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Because of what I’ll discreetly call “recent events” — better known as Jay Jones’ text messages and the unusual deal he got that allowed him to do community service for speeding at 116 mph by working for his own political action committee — the attorney general’s race has now attained more prominence in the closing days than maybe any attorney general’s race ever.
While polls have consistently shown Democrat Abigail Spanberger leading the governor’s race, recent polls have shown the AG’s race very much in flux, with some polls showing Republican Jason Miyares pulling ahead — not so much because he’s gained support but because Democrat Jones has lost some.
It’s unclear whether the voters who have moved away from Jones will a) eventually move back, b) move to Miyares or c) just not vote in that election.
In any case, there now appear to be some voters giving more thought to their choice of attorney general than we might otherwise have had in an environment where knowing who’s a D and who’s a R is often a sufficient enough guide.
Today, let’s look at what the attorney general actually does.
If you’re planning to vote for someone for attorney general in the common belief that this is the “top cop” in Virginia, someone who will be kicking in doors and rounding up bad guys, think again.
That’s not really what the job is about.
Yes, the attorney general of Virginia has some authority in criminal matters, but not as much as people often think. Although the positions have the same name, the job of a state attorney general in Virginia is not analogous to the attorney general of the United States.
Case in point: U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi oversees prosecutors across the country and has the authority to remove them; recently, we saw interim U.S. Attorneys in both the Eastern District of Virginia (Erik Siebert) and the Western District (Todd Gilbert) forced out over disputes about who should be prosecuted and how those offices ought to be run. Through those underlings, the U.S. Attorney General can set in motion prosecutions of a former FBI director, the sitting attorney general in New York and the president’s former national security adviser, all of whom had run afoul of President Donald Trump at some point.
Virginia’s attorney general has no such authority over local prosecutors across the state, all of whom are independently elected. We have rogue cannabis stores popping up across Southwest Virginia (and occasionally elsewhere) that are trying to get around state laws against selling marijuana by claiming to be “adult share” stores where customers are “gifted” weed if they buy another product. Miyares has issued a formal opinion that this workaround still violates state law, but he’s powerless to do much more than send warning letters (15 so far) because his office has no jurisdiction to prosecute such cases. Any actual prosecution is up to local commonwealth’s attorneys.
This column is meant as an explainer about the office, not a critique of the current occupant or his challenger. For those, I refer you to our coverage of the recent debate between Jones and Miyares that covered much of that ground. Or, you could visit our Voter Guide to see how they answered our issues questionnaire. I do have several references to Miyares simply to show things an attorney general does.
The attorney general has some prosecutorial authority, but it’s limited
The code of Virginia lists 17 duties for the attorney general before it gets to criminal cases. Even then, that section begins “Unless specifically requested by the Governor to do so, the Attorney General shall have no authority to institute or conduct criminal prosecutions in the circuit courts of the Commonwealth except in cases involving . . .” After that, 16 specific types of cases are mentioned where the attorney general can get involved, from alcohol laws to violations of the state waste management act.
Every attorney general likes to portray themselves as tough on crime, but the attorney general is not empowered to prosecute your basic criminal case. However, when local convictions are appealed, the attorney general does get involved: “In all criminal cases before the Court of Appeals or the Supreme Court in which the Commonwealth is a party or is directly interested, the Attorney General shall appear and represent the Commonwealth . . .” Otherwise, your local prosecutor might be burning up a lot of time on appellate cases.
In the recent debate between Miyares and Democratic challenger Jay Jones, Miyares faulted Jones for his lack of criminal law experience and noted that the office’s largest section is the criminal law section. This is why.
One of the most prominent criminal cases that the attorney general’s office has been involved in as the lead office has been the investigation into the Natural Bridge Zoo in Rockbridge County. It was the AG’s Animal Law Unit that initiated the raid in December 2023 that led to the seizure of the zoo’s animals (some of which were later returned, but most of which were awarded to the state in subsequent court proceedings). And it’s that same unit which is now pursuing a criminal investigation into what became of two missing baby giraffes that the state lays claim to (and which a judge sided with). That case will reach an inflection point at noon on Wednesday: That’s the deadline Circuit Court Judge Christopher Russell gave zoo manager Gretchen Mogensen to either turn over the two missing baby giraffes or report to jail.
