Violent Texts

Virginia Democratic attorney general (AG) candidate Jay Jones faced bipartisan condemnation after text messages surfaced of him suggesting a Republican lawmaker be shot.

Context

Jones sent the messages in August 2022 to Republican House Delegate Carrie Coyner while discussing then-House Speaker Todd Gilbert, a Republican. At the time, Jones was a former delegate who had recently left office and was not yet running for attorney general. The messages were first reported by the National Review and later confirmed by multiple news outlets.

The Messages

In the text exchanges, which were leaked on Friday, Jones wrote, “Three people, two bullets. Gilbert, Hitler and Pol Pot,” before adding, “Gilbert gets two bullets to the head.”