With just a week to go before Virginia’s June 17 primary election, new campaign finance filings and internal polls are revealing high-dollar influence and sharp messaging battles.
Dominion Energy has spent over $650,000 supporting Democratic attorney general candidate Shannon Taylor in recent weeks, including a $250,000 contribution last Wednesday and an additional $25,000 on Thursday, according to VPAP filings.
The support from Virginia’s largest utility has drawn criticism from Clean Virginia, a political advocacy group that opposes Dominion’s influence and backs Taylor’s primary opponent, former Del. Jay Jones.
Clean Virginia has backed Jones in the attorney general race, including a $147,876 media placement this month and additional support earlier in the cycle, according to campaign finance records.
Taylor responded on social media last week, accusing her opponents of launching “negative attacks” to distract from their lack of a record, and vowed she would “always fight back.”
Jones, a former delegate from Norfolk, has received backing from Clean Virginia and several progressive activists, as he tries to frame Taylor’s Dominion support as a conflict of interest in a race to lead the office that regulates public utilities.