CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – Gov. Glenn Youngkin has responded to Governor-elect Abigail Spanberger’s request that the University of Virginia pause its search for a new president until Spanberger can fill vacant seats on the school’s Board of Visitors, accusing Spanberger of “attempting to interfere with the governance of a university.”

Spanberger sent the BOV a letter asking it to pause its search Thursday until after she takes office in January. There are five open positions on the board and Spanberger is likely to review existing member’s appointments as well.

“Your letter was riddled with hyperbole and factual errors that impugns both the Board of Visitors and the presidential search underway,” Gov. Youngkin wrote in a Thursday letter to Spanberger.

Youngkin also defended the deal UVA reached with the Trump Administration to end Department of Justice inquiries into the school, particularly its diversity, equity and inclusion practices.

“Make no mistake, the DOJ did not randomly or without predicate select UVA when it started its formal investigation,” Youngkin wrote.

Former UVA counsel Tim Heaphy, however, told Cville Right Now, that Youngkin’s assertion that the school was violating any federal law was false.

“That’s just false. It’s inaccurate. There’s no basis for that,” Heaphy, a UVA alum, said. “In my experience with President Ryan, when I was there and since I left, there was just the opposite — a consistent determination to adhere to the law, to promote a broadly diverse community, diversity of experience and perspective, but to do it in a way that’s lawful. So I just don’t get this assertion that UVA has repeatedly ignored the law. That’s just false.”

In her letter, Spanberger argued there was a loss of confidence in the board after their actions over the past six months, which she wrote was reflected in numerous votes of no confidence from both the faculty senate and student council. She further argued that since five Board appointees have failed to receive confirmation from the General Assembly, the Board is not fully constituted which further calls into question its legitimacy.

“The search for a university president is the most consequential action a university board can undertake,” she wrote, “and in all cases, such a search must be conducted through a legitimate and transparent process. That requirement is especially critical for the University of Virginia at this moment, and that legitimate and transparent process must be led by a Board that is fully constituted and commands the trust of the University community and the confidence of the citizens of the Commonwealth.”