Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin of Virginia confirmed Monday that he will not be launching a 2024 bid for the White House.
“No,” Youngkin told Wall Street Journal editor-at-large Gerard Baker at a Milken Institute “Governing America” event when he asked the the governor if he would be “dusting off” the signature fleece jacket he became known for during his race for governor.
The blockbuster victory in November 2021 by the first time candidate who hailed from the business wing of the GOP energized Republicans, turned Youngkin into a rising star in the party, and fueled talk of a 2024 White House run.
Youngkin added that his focus would be on the Virginia legislative elections taking place this November and helping state Republicans hold their majority in the Virginia House of Delegates and winning back the Democrat-controlled state Senate.
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“So in the words of LBJ, you will not seek and, if nominated, you will not serve and accept the Republican nomination for President of the United States?” Baker pressed.
“We’ll leave that one to LBJ. What I am very excited about is that America seems to be paying attention to what’s going on in Virginia,” Youngkin responded.
Youngkin’s decision not to run ends months of speculation the champion of parental rights in schools would seek to challenge former President Donald Trump, the current front-runner in the race, and face a growing Republican presidential field.
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Prior to his comments on Monday, a signal Youngkin might not be launching a presidential campaign came when two of his top outside political consultants recently joined the super PAC supporting Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Youngkin energized Republicans nationwide in his 2021 election victory. That’s when he edged out former Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe to become the first GOP nominee in a dozen years to win a gubernatorial election in Virginia, a one-time swing state that had trended towards the Democrats over the past decade.
Last year Youngkin was a politician in demand on the 2022 campaign trail, crisscrossing the country on behalf of fellow Republicans.
“[O]n November 2nd, Virginians made a different choice,” Youngkin said Monday while speaking during an event at the Reagan Library in California. “It was a choice to restore parents’ rights because parents matter. It was a choice to lift the burdens on small businesses and to bring back more jobs. It was a choice for common sense.”
“It was a choice for common sense. It was an election, yes a choice to reject the notion that we are a generation that loses freedom. And instead, Virginians turned on that bright light. Conservative policies win because they are grounded in timeless truths and in common sense.”