Clamor for ouster of top Democrats slows in Va.
RICHMOND, Va. — The clamor for the resignation of Virginia’s top two politicians seemed to die down Monday, with some black community leaders forgiving Gov. Ralph Northam over the blackface furor and calling for a fair hearing for Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax on the sexual assault allegations against him.
And Mr. Northam was asking for forgiveness in a nationally televised interview Monday as he fights to stay in office in the wake of his admission that he wore blackface as a 25-year-old for a dance contest. But his reconciliation tour hit a bump as Mr. Northam confronted fallout from excerpts of the CBS interview that aired over the weekend, in which he referred to the first Africans who arrived in Virginia in 1619 as “indentured servants.”
Over the past several days, practically the entire Democratic establishment rose up to demand fellow Democrats Mr. Northam and Mr. Fairfax immediately step down. But the tone changed markedly after the weekend.
A Democratic state lawmaker who had threatened to begin impeachment proceedings against Mr. Fairfax, Virginia’s highest-ranking black politician, set the idea aside after running into resistance.
At the same time, several black clergy and civic leaders made clear they are willing to give both Mr. Northam and Attorney General Mark Herring a second chance, while urging due process for Mr. Fairfax. Mr. Herring, like Mr. Northam, has admitted putting on blackface in the 1980s.
As the scandals engulfing Virginia’s top three elected Democrats developed, it became increasingly clear that it could look bad for the party if Mr. Fairfax were summarily pushed out and the two white men managed to stay in power.
“The sort of irony that makes your head spin is that Mr. Herring and Mr. Northam are in trouble for behavior related to Virginia’s racial past. And yet it may be the only AfricanAmerican statewide officeholder who, at the end of the day, gets in trouble,” said Quentin Kidd, a political science professor at Virginia’s Christopher Newport University. “This may get worse and more uncomfortable before it gets better — if it does get better.”
If Mr. Northam stepped down, Mr. Fairfax would become Virginia’s second African-American governor in history. If all three Democrats resigned, a Republican could become governor: GOP House Speaker Kirk Cox is next in the line of succession.
Late last week, amid widespread calls for Mr. Fairfax’s resignation, Democratic Del. Patrick Hope, who is white, announced plans to introduce articles of impeachment against the lieutenant governor on Monday. But Mr. Hope relented, citing both reaction from colleagues and online accusations he is a racist.
Hours later, a group of eight black clergy and community leaders said during a news conference that they forgive Mr. Northam and want to give him a second chance. Former Richmond City Councilman Henry “Chuck” Richardson called Mr. Northam a “good and decent man” who has stood with African-Americans on important issues.
Separately, a set of black leaders listed steps they said Mr. Northam and Mr. Herring should take to redeem themselves during their remaining three years in office, including removing Confederate statues and raising more money for Virginia’s historically black colleges.
“In our opinion, it is not enough for you to simply apologize,” the black leaders said in a letter.
The Virginia Legislative Black Caucus did not withdraw its earlier call for Mr. Northam to resign. But its chairman, Del. Lamont Bagby, signaled willingness to work with the governor on issues of importance to black lawmakers.
“My caucus, I can tell you, they’re fired up to get this stuff done,” Mr. Bagby said.
A recent poll found a majority of black Virginians support Mr. Northam remaining in office, with Virginians overall split about evenly on the question of whether he should step down. The poll was conducted last Wednesday through Friday by The Washington Post and George Mason University.
Of the three politicians under fire, Mr. Herring appeared to be in the least danger of being forced out. Black leaders have said they felt he earnestly apologized.
However, in a sign of the difficulties Mr. Fairfax will face in staying on the job, four of his staff members have resigned. In interviews published Monday, Mr. Fairfax repeated denials of sexual assault allegations. Mr. Fairfax said he has never sexually assaulted anyone and deserves a chance to defend himself.