Tulsi Gabbard Calls McAuliffe’s Loss ‘A Victory for All Americans’ Because It’s a ‘Rejection of Efforts to Divide Us By Race’

Ethan Miller/Getty Images

Former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) took a victory lap on Twitter Wednesday and celebrated the defeat of fellow Democrat Terry McAuliffe in the Virginia gubernatorial election.

McAuliffe was defeated by Republican businessman Glenn Youngkin in a state that had not elected a Republican governor since 2009. The generally blue state has also not voted for a GOP presidential candidate since 2004, and Democrats are looking for answers.

Gabbard took to Twitter and suggested that McAuliffe ran a racially divisive campaign.

The topic of education played a prominent role in the campaign thanks in large part to a concerted effort by conservatives who claimed that critical race theory is being taught in public schools. The “issue” became a flashpoint, and the Youngkin campaign leaned into the idea that parents should have more of a say in what’s being taught in their kids’ schools.

During a campaign debate, McAuliffe said, “I don’t think parents should be telling schools what they should teach,” in what was considered something of a gaffe by pundits.

McAuliffe spent much of the campaign attempting to link his opponent to Donald Trump, who endorsed Youngkin but did not campaign with him. That was no surprise, considering Trump lost Virginia by five points in 2016 and 10 points in 2020.

Despite her tweet hailing McAuliffe’s defeat and by extension, Youngkin’s victory, there appears to be not much ideological overlap between Gabbard and Youngkin. She has supported progressive pet causes such as universal basic income and gun control, which aren’t within an area code of Youngkin’s platform.

Have a tip we should know? tips@mediaite.com