigail Spanberger, have rejected that progress, making her one of the least popular modern governors after roughly half a year. The author outlines five steps:
- Driving businesses away — Proposing over $37 billion in new taxes despite surpluses, enacting payroll and carbon taxes, and raising hiring costs ~22.5%, leading to closures/layoffs by companies such as Boeing and Amazon.
- Imposing an energy tax — Pushing intermittent wind/solar and renewable energy credits (a de facto carbon tax costing hundreds of millions annually, potentially $1 billion+) instead of expanding reliable natural gas and nuclear to meet rising demand.
- Prioritizing offenders over victims — Early release of more than 9,000 felons (nearly half re-arrested) under enhanced sentence credits, plus ordering state law enforcement to stop cooperating with federal authorities on deporting violent illegal immigrants.
- Undermining workers’ rights — Supporting mandatory collective bargaining for government employees (contrary to Virginia’s right-to-work tradition), which local governments say will drive large property-tax increases (e.g., $200 million yearly for one county alone).
- Partisan politics against the constitution — Supporting a partisan gerrymander that would have given Republicans only ~9% of congressional seats despite winning 46% of the 2024 vote, despite a voter-approved nonpartisan redistricting process (later struck down by the state Supreme Court).
Democrats are deliberately undoing the Renaissance; businesses and families are now deciding whether to stay, and voters and history will ultimately judge the results.
