Richmond, VA — This year, with the Republican Party “at war with itself” and desperately struggling to reconcile its most bitter internal divides, all eyes are on Virginia. Recent reporting from the Associated Press shows just how craven, chaotic, and divisive the Republican state of affairs is in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Read key excerpts below and read the full report here:

Virginia Republicans’ Are Still The Party of Trump:

• "The party’s future success — and maybe its survival — depends on whether Republicans in competitive states like Virginia can re-create a coalition that moves beyond Trump’s hardcore base.”
• "So far, that playbook does not exist.”
• "And the challenges are coming from within. Two high-profile Republicans are threatening third-party bids that would effectively kill the GOP’s chance to reclaim the governor’s office.”

The GOP Primary is a Chaotic Disaster: 

• “The state GOP is disorganized and broke.”

• "Moving away from a traditional statewide primary election, the party plans to hold an in-person nominating convention on May 1, thoughthe state’s social-distancing rules would make such a gathering illegal.” 
• "Party leaders are leaning toward an 'unassembled' satellite convention but have not ruled out letting the state GOP’s 12-member executive committee pick the nominee.”
• “John Fredericks, who twice served as Trump’s Virginia state director, described the state GOP as 'a dumpster fire.'”

GOP Frontrunner Amanda Chase Is A QAnon Believer:

• "At the center of the Virginia GOP’s challenge sits gubernatorial candidate Amanda Chase, a polarizing state senator who seems to have won the hearts and minds of the Trump faithful with her fiercely anti-establishment, pro-gun positions and her embrace of the false notion that Trump is the legitimate winner of the November election.”
• "[Chase recently] described the pro-Trump mob that invaded the U.S. Capitol last month as 'patriots.'”
• “In the Republican Party remade in Trump’s image over the last five years, Chase is considered a serious contender for the gubernatorial nomination.” 
• "In an interview, Chase declined to disavow QAnon, questioned her colleagues’ mental health after they questioned hers in floor speeches last week and refused to say that Trump lost the November election.”
• "'I believe the election was stolen nationwide,' she insisted, though later in the interview she said she did accept the election results.”
• “In December, she called on Trump to declare martial law rather than leave office.”

GOP Chaos Is Prompting Threats of Third Party Candidacies Which Would Sink The Party’s Chances:

• “Chase is openly threatening to run as a third-party candidate if she believes the rules are being manipulated against her.”
• "'If they disenfranchise the people of Virginia, I will declare the Republican Party is dead,' Chase warned. 'I will start the Patriot Party of Virginia. And I won’t look back.'”

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