Can Jay Jones drop out of Virginia attorney general race after texts?

When asked whether Virginia attorney general candidate Jay Jones should drop out of the race following violent text messages coming to light, many Democrats have either been mum or obliquely defended Jones’ candidacy while often criticizing the messages.

The situation begs whether Democrats may be concerned about the idea of replacing Jones on the Democratic ticket against Republican incumbent Jason Miyares, and whether it is even legally possible.

Fox News Digital inquired with the Commonwealth of Virginia as to exactly what could happen and whether Jones is stuck on the ballot as his scandal unravels.

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Unlike other commonwealths like Pennsylvania, where the secretary of the commonwealth is the chief election official, Virginia has its own Department of Elections that oversees such operations.

An official with the Department of Elections told Fox News Digital Wednesday there are three sections under the Code of Virginia that govern such situations.

Under Code 24.2-612.2, candidates are always permitted to drop out of their respective races, but they have until within 60 days of the election to have their name scrubbed from the ballot.

WATCH: KAINE DEFENDS JONES AMID AG CANDIDATE’S TEXTS ENVISIONING MURDER OF GOP LEADER: ‘STILL A SUPPORTER’

That means, in Jones’ case, he has the option to bow out amid the firestorm, but Democrats cannot name a new candidate to officially be on the ballot.

Additionally, Virginia’s voting season starts much earlier than some other states, with voters already casting ballots as of late September. Any votes for Jones on those ballots still go to him even if he drops out, creating an unintended boon for Miyares. 

As of Wednesday, early voting tallies in Virginia have already dwarfed 2021’s returns, according to the Virginia Public Access Project.

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While a partisan breakdown is not given, Democrats historically favor mail-in and early voting versus Republicans.

As of Wednesday, more than 420,000 ballots have been cast either in-person or by-mail this cycle, compared to only 225,000 in the 2021 sweeps.

But, if Jones were to drop out, the law provides an assistance to political parties under Code of Virginia 24.2-612.1.

If a candidate withdraws after ballots are printed, every county and independent city election office is mandated to post notices at polling sites informing voters that the candidate on the ballot has withdrawn.

Pieces of paper will then be distributed at polls and enclosed within mail-in ballots to alert voters to the withdrawn candidate.

If Jones officially withdrew, his votes would still be tallied but not counted by election officials because he would be a withdrawn candidate.

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Therefore, the Democratic Party could ostensibly also post signage at polls highlighting any consensus candidate they would want to replace Jones with.

Write-ins are allowed in the attorney general’s race, so if Jones were to withdraw, Democrats could coalesce behind a new candidate and put forward a unified front in hopes they garner enough late-season and day-of votes to surpass Miyares’ and Jones’ tallies.

There have been a handful of write-in candidates winning in Virginia in the 20th and 21st centuries. However, most occurred in noncompetitive or low-tier races.

Only two candidates whose names did not appear on the original ballot in competitive races have won elections in the contemporary era.

The more prominent of the two is Virginia Del. Nick Freitas, R-Culpeper, a libertarian-leaning conservative who won his 2019 effort after failing to file his paperwork on time to make the official ballot. He won his race with about 58% of the vote.

Freitas previously unsuccessfully challenged now-Democratic gubernatorial nominee Abigail Spanberger for her congressional seat — now held by Rep. Yevgeny “Eugene” Vindman, D-Va.

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He also narrowly lost to former Prince William County, Virginia, Supervisors Chairman Corey Stewart in the 2018 GOP senatorial primary 45–43. Stewart ultimately lost to Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va. by 57–41 in the general.

The other write-in case involved Brunswick County school board member Timothy Puryear in 2023.