Political analyst Larry Sabato said the timing of the governor’s column and directive is not coincidental.

“Nothing that happens in the month before an election is an accident,” said Sabato, director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia. “Nothing that happens in the month before an election is not political.”

In his opinion column Sunday, Northam ripped President Donald Trump and “legislators here in Richmond” for undermining health coverage protections under the Affordable Care Act. He promised a sweeping initiative to reduce health insurance premiums, improve health care for vulnerable populations and position the state “to make the decisions of how to best meet the needs of Virginians.”

The governor reminded readers that this year he had vetoed bills — proposed by Republican legislators who are now defending their seats — that would have offered options such as short-term health plans, coverage for catastrophic medical needs or insurance for associations that he said were “passed under the guise of ‘consumer choice.’ ”

“These efforts deliberately undermine ACA protections and incentivize health insurance companies to provide less meaningful coverage, which will lead to more struggling families and wider insurance coverage gaps,” he said.