Virginia Dem Ag candidate maintains endorsements despite violent texts

Top Democrats are refusing to abandon Virginia attorney general nominee Jay Jones despite a report revealing he wanted a fellow Republican dead.

Days after a bomb National Review Report Exposed text messages in which Jones fantasized about shooting a fellow Republican in the head and harming his children in 2022, Fox News Digital reached out to top Democrats who endorsed Jones and asked if their endorsements stood.

Start Sen. Cory Booker, who endorsed Jones in June, has not rescinded his endorsement of Jones and his office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.

The offices of three Democratic House members who endorsed Jones, Reps. Eugene Vindman, Robert Scott and Suhas Subramanyam, also did not respond to a request for comment on whether their endorsements still stood.

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Jay Jones, who is running to become Virginia’s attorney general in 2025, speaks to the audience during Abigail Spanberger’s bus tour stop in Fairfax, Virginia, June 26, 2025. (Maxine Wallace/The Washington Post/Getty Images)

Vindman’s Republican opponent, Tara Durant, criticized him over his silence in a press release Monday, saying, “At a time when political violence is becoming all too real, Virginians deserve leaders who will lower the temperature and call out dangerous rhetoric — not a blind man where it is politically convenient.”

On Sunday, after the national review report, Vindman reaffirmed his support for Jones in a Publish on X.

Virginia’s two Democratic senators, Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, have not officially endorsed Jones but have also not explicitly called for him to leave the race.

Warner, According to Virginia Mercurycalled Jones’ texts “appalling” and “incompatible with the person I knew.”

Kaine told Fox News Digital in a statement that Jones’ future is in the hands of voters.

“There is nothing that can justify these indefensible words and they are contrary to everything I have known about Jay Jones for decades,” Kaine said. “With hundreds of thousands of Virginians already voting, it’s up to Virginians to decide.”

Warner’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.

Spanberger, running for governor in one of the most closely watched races in the country, condemned Jones’ messages but stopped short of calling for him to withdraw from the race.

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Virginia Attorney General candidate Jerrauld “Jay” Jones speaks at an event in Norfolk, Virginia. (Trevor Metcalfe/The Virginian-Pilot/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

“I made it clear to Jay that he must take full responsibility for his words,” a statement from Spanberger said. “As a candidate – and as the next governor of our Commonwealth – I will always condemn violent language in our politics.”

Fox News Digital contacted Spanberger’s campaign Monday evening but did not immediately receive a response.

The Virginia Beach Democratic Committee released a statement affirming its support for Jones, calling on all Virginians to “line up behind” him.

“We are lined up, ten toes down, ready to organize, mobilize and deliver voters for Jay and our entire Democratic ticket,” the statement said. “Recent press may have highlighted past mistakes. We say, let those without sin cast the first stone. Jay Jones has taken responsibility, apologized and shown that he is committed to serving with the integrity and accountability that his public record already shows.”

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Rep. Eugene Vindman on Capitol Hill. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

The offices of Congress’ two top Democrats, Sen. Chuck Schumer and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether Jones should remain in the race.

A variety of liberal advocacy groups have also endorsed Jones, including Everytown for Gun Safety, which donated $200,000 to Jones earlier this year and endorsed him. The gun control group did not respond Monday when asked if they would rescind the approval.

Republicans across the country, citing the connection between the left’s violent rhetoric and political violence, which resulted in two assassination attempts on President Donald Trump and the killing of Charlie Kirk, have been vocal in calling on Jones to drop out of the race.

“Democrat Jay Jones should drop out of the race immediately and the people of Virginia must continue to have a great Attorney General in Jason Miyares who, by the way, has my complete and utter endorsement,” Trump wrote in a Social Truth article.

Meanwhile, Republican Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares and Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears sharply criticized Jones over the weekend, saying his recently released 2022 text messages raise serious questions about his fitness for office.

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Jones apologized for the texts, calling the remarks “embarrassing and shameful,” and said he had reached out personally to Gilbert and his family.

Fox News Digital reached out to the Jones campaign for comment on plans to stay in the race but did not immediately hear back.

Amanda Macias of Fox News Digital contributed to this report.