With the two gubernatorial candidates – Democrat Abigail Spanberger and Republican Winsome Earle-Sears – debating tonight (at 7 pm at Norfolk State University), we’ve got a new public poll, from Public Policy Polling. The main takeaways:
Trump’s approval rating in Virginia is 41%-53%
Abigail Spanberger leads Winsome Earle-Sears by 9 points (52%-43%)
“57% oppose Trump’s plan to enact mass federal layoffs w/our shutdown agreement”
“32% support 54% concerned about Earle-Sears not opposing threats to cut federal workforce during shutdown”
“46% blame Trump, GOP for the shutdown; 37% blame Dems”
“52% prefer a governor who opposes Trump’s firing of federal workers vs. only; 39% prefer a gov who works with Trump to enact his agenda.”
Comparing this poll to some other recent polls: Wason Center three days ago had Spanberger up 10 points; last week’s WaPo/Schar poll had Spanberger up 12 points; an Emerson College poll a week ago had Spanberger up 10 points. So this poll show a point lower lead for Spanberger than Wason and Emerson, three points lower than the WaPo/Schar poll. Pretty similar, all in all..
See below for a press release from the Spanberger for Governor campaign about tonight’s debate at Norfolk State University. In addition to what Spanberger’s campaign says we should expect tonight, I’d guess that Winsome Earle-Sears mention Jay Jones every chance she gets. The question is, how will Spanberger approach this? Repeat her previous condemnation of Jones’ texts to Del. Carrie Coyner? Then “pivot” back to what she wants to talk about? Stay tuned…
WHAT TO EXPECT AT TONIGHT’S DEBATE: Spanberger Will Put Virginia First, Sears Will Put Trump First
While Spanberger Is Focused on Lowering Costs for Virginia Families, Sears Praises President Trump’s Attacks on Virginia Jobs & Backs His Price-Hiking Agenda
NORFOLK, Va. — During this evening’s televised, statewide gubernatorial debate hosted by WAVY-TV and Norfolk State University, Abigail Spanberger will drive a clear message focused on the issues that matter most to Virginia voters — making Virginia more affordable and growing Virginia’s economy.
Ahead of the debate, Spanberger for Governor Campaign Manager Samson Signori released the following statement.
“Tonight’s debate will make clear the contrast in this race — Abigail Spanberger is focused on solving the real challenges Virginia families face, while Winsome Earle-Sears has already shown that she will always put President Trump first.
“Virginians across the Commonwealth are echoing what Abigail has been saying all year — that Virginians want a Governor who is focused on making Virginia more affordable. That’s exactly why Abigail has laid out her plans to bring down housing, healthcare, and energy costs — and why she’ll get to work on Day One to get it done.
“Tonight, Virginians will also see that Winsome Earle-Sears doesn’t have the backbone to stand up to President Trump’s attacks on Virginia. Instead, Sears is going to lie about Abigail’s record and mislead Virginians about her own — but she won’t be able to cover up her steadfast support for President Trump as he drives up costs for families, threatens Virginians’ healthcare, and kills Virginia jobs.
“Unlike her opponent, Abigail will never put party or politics ahead of the people of Virginia. I’m glad that Virginians will have this opportunity to hear exactly how Abigail will put them first.”
BACKGROUND
WHAT TO EXPECT FROM ABIGAIL SPANBERGER: During tonight’s debate, Abigail Spanberger will drive how she will get to work to deliver for the Commonwealth and always put Virginia first.
LOWERING COSTS: Abigail has remained focused on lowering costs for Virginia families.That’s why she released her Affordable Virginia Planto lower healthcare, housing, and energy costs. The cost of living remains the top issue for Virginia voters.
STRENGTHENING SCHOOLS: As a mom of three kids in Virginia public schools, Abigail will make sure our schools are the best in America. That’s why she released her Strengthening Virginia Schools Plan to strengthen Virginia’s child care and early childhood education programs, K-12 schools, and institutions of higher education.
STANDING UP FOR VIRGINIA: Abigail will stand up for Virginia jobs in the face of the Trump Administration’s attacks on Virginia’s economy and workforce — attacks that led the University of Virginia to forecast that the Commonwealth will have virtually no job growth in 2026. That’s why she also released her Growing Virginia Plan to boost workforce training and bring business investment across the Commonwealth.
