Dougherty defeats candidate involved in Jones texting scandal

Democrat Lindsay Dougherty defeated Republican incumbent Carrie Coyner in the race for House of Delegates District 75.

District 75 includes Hopewell City, parts of Chesterfield county, and parts of Prince George County. 

The district has historically leaned Republican. However, in the 2024 presidential election, Kamala Harris won the district by 52.3%. 

Dougherty and Coyner had previously faced off for a House of Delegates seat in 2019, which Coyner won narrowly. The district’s recent political fluctuation is due in part to the redistricting of legislative maps in 2021, which diversified and added more youth voters to the district, causing Democrats to make gains. This race is one of the most closely watched house races in the state. 

Dougherty ran on a platform of improving education, raising state minimum wage, protecting access to healthcare, reducing gun violence and protecting the LGBTQ community.

 “She is focused on policies that will build up our diverse communities in Chesterfield, Hopewell, and Prince George,” her campaign website reads.

Dougherty’s campaign took hit after a former Democratic house candidate, Tavorise Marks accused Dougherty of making racist statements about him. Marks wrote in a Facebook post on April 22, 2025 that during the 2019 primary he received a tip off from a woman who was part of a text chain with the Liberal Women of Chesterfield County. She sent him a screenshot showing racist text messages, such as “‘Large Black men like him make white women uncomfortable, he won't get our votes” from Dougherty, according to Marks’ Facebook post. 

Dougherty has denied the claims, and Marks has not provided any screenshots as proof. The Elias Law Group, Dougherty’s legal representation, sent a cease and desist letter saying that Marks and Coyner must “immediately cease and desist disseminating any communications, including advertisements” and wrote, “Put simply: Ms. Dougherty has never spoken or written the remarks that Mr. Marks alleged.”

Coyner was notably involved in sharing the texts that Jay Jones sent her, in which Jones threatened violence against then-House Speaker Todd Gilbert and his children.

The Coyner campaign sponsored an ad in which Marks talks about his first Facebook post, but the ad was never aired, according to Virginia Scope. The involvement of Dougherty's lawyers was not a positive force in Coyner’s overall campaign.

Coyner policies include making education more accessible and affordable, protecting the victims of sexual assault, enabling the career of military spouses, helping individuals with disabilities and aiding students in recovery according to her campaign website. 

According to the Virginia Public Access Project, Dougherty has out-raised Coyner. She received over $2 million in donations from the House Democratic Caucus and almost $350,000 from the Democratic Party of Virginia. Coyner received just over $600,000 from the Republican Party of Virginia and just over $300,000 from the Republican State Leadership Committee. Dougherty raised over $3 million total while Coyner raised just over $2 million.

Dougherty emphasized on her campaign website her excitement towards working with communities to create a safer and healthier environment. “She is excited to get to work, to meet with you and your families, building a community everyone is engaged in.”

Contact writer Adelyn Gove at addy.gove@richomond.edu