Virginia governor Glenn Youngkin told an audience at the Economic Club of Washington Tuesday evening that he does not plan to back any candidate in the 2024 Republican presidential primary race.
“I don’t expect to endorse anyone,” Youngkin said. “I think voters should choose this, and I’m sure it will be a well-participated primary.”
Youngkin, whose approval rating in purple Virginia sits at 51 percent, would likely be a coveted endorsement for any candidate vying to be the GOP nominee. His popularity in a state that, prior to his victory in 2021, had not elected a Republican governor since Bob McDonnell in 2009 has also made him a favorite dark-horse candidate among Republican donors who are unsatisfied with the current field.
Cosmetics heir Ronald Lauder would reportedly like the Virginia governor to enter the race, while fellow billionaire and former Ron DeSantis donor Thomas Peterffy has contributed $2 million to the Youngkin-aligned Spirit of Virginia PAC.
Rupert Murdoch, who stepped down as chairman of Fox Corp. and News Corp. on September 21, has “privately said he wants Youngkin to enter the race,” and a Virginia Commonwealth University poll released in August shows the governor defeating President Joe Biden by a seven-point margin in a hypothetical head-to-head matchup in the Old Dominion State.
While Youngkin has not expressly ruled out the possibility of a 2024 primary run, the clock is ticking, and he remains laser-focused on his home state: Virginia’s 2023 elections will determine control of its General Assembly, and if Republicans win a majority — which would grant the GOP control of both houses of Virginia’s legislature — Youngkin will have much more room to legislate.