How two Virginia candidates’ scandals reflect changing attitudes
When sexually explicit videos of House candidate Susanna Gibson surfaced online in 2023, John Reid — then a conservative talk radio host — was unapologetically blunt.
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Privacy, Politics, and Power: How two Virginia candidates’ scandals reflect changing attitudes
When sexually explicit videos of House candidate Susanna Gibson surfaced online in 2023, John Reid — then a conservative talk radio host — was unapologetically blunt.
“Don’t get mad that I’m the only person in Virginia media who will tell the truth about this trash woman,” Reid wrote in a Facebook post, which included a still from one of the videos. “Say no to legislative hookers.”
Now, nearly two years later, Reid — the Republican nominee for lieutenant governor and the first openly gay nominee on a statewide ticket in Virginia — is facing his own controversy.
News broke last Friday that Gov. Glenn Youngkin asked Reid to withdraw as the nominee after a Tumblr account with the same username Reid uses on other social media platforms showed reposts of naked men.
The same party that condemned Gibson after her videos surfaced now appears to be largely more accepting of Reid’s situation.
Gibson says Reid is not being held to the same standard that she was less than two years ago. She describes herself as an optimist, however, and hopes the difference reflects growing awareness that such personal attacks on public figures are unacceptable.
“I do have to wonder,” Gibson said during an interview with Virginia Scope. “Is it because our understanding of what intimate privacy looks like, and that we're understanding that online violence and sexual violence is never OK.”
Reid has repeatedly denied owning the account, but Youngkin has not reversed his call for Reid to step aside.
The governor canceled a planned appearance scheduled for Wednesday with the full Republican statewide ticket in Henrico County — and it appears the other nominees have also distanced themselves from the event.
Gibson, who now runs a nonprofit advocating for legislation to protect people from having their intimate images shared online without consent, said she first heard of the criticism from Reid while knocking doors during her 2023 campaign.
As she approached a home, she spoke to someone working in the yard for the owner.
The person was listening to the radio at the time, Gibson said.