Democrat Jay Jones won Virginia’s attorney general election on Nov. 4, 2025, defeating Republican incumbent Jason Miyares and becoming the first Black person to hold the office. Jones overcame late-campaign fallout from 2022 text messages invoking political violence, as Democrats benefited from a climate of anti-Trump sentiment, according to post-election analyses.
RICHMOND, Va. — Jay Jones, a former state delegate who previously lost a 2021 primary for the office, unseated Attorney General Jason Miyares on Tuesday to lead the state’s law department beginning Jan. 17, 2026. The Associated Press called the race on election night; unofficial returns showed Jones taking roughly 53% of the vote as of Wednesday, with Miyares around 47%. The Washington Post and AP both noted the milestone: Jones is the first Black attorney general in Virginia history.
The win capped a turbulent final month. On Oct. 3 — after Virginia’s 45‑day early voting period had begun — National Review first published 2022 text messages Jones sent to GOP Del. Carrie Coyner. Screenshots reviewed by the Washington Post showed Jones musing about a hypothetical in which then–House Speaker Todd Gilbert would “get two bullets,” comparing him alongside Adolf Hitler and Pol Pot, and using profane language about urinating on opponents’ graves. In follow‑up messages referenced by Coyner and reported by the Post, Jones suggested that policymakers sometimes only change views after personal pain, a remark Coyner interpreted as wishing death on Gilbert’s children. Jones acknowledged sending the texts and apologized, saying he was “embarrassed” and “ashamed.”
Republicans seized on the revelations. Miyares, a former prosecutor who created an Election Integrity Unit in 2022 and has led or joined suits against the Biden administration, cast Jones as unfit for the state’s top law‑enforcement role. Former President Donald Trump endorsed Miyares and urged Jones to drop out in a Truth Social post, calling him a “radical left lunatic” and citing the messages. Jones apologized again during the candidates’ Oct. 16 debate and argued that Miyares was aligned with Trump and insufficiently willing to challenge the administration when Virginia’s interests were at stake. CBS News and local outlets described the debate as centered on the texts and Jones’s judgment; Republicans also highlighted Jones’s 2022 reckless‑driving conviction for going 116 mph, for which he paid a fine and performed community service, including hours logged with his own PAC, as previously reported by the Washington Post.
Democrats condemned Jones’s language while keeping the ticket intact. Gubernatorial nominee Abigail Spanberger called the texts “abhorrent” and said Jones needed to take responsibility but did not urge him to leave the race. In the campaign’s final weekend, Jones reappeared prominently with Spanberger at a Norfolk rally headlined by former President Barack Obama; Virginia Mercury reported that Jones addressed the crowd alongside other Democrats. Analysts at Politico wrote that Democrats across several states leaned into anti‑Trump sentiment, and Jones’s win — despite the scandal — suggested a “post‑cancellation” environment among some voters.
On election night, Jones told supporters, “To everyone who didn’t give up on this campaign: I say thank you. I will protect our jobs, our health care and our economy from Donald Trump’s attacks,” remarks reported by the Associated Press. The next day, outgoing Gov. Glenn Youngkin said he was “incredibly concerned” about Jones’s ability to do the job, calling the texts “abhorrent” and saying they “disqualif[y] him for the job,” according to Richmond’s CBS affiliate WTVR.
The campaign drew heavy spending. The Washington Post reported it was the most expensive attorney general race in Virginia history, with outside ad‑tracking firms also calling it among the costliest AG contests nationally this cycle. Polls ahead of the leak had shown Jones with an edge, but the race tightened after the texts surfaced; a Washington Post/Schar School survey in late October found the contest essentially even.
The uproar rippled beyond the two campaigns. State Senate President Pro Tempore Louise Lucas posted, “Virginia is for lovers, not snitches,” on X after Democrats swept statewide offices, and shared an AI‑generated video depicting Jones kicking Miyares, according to the Daily Wire, which linked to the posts. (Other major outlets did not independently confirm the AI video.)
Jones, 36, will succeed Miyares in January. He has said he will prioritize consumer protection, public safety, and defending state laws in court, while taking a more confrontational stance toward Trump administration policies than his predecessor. Miyares, elected in 2021, emphasized fentanyl prosecutions and other public‑safety initiatives during his term and promised a smooth transition.
What the result shows: While the text‑message episode dominated the closing weeks, Virginia voters ultimately split along partisan lines similar to those seen in the governor’s race. AP and Politico analyses pointed to broad discontent with Trump and federal policies among key Virginia blocs — particularly suburban voters and federal workers — as a major force in Democrats’ sweep.
