Virginia Elects Abigail Spanberger as Its First Female Governor
After her victory, Spanberger said, "Virginians chose pragmatism over partisanship."
Democrat Abigail Spanberger has won the Virginia gubernatorial election after a closely watched race. Her party hopes it could signal a national trend.
The former congresswoman and CIA officer defeated the state's Republican Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears.
Virginia's leadership typically swings between Democrats and Republicans, meaning the result could be an indicator of voter sentiment ahead of next year's midterm elections.
Democrats also won the gubernatorial election in New Jersey and in New York City, where Eric Adams was elected its first Muslim mayor.
The Virginia election was seen as a bellwether for how people feel about national government policies.
The southern US state is home to the Pentagon and many federal employees, who have been affected by widespread spending cuts under President Donald Trump.
Spanberger, a former CIA officer and three-term congresswoman who campaigned with former President Barack Obama last weekend, will be the first woman to lead the state. "Tonight, we sent a message to the entire world," the Democrat told supporters at a victory celebration Tuesday night.
She declared that her state had "chosen pragmatism over partisanship and our nationalism over chaos." Spanberger added that her victory "could set an example for the rest of the country."
She will take office after Republican Glenn Youngkin's four-year term.
Virginia borders liberal Washington, D.C., to the north, where many residents work for the national capital or the federal government. But the state also has a large number of conservative voters and swing voters in its rural districts.
Spanberger had highlighted the economic impact of cuts made by Trump to the federal government, which affected jobs in Virginia, and campaigned on a platform of increasing affordability.
Fellow Democrat Ghazala Hashmi defeated Republican John Reid in the election for Virginia's lieutenant governor. In the state, the governor and lieutenant governor do not run on a joint ticket.
Hashmi's victory makes her the first Muslim woman elected to a statewide office in the United States.
The Democratic National Committee (DNC) called Spanberger's victory a "stunning rejection of the self-serving and corrupt Trump establishment."
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