Virginia candidates say racism and sexism played a role in Democratic losses

[Libtards Can't Stop Thinking About Trump]

Statewide candidates who ran in Virginia this year say prejudice
both outside but especially within the Democratic Party played a
prominent role in Republican victories.

Del. Sam Rasoul, who ran for lieutenant governor in the Democratic
primary, said, “This is not a win by Republicans. I think that this
is a loss by our party.”

Overt racism, sexism, and Islamophobia

There were several instances of overt racially motivated bias that
candidates say demonstrate the impact of prejudice on their
campaigns, but one of the most public happened to Rasoul on the
debate stage.

During the only debate between lieutenant governor candidates this
year, a moderator asked Rasoul an Islamophobic question. ABC7 anchor
Dave Lucas asked Rasoul if, because he’s accepted donations from
out-of-state Muslim donors, he can “assure Virginians, if you’re
elected, that you’ll represent all of them regardless of faith or
beliefs?”

Rasoul says it was part of a broader attack on his campaign.

“It wasn’t just a moderator. Questions were scanned by a whole team
at the station and approved in advance,” Rasoul said. “Part of the
rules were that you'd have to ask questions that could be posed to
everyone on stage, and that clearly violated that rule. It was a
targeted hit.”

A similar accusation was made toward state Sen. Jennifer McClellan,
who ran in the Democratic gubernatorial primary. This time, the
attack came not from the media but another candidate for governor.

Both before and after she lost the nomination to Gov.-elect Glenn
Youngkin, state Sen. Amanda Chase commented publicly that she
believes McClellan wouldn’t represent all Virginians by pointing to
her leadership of the Black caucus.

In a 2020 tweet, Chase wrote “One thing you can be sure of - she is
NOT for ALL Virginians.” She repeated that sentiment in a video
posted in March.

McClellan said she hasn’t seen anything that overt in her more than
14 years as a legislator.

“[It was] the first example of sort of straight-up racism I’ve
faced,” McClellan said.

Princess Blanding, a candidate for the Liberation Party, says the
racism and sexism she experienced came from within the Democratic
Party. Although she appeared on the ballot this year alongside
former Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe and Republican candidate
Youngkin, she was never invited to appear on the debate stage with
her competitors. That exclusion, Blanding says, is rooted in a
racially motivated suppression of her campaign.

https://vpm.org/news/articles/27261/virginia-candidates-say-racism-
and-sexism-played-a-role-in-democratic-losses