Virginia Politics

Youngkin urges calm on his call for a ban on mask mandates but also stokes division



Jean Ballard, left, and Heather West join about two dozen parents outside Woodgrove High School in Purcellville, Va., for a mask protest on Jan. 24. (Katherine Frey/The Washington Post)

By Gregory S. Schneider and Laura Vozzella
Yesterday at 7:30 p.m. EST

RICHMOND — Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin on Monday invoked the biblical call to “love your neighbor” as school systems around the state struggled with strong reactions to his ban on local mask mandates, but the Republican also fanned the flames of partisan division in the face of court challenges and protests. ... School districts resisting his ban “aren’t recognizing the rights of parents today,” Youngkin told conservative radio host John Fredericks. “And oh, by the way, they haven’t been recognizing the rights of parents all along. So I’m not surprised at all to hear these reactions from school boards that have consistently prioritized bureaucrats and politicians over the rights of parents.”

His comments dismissed the concerns of some of the biggest school systems in the state, a group of which have challenged Youngkin’s ban before the Supreme Court of Virginia. Those localities — including the counties of Fairfax and Prince William and the city of Richmond — argue that a state law requiring them to follow federal guidelines to fight the coronavirus makes it necessary to require face coverings in crowded schools.

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But Youngkin, who took office promising to govern “for all Virginians,” has otherwise struck an increasingly partisan tone. Public sentiment toward mask mandates is “moving against the left liberals,” he said Monday to Fredericks, who was Donald Trump’s Virginia presidential campaign chairman in 2016 and 2020. ... In the interview, Youngkin also touted a tip line for parents to report to the state any school officials they find to be behaving objectionably — including teaching “divisive” subjects. Youngkin has issued an executive order and is backing legislation that seeks to ban concepts such as critical race theory, an academic construct about the history of systemic racism.

“We’re asking for folks to send us reports and observations,” Youngkin said, “help us be aware of … their child being denied their rights that parents have in Virginia, and we’re going to make sure we catalogue it all. … And that gives us further, further ability to make sure we’re rooting it out.” ... Youngkin told Fredericks that 25 of Virginia’s 130 school districts have challenged his ban on mask mandates. According to a Washington Post tally, though, 58 of the state’s districts have either filed suit or pledged to keep a mask mandate in place. Youngkin’s office conceded that its figure, based on news reports and not a survey of all districts, was probably low.

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By Gregory S. Schneider
Greg Schneider covers Virginia from the Richmond bureau. He was The Washington Post's business editor for more than seven years, and before that served stints as deputy business editor, national security editor and technology editor. He has also covered aviation security, the auto industry and the defense industry for The Post. Twitter https://twitter.com/SchneiderG

By Laura Vozzella
Laura Vozzella covers Virginia politics for The Washington Post. Before joining The Post, she was a political columnist and food writer at the Baltimore Sun, and she has also worked for the Associated Press, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and the Hartford Courant. Twitter https://twitter.com/LVozzella