This story was reported and written by our media partner the Virginia Mercury.
As Virginia barrels toward a high-stakes House of Delegates election in November, a dozen Republican incumbents are quietly banding together in what they’re calling the Purple Caucus — an informal alliance of lawmakers fighting for political survival in the increasingly competitive terrain of suburban and swing districts.
It’s a defensive maneuver born out of shifting political dynamics and the lingering effects of the state’s 2021 redistricting, which redrew the legislative map in ways that now expose more Republican-held districts to Democratic threats.
Adding fuel to the fire is the broader national climate, driven by the economic turbulence under President Donald Trump’s second term that has become a backdrop Democrats are weaponizing on the campaign trail.
In February, Virginia Democrats launched a pointed ad campaign zeroing in on GOP incumbents in vulnerable seats.
The digital spots sought to link Republicans to tech billionaire Elon Musk, whom Trump appointed to lead the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). As a photo of Trump and Musk flashes on the screen, the narrator accuses, “Virginia Republicans are following the leader — cutting taxes for them. Leaving us to foot the bill.”
Even in a tough political year for Democrats, Kamala Harris in November carried 59 of the state’s 100 House districts, according to the Virginia-based State Navigate site.
Meanwhile, Republicans are holding several seats where Trump either lost outright or failed to clear a majority — and even more where his margin hovered just above 50%. These figures suggest the GOP is defending ground it once considered safe.
By contrast, Democrats are on steadier footing: none of their legislators represent districts that Trump carried, and only a handful are in districts where Harris’ margin of victory was below 55%.
One of the Republicans feeling that pressure is Del. Amanda Batten, R-James City County. Her redrawn District 71 — encompassing Williamsburg and parts of James City and New Kent counties — has trended blue in recent cycles. In 2024, Harris edged Trump there by nearly five points, and U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., defeated Republican challenger Hung Cao by a similar margin.
Batten has taken the lead in organizing the group of Republicans in competitive districts, saying the idea came about in part because Democrats seemed to single them out in early attacks.
“We kind of came up with it based on the composition of our districts,” she said, “but after the legislative session, the Democrat caucus did some hit pieces with YouTube ads targeting 12 members of our caucus.”
She described the Purple Caucus as informal — more like a support network than a strategic war room.
“We don’t have actual caucus meetings where we get together or anything like that,” Batten said. “We chit-chat back and forth, but that’s about it.”
Still, members share tactics and tips. Many are new to office, and Batten said the group provides a venue for swapping campaign insights.
“If any of us find some best practices or have some good ideas that we think would be useful,” she added, “then we try to share those and collaborate with each other.”
In her own race, Batten has worked closely with Richmond-based consultant Brett Feinstein — but noted she’s also looped him in to help other Purple Caucus members.
“Obviously I’m in a competitive district, and he does some work for me,” she explained. “And anything that I think would be useful to other members in competitive districts, I share that with him, too.”
House Minority Leader Todd Gilbert, R-Shenandoah, acknowledged the group’s existence but described it in minimalist terms.
“It’s an informal gathering of members who may be more vulnerable than others and find themselves in swing districts or suburban districts,” he said. “There’s nothing magical about it — just people who have a common interest in, of course, winning reelection and representing their districts.”
Swing district pressure mounts
Besides Batten, other Republicans in districts Trump lost include Del. David Owen, R-Henrico (House District 57); Del. Carrie Coyner, R-Chesterfield (HD75); Del. Kim Taylor, R-Petersburg (HD82); Del. Baxter Ennis, R-Chesapeake (HD89); Del. A.C. Cordoza, R-Hampton (HD86); Del. Mark Earley, R-Chesterfield (HD73); and Del. Ian Lovejoy, R-Prince William (HD22).
Several others represent districts Trump won with razor-thin margins, including Del. Geary Higgins, R-Loudoun (HD30), and Del. Chad Green, R-York (HD69). Also on the watchlist are Delegates Paul Milde (HD64), Bobby Orrock (HD66), Anne Ferrell Tata (HD99), Rob Bloxom (HD100), and Tony Wilt (HD34) — all representing areas where Trump carried between 52% and 55%.
Political scientist Stephen Farnsworth of the University of Mary Washington sees this as part of a larger trend. He said when parties become more ideologically rigid, lawmakers from swing districts can start to feel squeezed.
