Republican gubernatorial candidate Winsome Earl Sears and Democratic gubernatorial candidate former U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA).
Anna Moneymaker | Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images
Virginia voters are poised to elect the first female governor on Tuesday and cast their votes in the state’s scandal-plagued election for attorney general.
Whether the winner is Democratic former U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger or the state’s Republican lieutenant governor, Winsome Earl Sears, the gubernatorial race will be historic.
Virginia is one of 18 states that has never had a female governor. The winner will succeed Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who is term-limited and cannot run again.
Opinion polls for the gubernatorial race, one of only two to be held in the year after President Donald Trump’s 2024 election, consistently support Spanberger.
Meanwhile, the race for state attorney general is clearly a close one amid a huge debate between Democratic candidate Jay Jones and Republican incumbent Jason Miyares.
At one point, polls suggested Jones had a strong chance of defeating Miyares. But Jones’ campaign has come under intense criticism since early last month, when National Review published a 2022 text that envisioned violence against Republican political opponents.
Mr. Jones has repeatedly apologized for the texts, including in an Oct. 16 debate with Mr. Miyares.
The scandal rocked elections across the state, with Republican groups spending millions of dollars on a flurry of ads attacking Jones, according to NBC News. The documents emerged as Republicans sought to link Democratic rhetoric to acts of political violence, including the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Although some Virginia Democrats disavowed the documents, few called for Jones to withdraw from the race. Mr. Jones joined Mr. Spanberger and former President Barack Obama at an anti-vote rally in Norfolk on Saturday.
Earl Sears tried to capitalize on the scandal during the debate against Spanberger in mid-October, believing that as the controversy unfolded, his fundraising efforts would pick up. But several polls released just before Election Day showed Spanberger maintaining a double-digit lead over his opponent.
This is developing news. Please check back for the latest information.