Miyares talked about the Animal Law Unit in a previous Cardinal story. I asked the Jones campaign if he would retain that Animal Law Unit (which was founded by Miayres’ Democratic predecessor, Mark Herring) if elected. The response: “If elected, Jay will immediately conduct a comprehensive review of the office’s structure and staffing to ensure it’s equipped to keep Virginians safe and hold bad actors accountable. That includes both protecting and strengthening positions that enforce animal welfare laws and rebuilding the divisions Miyares dismantled so the office can effectively fight back against abuses.”
The attorney general spends a lot of time suing people
This is a relatively new phenomenon as our politics have become more partisan, but modern attorneys general spend a lot of time suing the federal government — if it’s run by the other party. Often this is done in conjunction with other attorneys general of the same party. Ballotpedia reports that the Biden administration was sued 133 times in multi-state suits. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed at least 100 suits, either on his own or in coordination with other Republican attorneys general. In September, the Democratic Attorney General Association announced that its members had filed their 100th suit against the Trump administration.
While those are the ones that get attention, many other legal actions don’t because they’re not partisan in nature. The most famous lawsuit from a group of state attorneys general came in the 1990s when 46 states (including Virginia) sued the biggest tobacco companies to recover health care costs for treating people with smoking-related conditions. Out of that 1998 master settlement came funding in Virginia for the Tobacco Commission, which has nothing to do with the gold leaf but instead oversees an endowment that’s still being used to help fund the creation of a new economy in former tobacco-growing counties. Likewise, there was a “global settlement” of multiple state lawsuits against opioid manufacturers, which led in Virginia to the creation of the Opioid Abatement Authority.
Among the lawsuits that Miyares has filed are one against:
- Real estate firms Zillow and Redfin, alleging that the former paid the latter not to compete for multifamily residential listings.
- Ticket retailers Ticketmaster and LiveNation for driving up ticket prices
- The social media app TikTok, alleging that it was “ intentionally designed to be addictive for adolescent users.”
The attorney general has broad power as a consumer rights champion
While the attorney general’s power to fight crime is limited, the office’s power to enforce consumer protection laws is quite broad. All the suits mentioned above — and others — were filed in the attorney general’s capacity as a consumer rights advocate; the suits argued that the companies violated Virginia consumer protection laws.
Whenever there’s a natural disaster — a blizzard, a flood — there’s typically a press release from the attorney general’s office, no matter who the attorney general is, warning businesses against price gouging and pointing out that the AG has authority to enforce anti-gouging laws.
This column is not meant to tilt you toward one candidate or another, so keep that in mind when I point out that Miyares’ campaign slogan — “the people’s protector” — is technically correct. When it comes to consumer protection laws, the code of Virginia really does see the attorney general as “the people’s protector.”
The attorney general is the lawyer for state agencies
Earlier this year, the Trump administration forced out the president of the University of Virginia. Politicians across the state weighed in on that, pro or con. Two voices were noticeably absent. One was that of Winsome Earle-Sears, the Republican candidate for governor who has said very little throughout her campaign about anything. The other was Miyares. Why not? He said he couldn’t comment without violating attorney-client privilege, because his office provides legal advice to the university.
The differences that the New College Institute in Martinsville has had with the nonprofit foundation that was set up to raise money for the facility? The attorney general’s office has been involved in that.
The attorney general isn’t just “the people’s lawyer,” the attorney general is the lawyer for the state. Or, as the state constitution puts it: “The Attorney General shall be the chief executive officer of the Department of Law.” In some ways, the attorney general is akin to the managing partner of a large law firm — in this case, one with 587 employees, including about 350 attorneys.
