What specific messages did Jay Jones allegedly send in the leak and when were they dated?
Executive summary
Leaked text messages attributed to Jay Jones date from 2022—several reports specify August 2022—and include violent, graphic language directed at then–House Speaker Todd Gilbert and references to harming his family, including an explicit line about “two bullets” for Gilbert and a separate remark about going to opponents’ funerals “to piss on their graves” [1] [2]. These excerpts were published by multiple outlets in October 2025 and produced bipartisan condemnation while questions about the full thread, forensic verification and additional context remain [2] [3].
1. What the reporting says the messages said
News organizations report that the leaked texts attributed to Jones contain violent fantasies about shooting then–Virginia House Speaker Todd Gilbert, including a line that “then Gilbert gets two bullets,” and other graphic language imagining the deaths of Gilbert’s family and disrespecting opponents at funerals [1] [2]. Multiple outlets describe the messages as “violent language” and “explicit reference to Todd Gilbert being shot” [2] [3].
2. When the messages were dated
Reporting consistently dates the messages to 2022, with several pieces specifying an August 2022 exchange between Jones and Republican Delegate Carrie Coyner [1] [2]. The timing—during 2022—has been emphasized across fact-check summaries and news articles covering the October 2025 publication of the leak [2] [3].
3. Where the excerpts first surfaced and how outlets framed them
The texts were reported in October 2025 by national outlets including Politico, The Hill, Newsweek and others; fact-check summaries compiled the key lines and noted immediate bipartisan backlash [3] [4] [5] [2]. Coverage highlighted the contrast between the age of the messages and the political moment in 2025, making them a late-campaign controversy [3] [6].
4. Quotations and paraphrases documented in reporting
Sources provide direct or paraphrased lines: the reported “two bullets” comment about Gilbert and the quote about attending opponents’ funerals “to piss on their graves” [1] [2]. Newsweek and NBC also paraphrase that Jones “fantasized about killing a Republican lawmaker and his family,” language that matches the excerpts published by outlets [6] [7].
5. What the reporting does not (yet) establish
Available sources do not supply a complete, independently verified transcript of the entire chat thread or forensic authentication in public detail; fact-check packages note remaining questions about the full context, independent verification and whether additional messages exist [2]. Reports focus on highlighted passages rather than publishing a full time-stamped transcript in the articles cited here [2] [1].
6. Political fallout and competing reactions
Coverage records bipartisan condemnation of the messages’ content while many prominent Democrats declined to call for Jones to leave the ticket; Republicans seized on the texts as disqualifying, with high-profile figures emphasizing the severity of the language [3] [8] [9]. At the same time, multiple outlets noted Jones stayed on the ballot and ultimately won the November 2025 election, prompting debate about the scandal’s electoral impact [6] [7].
7. Editorial and advocacy presentation versus news reporting
Some web sites and advocacy pages republished or summarized the messages with explicit condemnations and rhetorical framing—examples include a dedicated site summarizing the texts as dehumanizing political behavior—while mainstream outlets centered on verified excerpts and political consequences [10] [3]. Readers should note the difference between partisan/advocacy presentation and newsroom fact-based summaries [10] [2].
8. Caveats for readers and outstanding questions
Sources agree on the core facts reported here—violent language in 2022 attributed to Jones, including August 2022 timing in some accounts—but explicitly note unresolved items: full thread context, provenance and forensic authentication are not fully laid out in the cited coverage [2]. Available reporting does not state whether every published excerpt has an associated timestamped screenshot made public beyond selective excerpts [2] [1].
Summary: multiple news outlets report that the leaked messages attributed to Jay Jones originated in 2022 (with August 2022 cited) and include explicit fantasies about shooting then–House Speaker Todd Gilbert and graphic references to his family and opponents’ funerals; the publication in October 2025 generated strong bipartisan reaction while leaving open questions about the leak’s full context and technical verification [1] [2] [3].