BREAKING: Democrat Abigail Spanberger WINS Virginia Governor Race

This just in: Democrat Abigail Spanberger has won the Virginia governor race.

NBC News announced:

BREAKING: Democrat Abigail Spanberger flips control of the Virginia governorship, becoming the first woman to lead the state, NBC News projects. https://t.co/TzHLUxUIOS pic.twitter.com/p6PNLa7VG3

— NBC News (@NBCNews) November 5, 2025

Decision Desk HQ also confirmed:

Decision Desk HQ projects Abigail Spanberger to win the Virginia Governor election.#DecisionMade: 7:19 pm ET pic.twitter.com/GwLrKxwoVv

— Decision Desk HQ (@DecisionDeskHQ) November 5, 2025

Spanberger beat her Republican opponent, Marine veteran Winsome Earl-Sears, flipping control of the Virginia governorship from red to blue.

She has also become the first female governor in Virginia’s history.

ABC News reported:

Democrat Abigail Spanberger is projected to win Virginia’s governor race against Republican Winsome Earle-Sears by 10 points: 55%-44%.

That will make Spanberger, who has maintained a consistent lead in the polls throughout the race, Virginia’s first female governor.

The results of the Virginia gubernatorial election — which comes during an election off-year — is often viewed as a political bellwether for competitive races in the midterms the following year.

The governor’s race is of particular interest this year because Virginia is home to more than 300,000 federal workers, many of whom were likely affected by efforts made by the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency to slash the federal workforce and the current government shutdown that has no end in sight.

According to preliminary ABC News exit poll data, about half of Virginia voters said that the economy was the most important issue facing the commonwealth, and most Virginia voters said federal government cuts are affecting their finances.

Spanberger’s win may be seen as a referendum on President Donald Trump’s second term in a state that he lost three times by considerable margins.

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It looks like Virginians decided to look past Spanberger’s refusal to call for Attorney General candidate Jay Jones to drop out of the race despite his disgusting texts scandal.

As you may recall, Spanberger stood with Jay Jones after some sick, demented text messages where he fantasized about assassinating a Republican politician and his family came to light.

NBC News has more:

Jones’ texts proved a more difficult situation for her campaign. In those texts from 2022, Jones suggested that one of the top legislative Republicans in the state be shot in the head, triggering bipartisan condemnation and calls from Republicans for Jones to exit the race.

Spanberger immediately condemned the texts but never called on Jones to drop out, and repeatedly declined to say whether she would retract her endorsement of him.

Republicans up and down the ballot in Virginia began running ads centered on the texts, including several spots from Earle-Sears that prominently featured Spanberger’s silence on the issue during the lone debate in the campaign.

Spanberger also faced relentless attacks from Earle-Sears over her stances on transgender people’s participation in youth sports and use of school locker rooms and public bathrooms — a reprise of the GOP’s playbook from the 2024 presidential race.

Spanberger typically responded throughout the campaign by saying she felt it was important that such decisions be made by parents, teachers and administrators, not the governor — a reply that largely avoided the emerging debate within the Democratic Party on the issue.

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Behold Virginia, your new governor:

🚨REMINDER: Abigail Spanberger is a loon pic.twitter.com/Hy3ezONWVX

— Fanatic 🇺🇸 (@crusade_enjoyer) November 3, 2025

I have a feeling they’re going to regret it.