The attorney general issues opinions
This, like many aspects of the attorney general’s job, is often misunderstood. Certain officials — the governor, members of the General Assembly, many local officials — are allowed to seek a formal “attorney general’s opinion” about how a certain law may or may not apply. Many of these are routine, but some are more noteworthy.
For instance, I noted earlier that Miyares issued a formal opinion that the state laws that ban the retail sale of cannabis also cover “gifting” arrangements where customers buy an overpriced sticker and are given a bag of weed. This is not the same thing as a Supreme Court opinion, which has the force of law. An attorney general’s opinion is important, and sometimes newsworthy, but it’s simply a fancy form of legal advice.
The attorney general’s website explains it this way: “Official opinions represent the Attorney General’s analysis of current law based on his thorough research of existing statutes, the Virginia and United States constitutions, and relevant court decisions. They are not ‘rulings’ and do not create new law, nor do they change existing law. Creating and amending laws is the responsibility of the General Assembly, not the Attorney General. Official opinions are legal advice, not personal opinions, and do not reflect the Attorney General’s personal views about what the law should be. Such advice is provided to ensure clients/the requesters are in compliance with the law. While the opinions may be given deference by the courts, they are not binding on the courts.”
So far this year, Miyares has issued three formal opinions. In 2024, he issued 15. Among them: He advised the Hanover County electoral board that there is no provision to have votes counted by hand rather than a machine. He advised the Bedford County sheriff that he could notify Immigration and Customs Enforcement of an inmate’s scheduled release date if ICE has issued a detainer. He advised the city of Alexandria that state law allows it to ban leaf blowers. You can read all the attorney general’s opinions back to 1996 here.
The attorney general has some authority to investigate civil rights violations
It was under this authority that Miyares’ office investigated claims by members of Roanoke College women’s swim team and found that they had been discriminated against when the school briefly allowed a transgender athlete to join the team. You can read more on that case here.
The attorney general has some responsibility for wills and charities
I mention this only because there’s a specific connection to our part of the state. Sweet Briar College was set up via a will. When the board tried to shut down the school in 2015, alumnae went to court and alleged that the board was not acting in compliance with Indiana Fletcher Williams’ last will and testament. She had no heirs; state law lists several officials who have the responsibility to enforce wills in such instances where there are no heirs who could sue. One of those is the attorney general. That’s how then-Attorney General Mark Herring got involved in overseeing a settlement that kept the school open.
Other duties
This is by no means a comprehensive list of duties. For that, see the Code of Virginia. There is one important duty that is not spelled out in law, though, and it’s this:
The attorney general has a bully pulpit
The attorney general is one of just five officials elected statewide — the governor, lieutenant governor and two U.S. senators are the others. That gives the office-holder a platform few others have. Different attorneys general have used that in different ways. Miyares, for instance, has used it to draw public attention to the scourge of fentanyl through the “one pill can kill campaign.” That’s a clear public service — the only people pro-fentanyl are drug dealers — but, obviously, attorneys general might champion other causes that you feel differently about, depending on your politics.
Then there are some things that fall under the “bully pulpit” role that might overlap with other duties. For instance, early in his term, Miyares set up an Antisemitism Task Force that he said was the first of its kind in the country. At the time, this office said its purpose was to “monitor, gather information, educate, and coordinate with law enforcement regarding instances of antisemitism in the Commonwealth.”
As with the Animal Law Unit, I asked the Jones campaign if he would continue this task force. The response: “Yes. There is no place for hate or violence in Virginia, period. As Attorney General, Jay will review the existing task force to ensure it’s equipped to adequately fight antisemitism with all the resources and community buy-in as possible while also protecting families, schools, and places of worship. While the Attorney General has no legislative powers, Jay will advocate for a more inclusive curriculum that educates Virginia students about antisemitism and creates environments free from all discrimination and harassment against Jewish students.”
If you’re still undecided on who to vote for, all these are things you might want to think about.
