Virginia voters have been thrown into disarray just days before the election as a Democratic congressional candidate is repeatedly confused with his famous identical twin brother.
Candidate Yevgeny “Eugene” Vindman, who is running for Virginia’s 7th District, has often been confused during his election campaign for his twin brother Alexander Vindman, known for his testimony against Donald Trump during his first impeachment in the House of Representatives.
Speaking to voters in Fredericksburg, Virginia this week, the WashingtonPost found dozens of voters who thought they were voting for the whistleblower’s brother.
One voter, Jerry Stokes, 81, had just shaken Eugene’s hand when he said he was impressed by his “tremendous strength and leadership” during the 2019 impeachment hearings.
When told that Eugene was not his whistleblowing brother Alexander, Stokes said he was “mistaken” and admitted that he even finds it difficult to tell the difference between his own twin sons.
Virginia congressional candidate Yevgeny “Eugene” Vindman (right) is repeatedly confused by voters with his brother, famed Trump whistleblower Alexander Vindman (left)
Although Eugene Vindman (right) is not his whistleblower brother, the two men have strikingly similar faces, voices and names, which left some voters scratching their heads.
Although Eugene Vindman is not his whistleblower brother, the two men have strikingly similar faces, voices and names, and Eugene also played a role in the Congressional hearings.
The twin brothers were both working for the National Security Council (NSC) at the time when the House of Representatives launched an impeachment inquiry into claims Trump had instructed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will investigate Joe Biden.
During a phone call overheard by Alexander, then the NSC’s European affairs chief, Trump threatened to withhold military aid to Ukraine if Zelensky refused, prompting Vindman to report on the conversation.
His brother Eugene, then an ethics attorney across the room at the NSC, then helped his brother move the report through the food chain in Congress and prepare him for the hearings.
Alexander’s testimony was seen across the country and his national profile grew, leading to his brother’s current electoral predicament. After Trump was acquitted by the Senate, he dismissed both Vindman brothers from their roles on the National Security Council.
Vindman, pictured before his dramatic testimony on November 19, 2019, rose to national prominence in 2019 when he testified against President Donald Trump during his first impeachment hearings
Vindman testified that then-President Donald Trump instructed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to open an investigation into Joe Biden.
Candidate Eugene joked in a statement that “it would be difficult for voters to confuse him with his brother because I am unequivocally the better-looking twin.”
With Eugene now campaigning in Virginia, the Washington Post said they found at least eight voters at 10 of his campaign events who thought he was his eldest twin brother.
Just as in 2019, when Trump’s impeachment rocked the nation, Virginia voters were divided over whether this confusion was a positive or negative for Vindman’s candidacy.
Real estate agent Elena Lane said she supported Vindman because “Trump lied and Mr. Vindman came out and said, that’s not true,” adding that she “watched it on MSNBC.”
McKendree Fulks, a grain farmer, responded that in his view “a lot of the things he said during the hearings were lies.”
In a statement about his relationship with his whistleblower brother, Eugene Vindman made light of the issue, just days before voters decide whether or not to elect him.
“It would be hard for voters to confuse us because I am undeniably the better-looking twin,” he joked.
“My real brother knows I stand for what voters care about: abortion rights and against MAGA’s Project 2025.”
Vindman’s opponent, Republican Derrick Anderson (pictured), responded to the claim that it is “no surprise that voters confuse him with his brother because he literally hides from voters.”
Alexander has also joined his brother on the campaign trail a few times, including tweeting about a day they spent together “touching every corner” of the 7th District.
‘He works hard!’ he said of his brother, alongside smiling selfies they took out and about together.
Vindman faces Republican Derrick Anderson in a closely watched race for an open seat vacated by Democrat Abigail Spanberger, who is running for governor of Virginia.
Anderson took the opportunity to take a shot at his opponent when asked about the Vindman brothers’ confusion.
“It is no surprise that voters confuse him with his brother because he is literally hiding from voters — he has dodged all TV debates and a number of local TV interviews,” campaign spokesman Riley Ploch said in a statement.
“He barely appears in his own fake TV ads.”