Republican Jason Miyares wins Virginia AG race

by Julia Manchester - 11/03/21 5:19 PM ET

Virginia Republican attorney general candidate Jason Miyares speaks to supporters and potential voters during a meet and greet for Republican gubernatorial candidate Glenn Youngkin at Manassas Park Community Center in Manassas, Va., on Oct. 30, 2021. — Greg Nash

Republican Del. Jason Miyares scored a major victory in Virginia’s attorney general race, defeating incumbent Attorney General Mark Herring (D).

The Associated Press called the race for Miyares shortly after 5 p.m. on Wednesday.

Herring released a statement conceding to Miyares around the same time.

“This afternoon I called Jason Miyares to congratulate him on his victory and assure him that my team and I will do all we can to ensure a smooth and effective transition,” Herring said. “He will be accepting a role and leading an office that has tremendous capacity for good in the lives of Virginians.”

Miyares’s victory comes after fellow Republicans Glenn Youngkin and Winsome Sears won the governor’s and lieutenant governor’s races, respectively.

Polls had shown a tightening race between him and Herring. However, Herring appeared to hold a lead over Miyares until Election Day. A Washington Post/Schar School survey released on Friday showed Herring with a 50 to 44 percent lead over Miyares.

Like Youngkin, Miyares zeroed in on the issue of education and parents’ rights over school boards as a centerpiece of his campaign.

Miyares, who is Cuban American, has served in Virginia’s House of Delegates since 2016. He previously worked on former Virginia Sen. George Allen’s (R) Senate campaign in 2000 and served as Sen. Marco Rubio’s (R-Fla.) Virginia campaign co-chairman during the 2016 Republican presidential primaries.