Virginia House Speaker Kirk Cox, the Republican who is the third in line to become governor, spoke out Wednesday as the top three elected officials in the state — all Democrats — face controversies threatening to end their political careers.
In a statement, Cox touched on the “difficult time” facing the state but also reassured Virginians that work in the legislature would not get held up.
Days after pressing Gov. Ralph Northam to resign after a racist photo in his 1984 medical yearbook was published online, Cox called on Attorney General Mark Herring to do the same after he made a shocking admission Wednesday to wearing blackface at a college party in 1980.
Calling the “belated admission” from Herring “shocking,” Cox said Herring “should adhere to the standard he has set for others or he loses credibility” after the attorney general had called on Northam to resign days ago.
Cox did not call on Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax to resign after a woman came out with an accusation that Fairfax sexually assaulted her in 2004. Fairfax has denied the allegation.
“The allegations of sexual assault against Lt. Governor Fairfax are extremely serious. The Lt. Governor, the alleged victim, and Virginians all deserve a full airing of the facts,” Cox said.
Cox said all the controversies will the “resolved in due course.”
NEW: Statement from Virginia House Speaker Kirk Cox, who is 4th in line to be governor
“The last seven days have been tumultuous for our Commonwealth. The revelations against and admissions by the leaders of the executive branch are disturbing.” pic.twitter.com/i1pZsZmfbm
— Johnny Verhovek (@JTHVerhovek) February 6, 2019
Northam so far has refused to bow to increasing pressure to resign over the controversy stemming from a photo showing one man dressed up in blackface and another in Ku Klux Klan garb. Northam denies he was in the photo, but he did admit he wore blackface for a Michael Jackson costume in the 1980s.
Fairfax and Herring are second and third in line to succeed Northam as governor. If all three should step aside, Cox would be next up to serve out Northam’s term, per Article 5, Section 16 of the Virginia state constitution.
Cox, 61, became speaker at the beginning of 2018 — a position he likely would have lost if not for a coin flip that decided a tied Virginia House election in 2017 and ultimately gave GOP control of the statehouse.
