Terry McAuliffe, the leading candidate in this year’s Democratic primary for governor of Virginia, faced a series of attacks from his rivals during a debate Tuesday night to reduce his broad support from black voters. On the most extraordinary broadside, State Governor Justin Fairfax accused Mr McAuliffe of treating him like George Floyd or Emmett Till after Mr Fairfax was charged with sexual assault by two women in 2019.
Mr McAuliffe, a white former governor of the state who is backed by many of the state’s top black elected officials, publicly called for Mr Fairfax to step down earlier this year.
Mr Fairfax’s statements on Tuesday comparing himself to two blacks killed in episodes of white violence were the clearest attempt by any of the three black contestants in the race to racially distinguish themselves from Mr McAuliffe. Who wants to reclaim the office they held from 2014 to 2018?
The charge came at the end of the debate, the first for the five Virginia Democrats running for governor. In response to a question asking candidates to imagine the future of law enforcement in Virginia, Fairfax said theoretical descriptions are unnecessary as he is a living embodiment of the harm that false accusations and a rush for judgment can cause.
“Everyone on this stage called for my immediate resignation, including Terry McAuliffe three minutes after a press release was issued,” said Fairfax. “He treated me like George Floyd, he treated me like Emmett Till, no due process, took my guilt immediately. I have a son and I have a daughter and I don’t want my daughter to be attacked, I don’t want my son to be falsely accused. And this is the real world that we live in. Therefore, we need to tell the truth to power and understand how it will affect people’s lives. “
Mr McAuliffe did not reply to Mr Fairfax at the debate stage. His spokesman declined to respond to the comments.
In February 2019, two women accused Mr. Fairfax of sexually assaulting them in different episodes – allegations that Mr. Fairfax had always denied. Mr Fairfax faced a flurry of demands for his resignation. Weeks later, in a speech on the Virginia Senate floor, he compared himself to lynch victims.
Mr Fairfax wasn’t the only candidate Tuesday night trying to separate black voters from Mr McAuliffe. The race’s sparse public poll has shown that Mr McAuliffe has sizeable advantages over his four opponents, and no poll has shown he has less than a two-to-one advantage over his closest rival.
Jennifer McClellan, a senator running for governor, accused Mr. McAuliffe of underfunding the state’s probation system, cutting contracts with the National Rifle Association during his tenure as governor and late campaigning for racial justice.
“Racial justice is more than just criminal justice reform,” said Ms. McClellan, who is black. “It’s embedded in every system we have in government, and I didn’t need George Floyd’s murder or the Unite the Right rally to teach me that.”
During his speech, Mr McAuliffe highlighted his relationships with Mr Northam and President Biden, two Democrats who both owe their offices to strong relationships with and support from black voters. He highlighted his move to restore the voting rights of 206,000 offenders in the state, saying every police officer in the state should wear a body camera “so we can see what’s going on.”
“Thank goodness we had all of these people there who had these cell phones when George Floyd was murdered,” he said.
Mr McAuliffe made little mention of his rivals during the debate, except to remind the audience that Ms. McClellan was a more frequent partner of his when he was governor. But at the end of the debate, Mr Fairfax tried to define himself as the talkative former governor’s main competitor.
“There seem to be two rules up here, one where the governor can speak for as long as he wants and do what he wants and one for everyone else,” Fairfax said. “I think that’s part of the problem that we have so many differences in our society.”
