Trump takes post-debate victory lap in Virginia in bid to flip the commonwealth to "red"

Former President Donald Trump on Friday seized on his post-debate momentum to bolster his efforts in Virginia, appearing alongside the Old Dominion's GOP heavyweight Gov. Glenn Youngkin at a rally in Chesapeake.

Formerly regarded as a prospective presidential candidate himself, Youngkin opted against such a campaign and has instead been floated as a potential vice presidential candidate.

Generally viewed as a more moderate Republican, Youngkin’s appearance alongside Trump could signal a degree of reconciliation between the disparate wings of the party after a brutal primary that saw Trump fend off challenges from conventional conservatives and establishment opponents alike.

During the event, Youngkin vowed that he and Republicans in Virginia would work to return Trump to the White House in 2024.

“Mr. President, this is the best Trump rally that you have ever had and you are doing it in Virginia and yes on behalf of 8.7 million Virginians, Mr. President, we are going to go to work and get you back in the White House,” Youngkin said when Trump called him on stage.

The Old Dominion, for its part, has generally been a Democratic stronghold in recent election cycles and last voted for a Republican for president in 2004. Polling data, however, suggests that the state could be in play, with multiple surveys showing Trump tied with former President Joe Biden.

“We’re leading in the Commonwealth… it could be a very substantial lead, but we have one poll we’re two up, another one we’re three up, another one we’re four up, one we’re even, but that was a very Democrat poll. I don’t believe that,” Trump said.

It remains unclear to which surveys Trump was referring. The RealClearPolitics polling average currently shows Biden with a 2.2% average lead across four polls. Included among them are surveys from Fox News and Roanoke College showing the pair tied, as well as one from Virginia Commonwealth University showing Biden with a 3% lead and a Richmond Times-Dispatch survey showing Biden six points ahead.

An internal poll from McLaughlin and Associates in May, meanwhile, showed Biden with a 3% lead over Trump in Virginia in a race that also included independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., independent candidate Cornel West, the Green Party’s Jill Stein, and Libertarian Lars Mapstead.

Much of Trump’s appeal to Virginia voters appears to rest on immigration and cost of living concerns. During the rally, he emphasized the state of the economy under his administration in contrast to current conditions.

“Our case to Virginia is very simple,” he said. “We will seal the border, we will make the American Dream affordable again, but we will bring back the American Dream, something you don’t hear about anymore… Under my leadership, we had the greatest economy in the history of the world… during my term we had gasoline down to $1.87 a gallon.”

“Working with your great governor, Glenn Youngkin, we will make Virginia greater than it has ever been before,” he concluded.

Virginia has not backed a Republican for president since 2004, when President George W. Bush carried the state in his reelection bid. The state flipped blue for Barack Obama and generally trended towards the Democrats in subsequent years, though Youngkin managed to score an upset win in 2021 that has reignited Republican hopes there.

Trump, for his part, has generally struggled in the state throughout his own political career. In the 2016 election, he lost the state to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who took 49.7% of the vote while he earned 44.4%. President Joe Biden’s in 2020 nearly doubled Clinton’s margin of victory, claiming 54.1% to Trump’s 44.0%.

But with polling data signaling that the state could be up for grabs, the Trump campaign is preparing to invest heavily in Virginia and has begun the process of securing leases for 11 campaign offices in the state.

An internal memo from the campaign Just the News obtained earlier this month revealed that the campaign was also looking to open eight field offices in the Democratic stronghold of Minnesota.

"The addition of Minnesota and Virginia to the electoral map opens up at least 12 additional pathways to 270," the memo read.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on X.