Glenn Youngkin’s son tried to vote despite being 17-years-old
Youngkin made "election integrity" a focal point of his campaign platform
Virginia’s governor-elect Glenn Youngkin’s son was turned down twice after attempting to vote during Tuesday’s gubernatorial election, according to Fairfax County.
The issue arose after the young man presented his ID, which showed that he was just 17-years-old, making him ineligible to vote.
Democrat precinct captain Jennifer Chanty told the Washington Post that Youngkin’s son was initially turned down at Great Falls Library after she checked his ID. Thirty minutes later, however, he returned with a friend whom he said had been able to vote and was turned down a second time.
The contentious race in Virginia resulted in a blow to democrats, with Youngkin beating former governor Terry McAuliffe and flipping the state back into Republican control.
However, the Fairfax County General Registrar, Scott O. Konopasek, said that the young man didn’t violate any election rules.
“The man did not vote. He made no false statements. He did not disrupt voting,” he said to WAVY-TV 10. “Based upon information available to me now, it appears that he committed no election offense as defined in Chapter 10 of the Elections Code.”
The incident comes at a pressing time for Republicans, who have questioned the legitimacy of many elections since former president Donald Trump’s claims of voter fraud and a stolen 2020 election following his loss to President Joe Biden.
A spokesperson for Youngkin, Devin O’Malley, said that the young man misunderstood the laws, but did nothing wrong.
“It’s unfortunate that while Glenn attempts to unite the Commonwealth around his positive message of better schools, safer streets, a lower cost of living, and more jobs, his political opponents—mad that they suffered historic losses this year—are pitching opposition research on a 17-year-old kid who honestly misunderstood Virginia election law and simply asked polling officials if he was eligible to vote; when informed he was not, he went to school,” he said.
When previously pressed about whether he would sign legislation restricting voting rights, Youngkin said he wanted to ensure trust in the election process.
Youngkin made “election integrity” a focal point during his campaign, telling constituents that once elected, he would call for an audit of the voting machines used during the 2020 Presidential election.
However, he acknowledged that Biden’s win against Trump is legitimate.
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