KEEPING VIRGINIA SAFE: As a former federal law enforcement officer and former CIA case officer, Abigail will keep our communities safe. The Virginia Police Benevolent Association backs her campaign for Governor, the first time the organization has endorsed a Democrat for Governor since 2009.
PROTECTING REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS: Abigail believes that these decisions should be made between a woman, her family, and their doctor — not politicians. The future of abortion rights is on the ballot this year, as “2025 voters may chart the path of reproductive rights for a generation” in Virginia.
BRINGING PEOPLE TOGETHER: Abigail will bring people together and stand up to both parties to do what’s right for Virginia.In the U.S. House, she was consistently ranked as the most bipartisan Member of Congress from Virginia and had bills signed into law by both President Trump and President Biden.
WHAT TO EXPECT FROM WINSOME EARLE-SEARS: On the debate stage, Virginians will hear Winsome Earle-Sears’ extreme positions firsthand — and will not hear any real plans to address Virginians’ top-of-mind concerns.
BACKING TRUMP 100 PERCENT, EVEN WHEN VIRGINIANS LOSE HEALTHCARE: Just last week, Sears refused to cite any Trump policies she disagrees with. She supports Trump policies that are taking away healthcare from more than 300,000 Virginians and have already forced three rural health clinics to close in Virginia.
RAISING COSTS: Sears has released no substantial plan to lower costs. Instead, she has praised Trump policies that are raising costs on Virginians. Sears said Trump’s tax law — which raises the cost of healthcare, housing, and energy, “does so many great things.”
FAILING TO STAND UP FOR VIRGINIA JOBS: All year long, Sears has supported DOGE taking away Virginia jobs, even as Donald Trump threatens further mass layoffs during the government shutdown. Earlier this year, she even mocked fired federal employees.
TAKING EXTREME POSITIONS: Winsome Earle-Sears has an extreme record on abortion and birth control. She supports a ban on abortion without exceptions for rape or incest and supports making abortion a felony. Earlier this year, Sears “couldn’t resist” voting against the Right to Contraception Act. And when it comes to marriage equality, Sears claimed that legalizing same-sex marriage could lead to the “destruction of society” and indicated that she supports firing Virginians for being gay.Last year, she left a handwritten note on marriage equality legislation signed into law by Governor Youngkin that said she was “morally opposed” to the bill.
KFF Tracking Poll on Health Information and Trust: Tylenol-Autism Link and Vaccine Policies (“Overall, just 4% of adults say it is ‘definitely true’ that taking Tylenol during pregnancy increases the risk of the child developing autism…majorities of the public disapprove of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy’s overall job performance (59%) as well as his handling of U.S. vaccine policy (62%).”)
Nixon Now Looks Restrained (“The former President once made an offhand remark about Charles Manson’s guilt. The reaction shows how aberrant Donald Trump’s rhetoric is.”)
Jack Smith’s lawfare and James Comey’s arraignment on pathetically weak charges (I’m including a link to this crazy, false-equivalence, “both sides” BULLSHIT by the Bezos Post editorial board just to remind everyone to cancel their subscriptions to this shit paper. I mean, seriously – Jack Smith committed “lawfare?” FU Jeff Bezos and company!)
Police group that endorsed Spanberger is calling on Jones to “decline to take office” if he wins (This is, of course, a VERY right-wing, pro-Republican group, which has endorsed/supported Republican candidates for years. What’s astounding is that they endored a Democrat for governor this year, supposedly because Winsome Earle-Sears had SUCH a bad/disastrous interview, but still…it’s a right-wing, pro-Republican group for sure.)
New Audio from Sears Reveals Comments about Reproductive Rights Supporters
Sears: “Murder Is Murder. And One Day It’s Going to Be Your Turn”
VIRGINIA – New audio unearthed by Meidas Touch, reveals comments from Winsome Earle-Sears discussing supporters of reproductive rights saying “Murder is murder. And one day it’s going to be your turn.”
