Farnsworth Lectures on Political Narratives and Disinformation

In addition, Farnsworth was quoted by WVTF in a recent segment titled “Virginia Democrats beat early primary voting record.” Farnsworth told the outlet the increase in early votes shows excitement among Democrats across the Commonwealth. “The Washington narrative that Democrats are dispirited and the activists are hopeless,” he said. “That’s just not supported by these early voting numbers in Virginia.” Read the article.

While much of the messaging will be about what Youngkin’s done during his time in office, including a record number of vetoes of measures Democratic majorities passed in the House of Delegates and state Senate, the context will be Trump’s second term, said Steve Farnsworth, a political scientist at the University of Mary Washington.

From the segment: I was talking to Stephen Farnsworth, the political science professor at University of Mary Washington, who keeps an eye on a lot of this. He had a good line about this. He said that usually all politics are local, but that this year, he thinks that all politics are national in Virginia.
https://wamu.org/story/25/06/20/the-politics-hour-democratic-nominee-for-virginia-lieutenant-governor-ghazala-hashmi-on-her-primary-win/

How voters’ views on Trump could play into Virginia general election (NBC Washington)
“The biggest challenge for Virginia Republicans is President Trump,” said Stephen Farnsworth.
https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/northern-virginia/how-voters-views-on-trump-could-play-into-virginia-general-election-video/3939913/

Reaction: Virginia Primary Election (DC News Now)
Dr. Stephen Farnsworth is the Professor of Political Science and International Affairs and Director of the Center for Leadership and Media Studies at the University of Mary Washington. He breaks down the election and sets the scene for the November election.
https://www.dcnewsnow.com/news/capitol-review/reaction-virginia-primary-election/
https://www.dcnewsnow.com/video/reaction-virginia-primary-election/10829175/

The 11th District is generally regarded as a safe Democratic seat. Connolly won his last race with more than 65% of the vote, and Kamala Harris carried it by a similar margin. Stephen Farnsworth, a politics professor at the University of Mary Washington, believes the district may lean even further left this year, “given Trump’s battles with the federal employment system.” (More than 80,000 federal workers live in the district.) https://wamu.org/story/25/06/23/fairfax-voters-head-to-the-polls-for-a-high-stakes-congressional-primary/

Union leaders announce departure from DNC; party leadership in question (The National Desk; Local 12 News; Baltimore Sun; CBS Austin; WJAR; The National Desk)
Political science professor at the University of Mary Washington, Stephen Farnsworth, told us, Weingarten and Saunders leaving the DNC highlights the internal conflict within the party. I think the Democratic party is really going through something of an identity crisis at the moment,” Farnsworth said.
https://thenationaldesk.com/news/americas-news-now/two-union-leaders-announce-departure-from-dnc-party-leadership-in-question-democrats
https://local12.com/news/nation-world/two-union-leaders-announce-departure-from-dnc-party-leadership-in-question-democrats
https://www.baltimoresun.com/2025/06/17/union-leaders-announce-departure-from-dnc-party-leadership-in-question/
https://cbsaustin.com/news/nation-world/two-union-leaders-announce-departure-from-dnc-party-leadership-in-question-democrats
https://turnto10.com/news/nation-world/two-union-leaders-announce-departure-from-dnc-party-leadership-in-question-democrats
https://thenationaldesk.com/news/nation-world/two-union-leaders-announce-departure-from-dnc-party-leadership-in-question-democrats

Stephen Farnsworth, a political scientist at the University of Mary Washington, said this year’s primary season offers “a chance to decide whether the party wants to aim for a consistently centrist message, or push in a more liberal direction.”

https://www.cbs19news.com/news/state/virginia-primary-preview-10-house-of-delegates-contests-to-watch-tuesday/article_98d0cd82-0285-5299-ab60-cfc0def1428c.html
https://www.yahoo.com/news/virginia-primary-preview-10-house-092834409.htmlWho’s on the ballot? Virginia voters to pick party nominees on primary election Day (WTOP)
During the 2025 election cycle, Stephen Farnsworth, professor of political science at the University of Mary Washington, said there’s a lot of energy on the Democratic side because of what’s happening on the federal level. “I think you can generate a lot of energy and attention to your campaign right now by turning that old adage on its head, the old saying that all politics is local in Virginia, particularly in a Democratic primary in 2025 all politics is national,” he said.https://wtop.com/virginia-election/2025/06/some-big-decisions-for-democrats-on-primary-day-in-virginia/

“Polls do show that Abigail Spanberger right now looks pretty good in the general election,” said Stephen Farnsworth, a political science professor at the University of Mary Washington. “The reality of 2025 may very well be that if Spanberger wins, it will be one of the brightest spots for Democrats this year. It’s clear that the Virginia Democratic Party is more energized than the national Democratic Party, which continues to seem to struggle with questions of identity.”

If you can’t, it’s not too late to learn about the elections, which could see turnout of less than 10 percent of registered voters, according to Stephen Farnsworth, director of the University of Mary Washington’s Center for Leadership and Media Studies.

Democrats currently have a one-vote majority in the House, so adding to their numbers will give them more breathing room for members to vote against the leadership – or even miss a few votes because members are sick or out of town. Stephen Farnsworth at the University of Mary Washington says Democrats have a structural advantage running in an environment where Trump is so unpopular. https://www.wvtf.org/news/2025-06-16/a-blue-wave-looks-like-its-coming-but-how-big-will-it-be

One thing that both of those races have in common with other swing seats across Virginia – they’re deep in the suburbs. Stephen Farnsworth at the University of Mary Washington says this is where elections are won or lost. https://www.wvtf.org/news/2025-06-13/some-primaries-to-watch-next-week

Political science professor at the University of Mary Washington Stephen Farnsworth says these talks are all in an effort to get to Trump – and it’s worth a shot. “The hopes, I imagine, that the Canadian premiers are hoping to come out of this meeting is a process where American governors are in a position to pressure the administration a bit more to relax some of the increasingly strict standards that the Trump administration is imposing and wants to further impose going forward,” Farnsworth said. https://www.chch.com/chch-news/ontario-premiers-u-s-governors-push-back-against-trumps-tariffs/

Stephen Farnsworth, a political science professor at the University of Mary Washington, said the primary electorate will likely be small, but highly motivated. https://rollcall.com/2025/06/17/virginia-special-election-democrats-connolly/

If you look at the trade, if you look at Trump’s tariffs, those have a huge impact on the price of agricultural products,” said Stephen Farnsworth, a political science professor at the University of Mary Washington. “The potential reduction in Medicaid, that’s another area where there’s going to be a disproportionate impact on rural areas.”

“This is a huge financial disparity,” said Steve Farnsworth, director of the Center for Leadership and Media Studies at the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg. “Republicans are going to have to step up in a big way to narrow the gap if they have any hope that Republicans can win the governor’s race this year.”