Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) said on Sunday he was “hugely humbled” by people calling on him to run for president in 2024 but said he has not come close to making such a decision.
“That’s not a decision that we have even begun to undertake,” Youngkin told CBS “Face the Nation” guest moderator Robert Costa.
After flipping the governor’s mansion red in 2021 in a state that had increasingly become Democratic in the decade prior, Youngkin has been eyed by many as a rising star within the Republican Party.
The Washington Post reported late last month that Youngkin privately met with Republican megadonors in Manhattan, saying it was a hint of a potential 2024 run.
“I am hugely humbled by this discussion that’s going on,” Youngkin said on Sunday. “And the reality, of course, is I think it’s based on the fact that I was in a state that was blue, and we turned it red. I ran on a platform that we’re delivering.”
He has also formed a political action committee, called Spirit of Virginia, to get involved in races in the commonwealth and other states.
“I think the road to the majority in our House of Representatives comes through Virginia, and I’m going to spend real time there making sure that we win these elections,” Youngkin said on Sunday.
The nonpartisan Cook Political Report rates Reps. Elaine Luria (D-Va.) and Abigail Spanberger’s (D-Va.) reelection bids as toss-ups.
Both defeated Republican incumbents in the 2018 midterm elections, flipping their districts blue, but now the GOP is hoping to take back the districts amid historical and political headwinds for Democrats.
Youngkin further fueled speculation of a 2024 run by speaking at the Nebraska GOP Convention on Saturday at the invite of Gov. Pete Ricketts (R).
“I believe there are governor’s elections around the country where I think I can make a difference,” Youngkin said of his political action committee’s work.