Kay Coles James steps down from Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s Cabinet

RICHMOND — Kay Coles James, a Richmond insider in Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s Cabinet, resigned from that position and accepted a new role with the Republican’s political action committee, the governor’s office and his PAC announced separately on Tuesday.

James, who served as secretary of the commonwealth since Youngkin assumed office in January 2022, will become a senior adviser to the Spirit of Virginia PAC, which is coordinating the GOP’s efforts to hold on to the House of Delegates and flip the state Senate in the November elections. The PAC is expected to function as a political vehicle for Youngkin if he decides to make a last-minute entry into the 2024 presidential race.

The secretary typically oversees thousands of appointments to state boards and commissions over the course of a governor’s four-year term, as well as the restoration of voting and other civil rights to people convicted of felonies. The latter function stirred controversy early this year, when it was revealed that Youngkin had changed the restoration process without notice to require those people to submit an application for the secretary to review, which greatly reduced the number whose rights were restored.

Youngkin requires people convicted of felonies to apply for voting rights

“Virginians trust the Governor and his Administration to consider each person individually and take into consideration the unique elements of each situation, practicing grace for those who need it and ensuring public safety for our community and families,” James said when the change came to light in March.

After running for governor as a political outsider, Youngkin picked a Cabinet that mixed newcomers to Richmond and government with a few old hands who knew the ropes in Virginia’s divided Capitol. James was in the latter category, having served as secretary of health and human resources under Gov. George Allen (R) in the 1990s.

James also had been director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management under President George W. Bush. Immediately before joining the Youngkin administration, she was president of the Heritage Foundation, becoming the first Black woman to head the conservative think tank.

“Secretary James is a leader, a trailblazer and a dedicated public servant to our Commonwealth and our nation,” Youngkin said in a written statement that credited her with helping the administration “deliver on our promises to change the trajectory of the Commonwealth.”

Replacing James as secretary is Kelly Gee, who has been executive director of the Virginia Lottery under Youngkin and has a decade of experience in Richmond. She was deputy chief of staff to Kirk Cox when the veteran Republican delegate from Colonial Heights was speaker of the House of Delegates from 2018 to 2020.

Gee’s appointment will be subject to General Assembly approval.

Nine minutes after the governor’s office announced James’s departure, Spirit of Virginia issued an email announcing she will serve the PAC as a senior adviser, with a focus on “providing strategic advice, community engagement, and counsel to Governor Youngkin.”

“Virginia is a beacon of light for the rest of America under the unifying leadership of Governor Youngkin and I look forward to helping the team at Spirit of Virginia preserve our Commonwealth’s status as a model of prosperity and opportunity,” James said in that news release.

A handful of other Cabinet secretaries and other top officials have departed over Youngkin’s 20 months in office.

Youngkin’s first chief information technology officer, Phil Wittmer, left with no explanation within a month of his arrival, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported at the time. Youngkin’s first secretary of natural and historic resources, Andrew Wheeler, never won confirmation from the legislature, with Democrats unwilling to confirm the former coal company lobbyist who rolled back environmental protections as President Donald Trump’s EPA chief. Three months into his term, Youngkin made Wheeler a senior adviser instead.

Superintendent of Public Instruction Jillian Balow resigned in March amid a string of controversies, some related to revisions of the state’s curriculum standards for history and social studies. Robert P. Mosier stepped down as secretary of public safety and homeland security in May. Most recently, Parker Slaybaugh resigned in late July as chief deputy secretary of agriculture and forestry.

A previous version of this article incorrectly reported that Kay Coles James oversaw thousands of appointments during her time as secretary of the commonwealth. The secretary typically oversees thousands during a governor's four-year term, but James made just under 2,000. The article has been corrected.