Winsome Earle-Sears: Let’s not talk about what’s happening with Ukraine. Let’s not talk about what’s happening with Ukraine. When you are willing to kill a child up until the day that the baby could be born, go get thee a mirror and ask yourself if you’re okay with this kind of thing. I don’t care whether you’re Libertarian, Democrat, Reform Party, Green. I don’t care who you are. Murder is murder. And one day it’s going to be your turn.
In a sane world, overt bigotry like the following (see below) – expressed by 2025 VA GOP Lt. Governor nominee John Reid, a long-time far-right talk radio host – should be disqualifying. I mean, just imagine the reaction if this were reversed, and the Democratic nominee for Lt. Governor were constantly making disparaging, bigoted comments about HIS religion (or anything else about his identity – as a white man, a gay man or whatever)? Of course, that would be *completely* unacceptable – and also should be disqualifying.
Of course, the media won’t cover this, because they’re terrified of upsetting the right wing (plus much of the media’s owned by wealthy right wingers and/or conservative, Trump-friendly corporations), so most people probably won’t even know that Reid made these comments…which is exactly how it’s possible that Reid might not suffer any adverse political consequences for expressing such noxious views.
“It’s expected Republicans will try to tie Democrats to Mamdani. John Reid takes it a step further and talks about Ghazala Hashmi’s ‘religious connection’ with him. Also raises questions about Hashmi being both far-left socialist and Islamist who wants to impose Sharia law.”
Hmmmm…
EXCLUSIVE: Virginia Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears in a 2022 interview warned supporters of reproductive rights that “one day it’s going to be your turn.”
VA Dems Chair Lamont Bagby: Sears Won’t Be Able to Run from Her Record on the Debate Stage
Chairman Lamont Bagby: “Right now, we’re seeing in real time what a Sears administration would look like: Trump first, Virginia last.”
VIRGINIA – A new op-ed from Democratic Party of Virginia Chairman Lamont Bagby details what’s at stake in the governor’s race as Abigail Spanberger and Winsome Earle-Sears take the debate stage tomorrow night. Chairman Bagby writes:
This Thursday night, Virginians will see just how clear the contrast is between Winsome Earle-Sears and Abigail Spanberger.
While Sears cheers on Trump’s healthcare and jobs cuts that are devastating the Commonwealth, Spanberger is standing up for Virginians. While Sears will roll back rights and defund public education, Spanberger will protect reproductive freedom and strengthen our schools. While Sears puts Trump and her extreme agenda ahead of the Commonwealth, Spanberger will always put Virginia first.
On Thursday, when Winsome Earle-Sears and Abigail Spanberger meet on the debate stage, Sears won’t be able to run from her extreme record anymore. Over the course of her campaign, Sears has refused to face Virginians, attend her own events, or answer simple questions about where she stands.
The truth is Winsome Earle-Sears has sold out Virginians at every turn, and if she becomes Governor, she’ll always put her loyalty to Donald Trump and her extreme agenda ahead of what’s best for the Commonwealth. Virginians deserve better than that.
Think about what Sears has done just this year: She’s backing Donald Trump’s attacks on jobs that have cost Virginians their livelihoods and devastated the Commonwealth’s economy and said verbatim “I’m supporting what the president is doing.”
The fallout: Virginia is slated to lose 32,000 jobs this year, have virtually no job growth next year, and already lost its “Top State for Business” ranking while unemployment rose for seven consecutive months – the longest stretch since the Great Recession.
Devastating Virginia’s economy isn’t enough for Sears. She’s repeatedly downplayed and dismissed Trump’s mass firings saying she doesn’t understand why it’s a “huge, huge thing” to lose a job and that she’d rather talk about “real issues,” instead of the layoffs.
What kind of leader thinks thousands of Virginians losing their jobs isn’t a “real issue”?
Sears even brought Trump ally and DOGE architect Vivek Ramaswamy to campaign for her in Virginia, throwing salt in the wound for the thousands of Virginians he fired.
And as Trump shut the government down and threatened to lay off even more Virginians, Sears has refused to call on him to stop.
When Trump announced sweeping healthcare cuts in his tax law, Sears said it “does so many great things.” Taking healthcare away from 350,000 Virginians and forcing six rural hospitals to close aren’t “great things” if you ask me. Three rural hospitals have already closed in the Shenandoah Valley. And the law is projected to raise healthcare, utility, and housing costs for all Virginians.
