Photos: Bobby Scott Labor Day Event Draws 2,000; Norfolk's Jay Jones Files for AG 2025; GOP Puts Cash Into VA-7 and VA-2
🚩 8 days until CBC Week in Washington DC on Sept. 11
🚩 17 days until early voting in Virginia: Sept. 20
🚩 63 days until Election Day Nov. 5
Black Virginia News covers the Black community in Virginia. We are very thankful for the support of our subscribers! Please consider supporting an independent news source and becoming a paid subscriber today.
2,000 Gather in Newport News for Annual Bobby Scott Labor Day Event
NEWPORT NEWS, VA — The 47th annual Bobby Scott Labor Day Cookout was attended by the traditionally long list of over 100 elected officials and candidates for Congress, City City Council and School Board from the cities of Newport News, Hampton, Portsmouth, Williamsburg, Norfolk, Chesapeake and beyond. Virginia’s first Black Congresswoman ever, Rep. Jennifer McClellan, and Virginia’s first Black Speaker of the House of Delegates, who is also now the Virginia Democratic party’s most prolific fundraiser, Don Scott, were also in the crowd.
On the lawn you could also easily run into Hampton President Gen. Darrell Williams, Newport News Mayor Phil Jones, Norfolk Mayor Kenny Alexander and State Senators Aaron Rouse and Ghazala Hashmi who are running in 2025 for Lt. Governor.
Twenty five years ago on Labor Day in 1999, President Bill Clinton attended the Bobby Scott Labor Day Cookout. Yesterday in Newport News, the Second Gentleman of the United States, Douglas Emhoff, addressed a crowd of over 2,500 on the lawn of the Scott family home. In Pennsylvania, Emhoff’s wife, Vice President Kamala Harris, was joined by President Biden at a rally in Pittsburgh.
Congressman Scott, Emhoff, Virginia AFL-CIO President Doris Crouse-Mays, and Senator Tim Kaine stood on stage alone without the typical Scott Cookout tradition of elected officials standing en masse under a large white banner with the words Welcome to Bobby Scott’s Annual Labor Day Cookout. Emhoff’s appearance featured the Secret Service making their second Labor Day visit to the Scott Cookout since the beginning of what is now one of the longest running and well attended political events in Virginia.
“I know that convention was great… but with all this excitement and all this celebration we haven’t won anything yet,” Emhoff told the large crowd on a massive lawn that features a small beach up against the Chesapeake Bay.
Emhoff also told the crowd that Trump’s campaign comes down to “authoritarianism and misogyny.” He also pointed criticism at Trump’s Vice Presidential running mate U.S. Senator J.D Vance. Emhoff also commented on Project 2025, the conservative blueprint for Trump’s next administrator should he win back the White House. Last week, the Harris-Walz campaign debuted an ad on what they viewed as the dangers of Project 2025.
After completing a 14 minute speech, Emhoff greeted attendees who were standing in the front rows behind a steel barrier several feet from the stage and departed. Though Emhoff did not work the crowd on the lawn there were a few minutes of spirited competition for a selfie with the Second Gentleman before he departed. The social media accounts of State Senator Mamie Locke and Congresswoman McClellan reveal that they were winners in the rope line photo game.
The annual three hour event in Newport News hosted by the popular Congressman representing Virginia’s third congressional district is the unofficial kickoff of Virginia’s political season. Given the historic dynamics around the lightening in a bottle candidacy of Vice President Harris the next 63 days promises to be exciting.
Below: Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff greets attendees after his speech, State Senator Ghazala Hashmi.
Above: Former Delegate Clint Jenkins, who is running for Mayor of Suffolk, is seen on the lawn at the Scott Cookout. Below: State Senator and ‘25 LG candidate Aaron Rouse and his wife, Virginia Beach City Councilwoman Jennifer Rouse and Norfolk School Board member Carlos Clanton, who is currently running for Norfolk City Council.
Thousands attended the annual Scott Cookout including all the broadcast media stations in Hampton Roads. Though the day began with heavy rain the sun arrived soon after. Early voting in Virginia begins on September 20 in 17 days.
Norfolk Attorney and Former Delegate Jay Jones Files to Run for Virginia Attorney General
Jay Jones, a former member of the House of Delegates representing Norfolk, has filed paperwork to run for Attorney General in Virginia in 2025. The statement of organization for the 2025 AG’s race was filed on Aug. 28.
Jones, served in Virginia’s House of Delegates from 2018 to 2021. Jones ran in the Democratic primary in 2021 in an energetic race against Attorney General Mark Herring, who was on his third run as AG. In 2021, Virginia Democrats lost all three statewide positions to Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin, Lt. Gov. Winsome Sears and Attorney General Jason Miyares.
Top Republican U.S. House Super PAC Puts Cash Into Virginia Congressional Races
From Punchbowl: The top House GOP super PAC is adding $16 million to its fall ad reservations as the Congressional Leadership Fund seeks to flip blue seats in November.
— $2.3 million in the D.C. media market aimed at Virginia’s 7th District. This is an open seat vacated by Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.), who is running for governor in 2025. Republicans feel confident that Army veteran Derrick Anderson can beat Democrat Eugene Vindman. This is a new reservation, whereas the other reservations below supplement an earlier round of CLF spending.
— $682,200 in Norfolk, Va., to protect freshman GOP Rep. Jen Kiggans in her race against Missy Cotter Smasal in the 2nd District.
Hersh Goldberg-Polin🌹
➡️ SUBSCRIBE TO BLACK VIRGINIA NEWS. “One had better die fighting against injustice than die like a dog or a rat in a trap.” —Ida Wells. 👨🏽💻 Send your press releases, submissions, tips, pitches, comments and corrections to BlackVirginiaNews@gmail.com.