Josh Thomas defeated Republican John Stirrup Tuesday, in a key victory that helped Democrats flip control of the Virginia House of Delegates.
Thomas, a retired Marine, defeated Stirrup, a former Prince William County supervisor, in the Gainesville-area 21st District, chalking up a win in one of the closest races of the cycle.
DEMOCRATS REGAIN CONTROL OF VIRGINIA HOUSE OF DELEGATES IN REBUKE TO YOUNGKIN
The Democratic Party win in the northern Virginia-Washington exurb was a setback to Gov. Glenn Youngkin‘s (R-VA) effort to retain a GOP majority in the commonwealth’s lower chamber, which was slim going into Election Day.
The race was defined by abortion, not only because Democrats statewide made it their focus but also because the Washington Post released an audio recording of Stirrup saying he would “support a 100% ban” on abortion.
Stirrup, however, did say he believes that “we can bring Virginians together around a consensus position to protect life at 15 weeks.”
Thomas called Stirrup a “MAGA extremist focused on taking away women’s rights” and said he believes Virginia’s current restriction of 26 weeks should remain the law.
The Virginia Republican focused the majority of his campaign on crime and public safety, noting high crime rates in his home county.
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Stirrup was endorsed by Youngkin and received monetary support from the campaigns of Republican House Speaker Del. Todd Gilbert and many delegates in the House, including Terry Kilgore, Barry Knight, Jay Leftwich, and Terry Austin.
Thomas was endorsed by Planned Parenthood, the anti-gun group Giffords, the Human Rights Campaign, the Washington Post, and Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA).