Right now, we’re seeing in real time what a Sears administration would look like: Trump first, Virginia last.
When directly asked, she didn’t disagree with Trump on anything at all.
And when you look back at Sears’ extreme record the dangerous agenda she’ll implement is crystal clear.
While the overwhelming majority of Virginians support access to reproductive care, Sears — in her own words — said she is “morally opposed” to the constitutional amendment that would protect reproductive freedom in Virginia, including contraception, abortion, and IVF.
She supports an abortion ban with no exceptions for rape or incest and the Texas abortion ban that would make getting an abortion a felony. Sears even vowed to “do everything in [her] power” to end abortion in Virginia. She couldn’t be any more clear with Virginians that she isn’t a leader who will fight for their fundamental freedoms.
Sears told Virginia women “we need to make our choices before we’re pregnant, not, you know, after, you already made a choice,” but voted against the Right to Contraception Act, leaving the door open to extreme restrictions on contraception and limiting women’s choices.
Sears’ dangerous record on abortion signals that if she has the chance, she will roll back a woman’s right to make her own choice about her own body with her own doctor.
Sears also has a long record attacking funding for public schools. She’s supported legislation that would cut funding from Virginia’s public schools, has repeatedly tried to defund public education, and supports using taxpayer dollars for private schools.
This Thursday night, Virginians will see just how clear the contrast is between Winsome Earle-Sears and Abigail Spanberger.
While Sears cheers on Trump’s healthcare and jobs cuts that are devastating the Commonwealth, Spanberger is standing up for Virginians.
While Sears will roll back rights and defund public education, Spanberger will protect reproductive freedom and strengthen our schools.
While Sears puts Trump and her extreme agenda ahead of the Commonwealth, Spanberger will always put Virginia first.
Virginians deserve a leader who will fight for the Commonwealth. This Thursday night as Sears and Spanberger take the debate stage, Virginians will be reminded that leader is Abigail Spanberger.
###
EXCLUSIVE: Virginia Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears in a 2022 interview warned supporters of reproductive rights that “one day it’s going to be your turn.”
Speaker Don Scott and Delegate Mark Sickles Statement on Youngkin Administration’s Failure to Use Millions in Federal Funds for Nursing Home Oversight
RICHMOND, VA – Speaker Don Scott and Delegate Mark Sickles, Chair of the Health and Human Services Committee, released the following statement in response to a CBS 6 report revealing that the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) failed to use millions of federal dollars intended for nursing home oversight – even as inspections fell drastically behind schedule and consumer complaints increased.
“After Governor Youngkin’s own state health commissioner blamed a lack of federal funding for the administration’s failure to conduct nursing home oversight, we now learn that his administration failed to use the very federal funds available to address the backlog of inspections, complaints, and chronic understaffing.
“Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine fought to secure federal funding to improve nursing home oversight and ensure better care for our seniors. Governor Youngkin’s mismanagement and lack of urgency in addressing this ongoing crisis is unacceptable. Why did it take nearly three and a half years for this administration to realize there was a serious problem in our nursing homes? For years, Virginians have seen reports of unsafe conditions, poor quality of care, and delayed investigations – yet this administration has done little to fix it and has been quick to blame others. The buck stops with him.
“Failing to use available federal funds to strengthen oversight is another stain on the administration’s record and is not just irresponsible – it’s a betrayal of the families who trust the Commonwealth to protect their loved ones. While VDH has faced challenges for a long time, this administration needs to stop bragging about all the ‘progress’ they’ve made and do what they can to use all resources at their disposal, including federal dollars, to turn this mess around.
“We should be providing the best care to our seniors – the people who spent their lives taking care of us. This failure of oversight has real human consequences, and it’s time for accountability.”
This comes after a 2023 federal performance review by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) found that Virginia failed to initiate investigations into the most serious complaints within the required three-day window. Currently, seven out of ten nursing homes in Virginia are overdue for inspection, ranking the Commonwealth as third worst in the nation for overdue nursing home inspections.
