History will be made in Virginia on Jan. 17, 2026. That’s the day Virginia’s 75th governor will be sworn in.
Regardless of the outcome of this year’s election, Virginia voters will almost certainly elect the state’s first female governor.
At present, Democratic candidate Abigail Spanberger holds a commanding lead over Republican Winsome Earle-Sears, according to one early poll. But things can change, and we’re sure that there will be ups and downs in both campaigns as the voters get to know more about the two women in the five-plus months to come.
Both women won their respective parties’ nominations unopposed. And both come into the race with impressive credentials. Spanberger served as Virginia’s 7th district representative in the Congress and as an operations officer in the Central Intelligence Agency.
Earle-Sears, who emigrated from Jamaica at the age of six, served in the U.S. Marines, was a member of the House of Delegates and served on the Virginia State Board of Education, befor...