Four times Virginia has had a governor and attorney general of different parties
Virginians haven’t elected a split ticket statewide since 2005, but voters are free to mix-and-match parties if they choose.
The four times this has happened, with the candidate elected governor listed first and the candidate elected attorney general second:
1969: Linwood Holton (R), Andrew Miller (D )
1973: Mills Godwin (R ), Andrew Miller (D)
2001: Mark Warner (D), Jerry Kilgore (R)
2005: Tim Kaine (D), Bob McDonnell (R)
That can, and has, led to situations where the governor and attorney general had different ideas on how things should be done. When Warner and Kilgore found themselves on opposite sides of one legal issue, the Washington Post detailed other instances where a governor and attorney general of different parties had differed: “Once, after a spate of escapes from the District’s prison at Lorton in Fairfax County, Miller sued the D.C. government under the common law definition of a “nuisance,” which mightily annoyed Holton, who was trying to improve relations with Virginia’s “neighbor across the Potomac River.”
Holton, who is now deceased, told the Post then: “Early in my term, I found that Andy was going to go on his own way — take an independent course. His view was, ‘I’m the people’s lawyer, not the governor’s lawyer.’ I didn’t see any point in having a confrontation on that.”
We live in more partisan times now, so if we had a governor and attorney general of different parties today, we should expect more examples of the two finding themselves at odds. Of course, some might also consider a split decision to be an informal part of our system of checks and balances. If Virginians wanted to guarantee a governor and attorney general who were always in alignment, we wouldn’t be electing an attorney general at all; we’d have a constitution that would allow the governor to just appoint one. Instead, our constitution very intentionally creates a situation where we might have a governor and attorney general from different parties, or even a governor and attorney general from the same party who might disagree on a particular issue. Speaking of which, we wouldn’t be asking this question if we lived in Maui or the North Slope . . .
Some states don’t elect an attorney general
Every state has an attorney general, but not all states elect theirs. Virginia is one of 43 states that do, leaving seven that don’t. In five states (Alaska, Hawaii, New Hampshire, New Jersey and Wyoming), the attorney general is appointed by the governor, just as the U.S. attorney general is chosen by the president. In Maine, the legislature elects the attorney general. In Tennessee, the state Supreme Court picks the attorney general.
Virginians, though, pick theirs. Early voting continues this week, and then, one week from today, comes our traditional Election Day.
Where the candidates stand
The Democratic ticket: Abigail Spanberger for governor, Ghazala Hashmi for lieutenant governor, Jay Jones for attorney general.” data-medium-file=”https://i0.wp.com/cardinalnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/dem_ticket-scaled.jpg?fit=300%2C98&quality=89&ssl=1″ data-large-file=”https://i0.wp.com/cardinalnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/dem_ticket-scaled.jpg?fit=780%2C254&quality=89&ssl=1″ src=”https://i0.wp.com/cardinalnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/dem_ticket.jpg?resize=780%2C254&quality=89&ssl=1″ alt=”The Democratic ticket: Abigail Spanberger for governor, Ghazala Hashmi for lieutenant governor, Jay Jones for attorney general.” class=”wp-image-136428″>The Republican ticket: Winsome Earle-Sears for governor, John Reid for lieutenant governor, Jason Miyares for attorney general.” data-medium-file=”https://i0.wp.com/cardinalnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/republican_ticket_best-scaled.jpg?fit=300%2C102&quality=89&ssl=1″ data-large-file=”https://i0.wp.com/cardinalnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/republican_ticket_best-scaled.jpg?fit=780%2C265&quality=89&ssl=1″ src=”https://i0.wp.com/cardinalnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/republican_ticket_best.jpg?resize=780%2C265&quality=89&ssl=1″ alt=”The Republican ticket: Winsome Earle-Sears for governor, John Reid for lieutenant governor, Jason Miyares for attorney general.” class=”wp-image-136430″>All six candidates for statewide office, and many candidates for the House of Delegates and local offices, have responded to our issues questionnaire. You can see their answers on our Voter Guide.
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