KAINE & HEINRICH ANNOUNCE TIMING OF SENATE VOTE ON THEIR LEGISLATION TO STOP TRUMP’S COST-RAISING ENERGY AGENDA
WASHINGTON, D.C.– U.S. Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) and U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Ranking Member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, announced that the Senate will vote today on their legislation to challenge President Donald Trump’s radical, cost-raising, job-killing energy agenda. The legislation would repeal the national energy emergency declaration Trump has used to give Big Oil handouts. Kaine and Heinrich previously filed this legislation in February, but Senate Republicans blocked it from passage. Any senator can challenge a presidential declaration of national emergency every six months.
“President Trump told Big Oil donors that if they cut a $1 billion check to his campaign, he’d give them everything they want on day one of his presidency. Then, within hours of his inauguration, he declared a sham ‘energy emergency’ to put his thumb on the scale for those donors and hamstring other affordable energy sources,” said Kaine. “It turns out Trump himself is the energy emergency—energy prices are through the roof and hundreds of thousands of good-paying clean energy jobs are in serious jeopardy because of federal funding he yanked. I’m glad to team up with Senator Heinrich to give every senator the opportunity to stand with the American people who want lower energy costs and good jobs by challenging Trump’s corrupt energy agenda.”
“Now more than ever, we need more energy, not less, to power our grid and our communities. Instead of working to create solutions and giving relief to Americans who are already cash-strapped, Donald Trump is creating an affordability crisis and waging war on American-made energy—canceling hundreds of clean energy projects, killing high-quality jobs, and skyrocketing energy costs. It must stop,” said Heinrich.
On his first day in office, Trump signed an executive order to grant his Administration new powers to promote fossil fuels, bypass bedrock environmental laws, and block clean energy projects. Specifically, Trump’s emergency allows officials to oversee the accelerated approval of fossil fuel projects, including oil drilling rigs and pipelines, extend aging coal power plants, and explore infringing Americans’ private property rights for the “siting, production, transportation, refining, and generation” of non-solar and non-wind-related energy production.
Since August 2022, Democrat-led investments have created an American-made energy boom, spurring the highest levels of factory construction in U.S. history with more than 400,000 new jobs announced across the country. However, Trump’s war on American-made energy and Republicans’ rollback of provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act will kill these new jobs, weaken the power grid, increase our reliance on foreign energy, and raise families’ annual energy bills by up to 18 percent in total household energy costs over the next five years. Across the country, more than 60,000 jobs have already been lost or threatened, and more than $440 billion in private investments are at risk. By 2030, the United States’ GDP is expected to decline by $130 billion each year as new energy development and advanced manufacturing decline under the Republican bill. The Trump Administration has also canceled billions in clean energy projects.
The Civil-Military Crisis Is Here (“The leaders of the U.S. military may soon face a terrible decision.” They HAVE TO – at least, they’ve all sworn oaths to – follow the RULE OF LAW and the CONSTITUTION, and to NOT follow any illegal orders. Period. So what’s going to happen???)
Why the right-wing media apparatus is suddenly yelling about Jack Smith supposedly spying on GOP senators (“Their allegations were quickly promoted by MAGA media outlets and on Tuesday morning were highlighted by Republican members of the Senate Judiciary Committee as they sought to shield Bondi from criticism. But legal reporters explained that there’s not much to the story — the FBI needed to review the toll records of senators in order to establish who Trump and his alleged co-conspirators were trying to contact before and during the January 6 insurrection. “)
There is no budget “deal” to be made (“President Trump has so broken the constitutional framework as to make joint normal, responsible government impossible.”)
Sixth District race | Pete Barlow making strides in getting campaign off the ground (“The Pete Barlow congressional campaign reported on Tuesday that it has raised more than $63,000 toward its 2026 primary run. Not much, but it’s a start…I’m also hearing that there will be a third candidate entering the Democratic primary in the Sixth District in the coming days.”)
RELEASE: VoteVets Announces Additional Investment of Over $1.1 Million in New Jersey and Virginia Races in Final Weeks of Campaign
Ads engage swing voters other organizations can’t reach as campaigns head into the home stretch
Washington, DC. – VoteVets and VoteVets Action Fund today announced major ad buys in the Virginia and New Jersey Governors races as voters decide if veterans and national security candidates are the ones to lead the future.
