Washington, D.C. – Today, Eric H. Holder, Jr., the 82nd Attorney General of the United States and Chairman of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee (NDRC), released the following statement in response to the Virginia General Assembly election results: 

“Although election results are still coming in, it is now safe to say that Virginia’s more fairly drawn state legislative maps have resulted in a Democratic victory in the Senate and the House is close while the vote count proceeds. Fair maps are essential to a functioning democracy, and they are critical in this moment to beat back MAGA extremism and attempts to roll back voters’ fundamental rights. As we saw in the 2022 midterms, where the maps are fair, Democrats do just fine. That’s exactly what is happening right now in Virginia. 

“Virginians are sending a clear message to the nation and especially to Governor Youngkin: they wholly reject anti-democratic MAGA extremism and they want their basic rights protected. They have participated in democracy, and as a result, they have protected it. That is a lesson we should all take note of going into next year.”

Background on NDRC involvement in the 2023 Virginia General Assembly election: 

The Virginia General Assembly election was top priority for Attorney General Holder who endorsed nearly 100 candidates leading up to the general election as part of NDRC’s Democracy Defenders program. As first reported by POLITICO, President Barack Obama recorded a series of robocalls that reached more than 100,000 households across the state of Virginia as part of efforts by the NDRC to help get out the vote. Attorney General Holder also helped raise money – ultimately delivering six figure investments to candidates and entities in the state – to ensure campaigns had the resources to fight back against national Republican attacks, and he participated in press interviews to help raise a spotlight on the importance of this election and to help get out the vote. In addition to Attorney General Holder’s participation, NDRC and affiliates continuously engaged their grassroots networks to help recruit volunteers and get out the vote leading up to the November election.

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