George Floyd and The question that the candidates on stage were asked concerned the trial of Officer Derek Chauvin and discussions of policing across the country and in Virginia specifically. Fairfax started his answer by saying, “The murder of George Floyd was horrific, but it recalls a history in Virginia and in our nation where African-Americans — and particularly African-American men — are presumed to be guilty, are treated inhumanely, are given no due process, and had their lives impacted, and in some cases taken away, in an instant.” One of the other candidates on stage was former Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe, who back in 2019 called for Fairfax to resign amid allegations of sexual assault.