Governor McAuliffe Statement on General Assembly Supreme Court Vote

Statement

"Today the General Assembly acted to elect a justice to the Supreme Court through a process that was divisive, distracting and detrimental to the integrity of Virginia's highest court and our Commonwealth itself.

"By firing a qualified and nonpartisan Supreme Court Justice for purely political reasons, Republicans in the General Assembly made a clear statement that their partisan agenda comes before what is best for this Commonwealth and its residents.

"The ensuing process of selecting her replacement, complete with the consideration of 4 candidates in the span of one week, offering lower court seats without any vetting or transparency, and eventual extension of a 12-year term to a little-known 11th hour pick compounded the embarrassment that this process has brought to our Commonwealth.

"I do not know Judge Stephen McCullough and my staff and I, much like the General Assembly and the Virginia public, have not had much time to review his credentials for the state's highest court. Unfortunately, however qualified he may be, he will take the bench under the cloud of the ugly process that resulted in his election, having accepted a seat previously-held by a Justice whose qualifications were superior.

"My focus is on building a new Virginia economy for the people who elected me to make their lives better. On a number of issues, including education, workforce development, transportation, and veterans, we've proven that we're capable of working together toward that goal. It's a shame that some of that good work can be overshadowed by partisan spitball fights simply because Republican Leaders elected to fire a qualified justice out of an extreme partisan agenda."

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