“This is a constant problem,” Farnsworth said. “For years, Congress had what they called the Blue Dog Caucus, where more moderate Democrats tried to chart a different course than the party leadership.”
He added that as Virginia politics more closely mimic the hyper-partisan combat of Washington, it makes sense that centrist Republicans are looking for ways to stay afloat.
“It behooves any political party to make people feel welcome if at all possible,” Farnsworth said. “An open split within the party would not be helpful for the party’s fortunes in November.”
But signs of strain are already surfacing. Batten said her relationship with Gilbert, the caucus leader, is distant — and that she’s felt a lack of support.
“I don’t really have any communication with Todd, he does not communicate with me,” she said. Though she sees him during every legislative session, she added, “outside of that, I honestly couldn’t begin to tell you the last time we had a one-on-one conversation.”
Batten, pointing to what she described as Gilbert’s growing detachment during the 2024 legislative session, said he “seems very much like he has a foot out of the door.”
She noted that his disengagement has been especially evident in recent months — a period during which Gilbert also submitted his name for consideration to become the next U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Virginia.
“As the leader, he sort of drives the train when it comes to fundraising and all of that,” Batten added. “And that can be challenging.”
GOP leadership tensions surface
Gilbert pushed back on the idea that he’s not doing enough for swing-district Republicans.
“That’s certainly not my perception,” he said. “I think I have always been hyper-aware of the fact that our fortunes lie in these purple swing districts.”
His broader concern, Gilbert said, has been reminding colleagues from deep-red districts that winning back the GOP’s legislative majority hinges on what happens in marginal seats.
“But there are not just purple districts on one side,” he said. “There are people that are also vulnerable in the Democratic offices.”
Gilbert also rejected any notion that he’s disengaged from his role as minority leader, insisting he remains fully committed.
“I absolutely have not checked out,” he said. “There are certainly people who fancy themselves the leader who don’t have that responsibility and who choose to act out in other ways, and criticizing me is one way of doing that.”
Del. Chris Obenshain, R-Montgomery, a member of the Purple Caucus, said he has no complaints about Gilbert’s leadership or his engagement with members in competitive districts.
“Members of the caucus support each other,” he said. “We recognize that everybody comes from a different district and everybody has to run in their community, and that’s been very well supported.”
When he was first elected to the House in 2023, Obenshain narrowly defeated Democrat Lily Franklin with just 50.31% of the vote — despite Trump and the ultimately unsuccessful Cao carrying the district.
Obenshain is slated for a rematch with Franklin in November. He said the GOP caucus has long understood that lawmakers from different parts of the state can’t all run the same playbook.
“The concerns in my district are different from the ones in Tidewater or Northern Virginia,” he said. “But we all support each other.”
And while he acknowledged the Purple Caucus exists, Obenshain dismissed the idea that it’s anything out of the ordinary.
“I don’t think there’s anything really unusual or unique about it,” he said. “When you have things in common with folks in other districts, you kind of talk about that.”
Unlike their Republican counterparts, House Democrats have not formed a similar coalition.
House Speaker Don Scott, D-Portsmouth, said the first he heard of the Purple Caucus was when asked about it for this story — and he didn’t mince words.
“There is a Purple Caucus? They aren’t red and they aren’t blue?” he said, chuckling. “And Delegate Batten is supposed to be moderate now? That’s funny, because she’s not moderate. She’s as extreme as everybody else.”
Scott said Republicans creating new caucuses shows internal disarray.
“They’re wrong on the issues,” he said, “and they probably need to create another caucus — a common sense caucus — because right now they’re too terrified of Trump to do anything to change course.”
Ken Nunnenkamp, executive director of the Republican Party of Virginia, offered a more pragmatic view. He said groups like the Purple Caucus are normal in a campaign cycle and don’t indicate disunity.
“I think the word caucus is always an interesting term, because people start to use a caucus for anything,” he said. “But I don’t think there’s anything strange about legislators grouping to talk about campaign strategies.”
Nunnenkamp emphasized that the most competitive districts — the very ones where many Purple Caucus members are running — were also the most expensive races in 2023, and he expects the same in 2025.
But with Republicans now unified behind Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears as the party’s gubernatorial nominee, Nunnenkamp said the party has sharpened its focus.
“Now that we have a nominee for governor, everyone is now rowing in the same direction,” he said, “trying to win back the House of Delegates, and that does involve holding all of our competitive seats and picking up a couple of new seats.”
