Political expert reacts to latest video of Governor Youngkin

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (WVIR) - Many eyes are on Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin (R) due to a video he released on social media.

Some think it looks pretty similar to a presidential ad, even though it contradicts something Gov. Youngkin said earlier this year.

The video features clips of the governor at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.

“That’s a presidential ad. It has nothing to do with Virginia,” UVA Center for Politics Director Larry Sabato said Friday, May 19.

Sabato believes Youngkin is trying to be kept in the mix for the Republican nomination.

“Anytime they believe that Youngkin is not being included in the discussion on the cable networks and in the newspapers, by the pundits, then they’ll put out. Something else or do some trick to remind people that well, he may just run after all,” the political expert said.

Youngkin claimed earlier this year that he was not running for president, then soon clarified he is not running this year.

“[Youngkin] could jump in after the legislative elections in early November or in January, and his hope, or belief, is that the other Republicans will beat each other up. Certainly, with Trump in there, I doubt the other candidates are going to be unscathed. So he’s hoping that Republicans will be looking for a fresh face,” Sabato said.

The video was created by Spirit of Virginia, which provided the following statement from Dave Rexrode, senior advisor to the governor: “Gov. Youngkin is 100 percent focused on Virginia, as he’s repeatedly made clear. This was a video highlighting his remarks at the Reagan Library recently, where the governor spoke about how Virginia was one of the bright lights of our nation’s future.”

In the video, Youngkin draw comparisons to himself and Pres. Reagan.

“Youngkin sees himself as being in the Ronald Reagan lane to the Republican nomination. His problem is that I don’t think the Republican Party, as constituted today, would even nominate Ronald Reagan,” Sabato said.

Sabato says it is going to take a lot more than one ad to convince people that Virginia’s governor is heading to the Oval Office.

“He’s yet to crack 1% in the polling averages, he’s usually at zero. So in a sense, all of us are tied with Glenn Youngkin for the Republican presidential nomination,” Sabato said.

RELATED: Governor Youngkin not planning to run for president in 2023

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