Republican Glenn Youngkin Speech After VA Governor Win Transcript

Speaker 1: (00:00) This is Glen Youngkin. He is the projected winner for the governorship of the Commonwealth of Virginia. He will momentarily address this crowd. Let's listen in. Glenn Youngkin: (00:11) Wow. Audience: (00:11) Glenn, Glenn, Glenn. Glenn Youngkin: (00:11) Thank you. Wow. Amazing. All righty Virginia, we won this day. How much fun? First of all, thank you all for waiting a few minutes longer than we thought to, breakfast will be served shortly. Amazing, God. Well first, let me thank Suzanne. I have said many times that the Lord knew what he was doing because I need her a lot more than she needs me. When I told you on that fateful Friday afternoon, that a conviction had come over my heart to go serve Virginians, you did respond. You responded with grace, you responded with support, you responded with unconditional love. Thank you. I also have to thank my amazing kids, because I'm not sure that they were all on board at the beginning. So guys, I want to thank you, Grant, Anna, John, Thomas, John, thank you over in Dublin. I love you guys. And I want to thank my beloved Commonwealth of Virginia. Glenn Youngkin: (02:46) My fellow Virginians, we stand here this morning at this defining moment, a defining moment that yes, started with two people on a walk, and a defining moment that is now millions of Virginians walking together. Walking together, sharing dreams and hopes, just like the ones that have always been planted on my own heart, dreams and hopes for a Virginia that soars, a Virginia that never settles, a Virginia where the Virginia Promise comes alive for everyone that calls this Virginia home. Together, we will change the trajectory of this Commonwealth. And friends, we are going to start that transformation on day one. Audience: (04:13) Day one. Glenn Youngkin: (04:20) There is no time to waste. Speaker 4: (04:24) Our kids can't wait. Glenn Youngkin: (04:25) Our kids can't wait, we work in real people time, not government time. And so on day one, we're going to work. We're going to restore excellence in our schools. We will invest the largest education budget in the history of the Commonwealth. We're going to invest in teachers, new facilities, special education. We're going to introduce choice within our public school system. How about that, choice within the public school system. We're going to start with 20 charter schools, and we are going to make a down payment and close the gap on giving parents an opportunity to select where their kids go to school. Friends, we're going to embrace our parents, not ignore them. We're going to press forward with a curriculum that includes listening to parents' input, a curriculum that allows our children to run as fast as they can, teaching them how to think, enabling their dreams to soar. Friends, we are going to reestablish excellence in our schools. Audience: (06:08) Fight for schools. Fight for schools. Fight for schools. Glenn Youngkin: (06:13) We are fighting for parents and students and teachers and our schools. Friends, we will reduce our cost of living, on day one we will declare the largest tax refund in the history of Virginia. We're going to eliminate the grocery tax, suspend the most recent hike in the gas tax, double everybody's standard deduction. And we are going to cut taxes on the retirement income of our veterans. Speaker 5: (07:00) Thank you. Glenn Youngkin: (07:01) All in, we are going to save Virginia families $1,500 year one. We are going to keep our communities safe. We're going to comprehensively fund law enforcement because they stand up for us, and we are going to stand up for them. Higher salaries, better equipment, more training, programs like Unity in the Community to work to build trust between law enforcement and those they protect and serve. We're going to protect qualified immunity, invest in our behavioral health system. And finally, we will replace the entire parole board on day one. And on day one, we're going to jump-start our jobs and reinvigorate this economy so it lifts up all Virginians. We're going to get this economy moving again, growing 400,000 new jobs, fostering 10,000 startup businesses. Friends, Virginia will be open for business. It's time for Virginia to be the place where everyone wants to live, not leave. A place where the relentless pursuit for a better life, for prosperity is not burdened or blocked by self-interested politicians who are more focused on their futures than those they were elected to serve. Glenn Youngkin: (08:56) Over 100,000 miles on the campaign trail, I heard stories that were unique and powerful, but the reality is the challenge of overcoming a culture where the state overwhelms self-empowerment is all too common. For too long we've been expected to shelve our dreams, to shelve our hope, to settle for low expectations. We will not be a Commonwealth of low expectations, we'll be a Commonwealth of high expectations. And friends, all of that has changed tonight. A campaign that came from nowhere, but we were joined by neighbors and friends of all races, of all religions, of all ages, of all political ideologies, and it turned into a movement. This stopped being a campaign long ago. This is the spirit of Virginia coming together like never before, the spirit of Washington and Jefferson and Madison and Monroe and Patrick Henry of Virginia, and standing up and taking our Commonwealth back. My fellow Virginians, this is our moment. It's our moment for parents, for grandparents, for aunts, for uncles, for neighbors, to change the future of Virginia's children's lives, to change their Virginia journey. It's our time to turn that vision into a reality. Glenn Youngkin: (11:15) It's a vision where Virginians' power, the power that has historically resided in the marbled halls in Richmond is spread out, spread out to the kitchen tables that are held together with the bond of spirit, of liberty and freedom. Especially those kitchen tables where breakfast is eaten after a midnight shift. Friends, this is where our government will go, we will go to the people for the people, it will be of the people. From the farms of the Shenandoah Valley, to the docks and shipyards of Hampton Roads, to the coal fields in Southwest Virginia, to the banks of the James River, to the memorials in Arlington National Cemetery, this is our Virginia to build together, and we are going to go to work on day one. Glenn Youngkin: (12:40) There are always those, there's those that say, "That hill is too steep to climb," but we are empowered. We're empowered by a conviction, a righteous conviction in our children's future, were strengthened by our collective belief in the Virginia Promise. So let's climb that hill together. Let's reinvigorate our future. Let's reinvigorate this amazing Commonwealth of Virginia. Together we can build a new day, a new day for Virginians where yes, we soar and we never settle, a new day where all Virginians, all of us, can deserve to look forward to grabbing, to aspiring, to dreaming, and then achieving that great Virginia Promise. God bless you all. God bless the Commonwealth of Virginia. And let's go.