Last cycle alone, VoteVets spent $50 million helping to elect VoteVets-endorsed candidates. Our investments proved to be effective in helping candidates get across the finish line and we were able to see a success rate at a time when other Democrats were not as successful. Thanks in part to our investments, 143 VoteVets-endorsed candidates clinched victory amidst a global rightward lurch including Senators Gallego (AZ) and Slotkin (MI), and Congressman Derek Tran (CA). VoteVets was an early supporter of both Spanberger and Sherrill when they ran for and flipped Congressional House Districts in 2018, instantly becoming rising stars in the Democratic Party.
VoteVets is announcing an initial major investment in the New Jersey gubernatorial race with a $500,000 statewide ad campaign, backing a long time friend and endorsed candidate Mikkie Sherrill, a Navy pilot. In addition, VoteVets Action Fund is transferring $79,000 to the Democratic Party of New Jersey, the first time in the history of VoteVets that it is making a direct contribution to a state party’s coordinated campaign efforts.
Additionally, VoteVets Action Fund brings its total investment in the Virginia gubernatorial race to $1.5 million, with another $500,000 media buy that runs statewide. And, VoteVets is making its first investment to help win a key, Red to Blue state house district, HD-64, with a $100,000 cable ad campaign.
These ads feature Veterans speaking straight to camera about the stakes in the elections, focused on the rising cost of living and higher taxes on working families that Republicans promised but failed to fix, appealing to white male swing voters under 45 who swung away from Democrats last cycle. Ads will run statewide on streaming, OTT and connected-TV platforms in both states, along with live sports programming on cable systems in key markets. Ads will also run statewide on YouTube and Spotify. In New Jersey, additional targeting will be done statewide on streaming and digital, and in Virginia, additional statewide cable targeting will occur on sports-focused channels (e.g. ESPN). This new wave of ads are launching today and will run for two weeks.
The Virginia gubernatorial ads follow an earlier $500k ad campaign from VoteVets Action Fund, along with a significant direct investment of $500k that VoteVets PAC made to the Spanberger campaign earlier this cycle – a historic figure. Spanberger has been a consistent VoteVets endorsed candidate throughout her political campaigns and policy ally.
NEW JERSEY GOVERNOR AD (“HIGH TAX JACK”) TRANSCRIPT:
Coast Guard Veteran: “After a decade of coast guard rescues, I came home to make a go of it. But Jersey is so damn expensive right now. And Jack Ciatterelli will make it worse. He already voted to raise property taxes and was even talking about a 10 percent sales tax.”
Ciatterelli quote on screen: “A ten percent tax on everything including food and clothing”
Coast Guard Veteran: “You know who’s never tried to raise those taxes? Ass-kicking Navy pilot Mikie Sherrill. (bleep over “ass”) I know who to trust to fix this mess. It ain’t a bootlicking politician like High Tax Jack.”
VIRGINIA GOVERNOR AD (“TOO WEAK”) TRANSCRIPT:
Navy Veteran: “As a retired Navy Chief, I know a strong leader when I see one. This ain’t it.
Clip of Winsome Earl Sears on screen with Trump referencing the Trump Budget: “The bill as you know does so many great things.”
Navy Veteran: “Instead of fighting for Virginia, Winsome Earle Seals went right along with the Trump budget that’s raising our costs even higher…Healthcare. Housing. Electricity. And those tariffs, driving up prices on just about everything else.”
Clip of Winsome Earl Sears speaking: “Tariffs can hurt. And I think that’s good.”
Navy Veteran: “No. Winsome Earl Sears is way too weak for Virginia.”
VA HD-64 AD (“BURDEN) TRANSCRIPT:
US Army 100% disabled Veteran: “I went to war in Afghanistan. Came home with disabilities. Got a job and worked my way back. But Paul Milde thinks veterans like me are a burden.
Clip of Paul Milde: “When they were hiking taxes -”
US Army 100% disabled Veteran: “Milde called disabled veterans a…”
Clip of Paul Milde: “Another hole in our budget”
US Army 100% disabled Veteran: “Milde even voted to hike tuition on kids of servicemembers who were killed in action. Who does that? Paul Milde insults everything we fought for. He sure doesn’t get our votes.”
