Global Courant 2023-05-02 05:34:19
Virginia Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin confirmed Monday that less than two years after his surprise victory in the state’s gubernatorial election in November 2021, he will not bid for the White House in 2024.
“No,” Youngkin told Wall Street Journal editor-in-chief Gerard Baker at a Milken Institute “Governing America” event when he asked the rising Republican star if he wanted to “dust off” the signature fleece jacket he became known for during his race for governor.
Youngkin added that his focus would be on Virginia’s legislative elections this year and helping state Republicans retain their majority in the Virginia House of Delegates and take back the Democratic-controlled state senate.
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Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin of Virginia speaks on behalf of GOP Governor Brian Kemp of Georgia at Kemp’s re-election rally on September 27, 2022 in Alpharetta, Georgia (Fox news)
“So in the words of LBJ, you will not seek and, if nominated, serve and accept the Republican nomination for President of the United States?” Baker pressed.
“We’ll leave that to LBJ. What I’m really excited about is that America seems to be paying attention to what’s happening in Virginia,” Youngkin replied.
Youngkin’s decision not to run ends months of speculation that the advocate for parental rights in schools would like to challenge former President Donald Trump, the current front-runner in the race, and face a growing Republican presidential field.
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Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin is seen at an early ballot rally with Yesli Vega, the Republican nominee for Virginia’s 7th congressional district, at the fire station of Brandy Station, Virginia on Tuesday, November 1, 2022. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
A signal ahead of his announcement that Youngkin might not launch a presidential campaign came when two of his top outside political advisers recently joined the super PAC in support of Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis.
Youngkin buoyed Republicans across the country in his 2021 election victory. That’s when the first candidate to come from the party’s business wing defeated former Democratic Governor Terry McAuliffe to become the first GOP nominee in a decade to win a gubernatorial election won in Virginia, a one-time swing state that has leaned toward the Democrats over the past decade.
Then-Democrat gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe speaks at an election night party in McLean, Virginia, Tuesday, November 2, 2021. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
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Fast-forward a year and Youngkin was in demand as a politician on the 2022 campaign trail, criss-crossing the country on behalf of fellow Republicans.
Paul Steinhauser is a political reporter from New Hampshire.
