The Virginia Democratic gubernatorial candidate Ralph Northam campaign released a report that blamed online ‘bots’ for the increased online activity over the Latino Victory Fund (LVF) ad that featured an Ed Gillespie supporter attempting to run down minority children.
The Latino Victory Fund ad became a center point of the Virginia gubernatorial race; the Northam campaign and the Latino Victory Fund faced bipartisan backlash over the controversial ad. Even the Washington Post called the ad “vile” and “despicable.” Virginia campaign finance reports revealed that the Latino Victory Fund coordinated with the Northam campaign on the controversial ad.
Rather than admit that the LVF ad stirred controversy among Virginia residents, the Northam campaign released a study commissioned by Discourse Intelligence that suggested that the increased online activity was mostly attributed to “online bots.”
David Abrams, a spokesman for the Gillespie campaign, countered the Northam campaign’s report, saying that it had “absolutely nothing to do with the fact that Virginians in both parties found this ad to be, in the words of the Washington Post editorial board, ‘vile’ and ‘despicable.’ The Northam campaign is so desperate they have resorted to fabricating conspiracy theories for their failing campaign. Since the ad ran, our online donations have tripled, and we have been inundated with requests to volunteer. The only question that remains is why hasn’t Ralph Northam condemned this attack on his fellow Virginians, and what exactly was his campaign’s role in the production of this spot.”
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