Virginia Wasn't So Bad for GOP After All

In the week since elections in Virginia, the national press has made much political hay about the outcome — in which Democrats control both houses of the state legislature and are sure to lock horns with Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin.

To no one's surprise, Youngkin has since ended widespread speculation he would jump into the GOP presidential sweepstakes. Moreover, there is now ubiquitous analysis that the governor's support of a ban on abortion 15 weeks before birth — reasonable by virtually all standards but used as a "dog whistle" by many Democrat candidates to charge a Republican-ruled legislature would ban abortions under all circumstances.

But in the end, were the results in the Old Dominion State were a "wipeout" for Republicans? Hardly.

Democrat control of the state Senate was 22 seats to 18 for the Republicans. Should the lead (1,022 votes) of Republican Danny Diggs over Democrat Sen. Monty Mason hold up in Williamsburg-based District 24, then, as Cardinal News (Va.) Editor Dwayne Yancey noted, "that means Democrats will have actually lost a seat in the Senate. If Mason pulls out a win, then Democrats will still have stayed even in the Senate."

A similar situation occurred in the House of Delegates. Prior to the election, Republicans controlled the House by 52 to 48 seats. Now its make-up will be 51 Democrat seats to 49 in GOP hands.

That's a net gain of three seats for the Democrats.

Much has been made in the press about many School Board candidates in Virginia endorsed by the pro-parents rights Moms for Liberty group falling short of an across-the-state sweep. There was considerable coverage devoted to the defeat of Meg Bryce, a daughter of the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, losing a bid for the Albemarle County School Board to Allison Spillman, a liberal and mother of five (one of whom her campaign brochure describes as "a proud member of the LGBTQ community").

But another conservative, pro-family group, the Middle Resolution, endorsed 28 winning School Board candidates throughout the state.

Only 7 Middle Resolution-backed candidates lost.

All told, November 7 was not a day Virginia Republicans want to remember. But it wasn't a bad day, either.

John Gizzi is chief political columnist and White House correspondent for Newsmax. For more of his reports, Go Here Now.