A Democratic candidate for the Virginia legislature was granted a protective order against his Republican opponent on Friday following allegations that the state lawmaker had "harassed" a supporter of theirs “while armed with a gun” in a government building.
Democratic candidate Virgil Thornton is running to unseat Virginia Rep. A.C. Cordoza, a Republican, but announced Saturday that a judge had granted the protection order against Cordoza following what he called an “ongoing patter of intimidation.”
“A protective order was issued against Delegate A.C. Cordoza after he harassed a supporter of the Virgil Thornton campaign yesterday at the Hampton City registrar’s office while armed with a gun – just four days after harassing Virgil’s niece,” a statement from Thornton’s campaign reads. “This ongoing pattern of intimidation is dangerous, unacceptable, and makes clear that Delegate Cordoza is unfit to hold public office.”
The new protective order comes amid an ongoing feud between the two candidates, which included another protective order being granted just days earlier, though against Thornton’s campaign staff after Cordoza alleged that Thornton’s campaign staffer – also his niece – had threatened to “put a knot” in Cordoza’s head.
“One of my opponent's campaign workers got upset and decided it was a great idea to threaten me – and in today’s day and age with the left’s political violence and just where we are in this climate, I wasn't going to take any chances,” Cordoza said, according to Fox News.
Thornton, however, refuted Cordoza’s version of events, and said that Cordoza had actually been the instigator of the confrontation, having “surrounded” his niece and “used his size to intimidate her.”
“Sadly, this is not the first time he’s been on the wrong side of the law,” the statement from Thornton’s campaign reads.
“In fact, his most recent TV ad even featured a wanted fugitive. We’re grateful to law enforcement for their quick response and professionalism in deescalating the situation. The safety of our volunteers and staff is our top priority, and we’ve again instructed them to keep their distance from the delegate for their own protection," the statement reads.