Gubernatorial hopefuls Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears and former Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger appeared in person on the debate stage for the first and likely only time this election for an hour of questions that spanned the much-hated car tax, to Jay Jones’ text messages, to the Trump administration and the ongoing federal government shutdown.
The candidates on the issues
For more on where the two candidates for governor stand, see our Voter Guide.
Earle-Sears, the Republican candidate, has been trailing Spanberger, the Democratic candidate, consistently in polling leading up to Thursday’s debate.
She came into the debate with a “nothing left to lose” attitude, which was apparent in her conduct over the course of the hour. Earle-Sears spent most of the debate interrupting her opponent and redirected her answers to questions posed by moderators to ask Spanberger questions of her own.
Virginia’s off-year election for governor is often seen as a bellwether ahead of the midterm elections and referendum on the current presidential administration.
Spanberger’s campaign has made its opposition to the Trump administration a cornerstone of the former congresswoman’s bid for office, linking Earle-Sears to the president’s actions whenever possible. Earle-Sears has not yet received an endorsement from President Donald Trump. The Spanberger campaign has also focused its messaging on the economy and access to reproductive health care.
Earle-Sears’ campaign has focused much of its effort on culture war issues. The campaign pivoted in an attempt to link Spanberger to a recent scandal in the race for attorney general, regarding text messages with violent rhetoric sent in 2022 by the Democratic candidate to a Republican colleague in the General Assembly.
The debate was hosted by Norfolk State University and Nexstar. It was moderated by WRIC-TV news anchor Deanna Allbrittin and WAVY-TV news anchor Tom Schaad.
From the car tax to Jay Jones’ texts to Trump and heightened political rhetoric, here’s what the candidates said
Earle-Sears got the first question: how to get rid of the much-hated car tax but replace the revenue to localities. She noted that Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin tried to get rid of the tax earlier this year in his budget amendment proposal, but the General Assembly declined to axe the tax in the final spending bill. She then pivoted to ask Spanberger if she would call for Jones to withdraw from the attorney general’s race following recent reporting about his text messages.
Spanberger was asked the same question and said that Earle-Sears did not make an effort to get rid of the tax while in office as lieutenant governor. Spanberger went on to say that she has a history of “getting rid of taxes” during her time in Congress, after a brief interruption by Earle-Sears, and said she’ll build a bipartisan coalition to work on the problem.
Next, Spanberger was asked by the moderators if she was aware of Jones’ text messages and if she’ll continue to endorse him in his bid for attorney general. She did not directly answer if she plans to continue to endorse Jones but said she will denounce the comments he made at every opportunity. She said she was made aware of the text messages on the day the National Review story was published.
Earle-Sears was asked about Trump’s comments during the funeral of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk — where Trump said plainly that he hates his opponents. Moderators asked the lieutenant governor if there is a place for that kind of political speech. Earle-Sears responded by saying that she is a Christian, it is her duty to forgive, and that she would not say “that,” referring to Trump’s words. She then pivoted to an attack on Spanberger for not saying, unequivocally, that she would ask Jones to withdraw from the attorney general race.
The two candidates then engaged in a spirited back and forth, at times talking over each other.
Here’s what the candidates said about the federal shutdown, data centers, energy costs, young people’s economic fears and each other
Once the moderators regained control of the debate, they moved on to questions about the federal shutdown.
Earle-Sears was asked if she, if elected governor, would ask the president to work with Democrats to end the federal government shutdown. Earle-Sears dodged the question and instead accused Spanberger of playing “political football” with government workers.
Moderators asked Spanberger if she would urge Virginia’s two Democratic senators, Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, to vote to end the shutdown. She said she would encourage everyone to work together to reopen the federal government and added that, during her first term in Congress, she and a delegation of members sat down with Trump to urge him to negotiate to end the 2018-2019 shutdown.
Next up was data centers, their energy usage and how to keep costs down for Virginians while data center-driven energy demand grows.
Spanberger said that it is important that data centers pay their fair share and noted that Virginia is facing a challenge regarding energy generation. She added that there is an active State Corporation Commission case and, pending those results, the General Assembly may need to act on the issue.
Earle-Sears laid the blame at the feet of the Virginia Clean Economy Act and attacked her opponent. She added that Virginia needs to adopt an “all the above” approach, which includes “clean coal,” natural gas, nuclear and renewable energy.
The next question came from a student at Norfolk State University, who asked the candidates how they would make Virginia an attractive place for students to stay and build their lives after graduation.
Earle-Sears said that she and Youngkin have brought jobs to the state.
Spanberger said she plans to address economic issues including housing affordability and attacked her opponent.
The moderators attempted to lighten the mood by asking both candidates what qualities they admire about their opponent. Spanberger pointed to Earle-Sears’ faith, her military service, the prison ministry she started and her background as an immigrant. Earle-Sears pointed to Spanberger’s devotion as a parent, as a daughter who loves her parents, and that she believes Spanberger “cares.”
And on to LGBTQ issues, access to reproductive health care and immigration
The moderators asked Spanberger if transgender girls should be allowed to use the girls bathroom and play on girls sports teams in school. Spanberger responded that it’s a local issue and one that is up to each community to decide.
Earle-Sears was asked if her position, against access to girls bathrooms and sports for transgender girls, is discriminatory. She responded by saying she is not in support of discrimination and added that “girls want to have privacy,” before pivoting to an attack on Spanberger. She was then asked by moderators if she thought transgender students are a safety threat. She responded by saying men are physically stronger than women, and pivoted to an attack on Spanberger.
Crosstalk ensued. Spanberger pointed out that Earle-Sears is on record saying that she is “morally opposed” to gay marriage and that Earle-Sears has said that she thinks it is okay if someone is fired from their job for being gay.
Earle-Sears responded by saying “that’s not discrimination.”
The moderators soldiered on to the topic of abortion.
They pointed out that Earle-Sears has supported a 15-week limit on abortion and a 6-week limit and asked her what she will advocate for as governor. She responded by saying it is up to the commonwealth to decide. Virginians will have a chance to weigh in through a referendum if a constitutional amendment to enshrine access to abortion in the state is passed a second time during the 2026 General Assembly session.
Spanberger was asked if she supports any limits on abortion. After interruptions by Earle-Sears, Spanberger said she supports the Roe standard, which is what the constitutional amendment would codify, and Virginia’s current abortion law, which includes limits for minors.
The candidates were then asked about local law enforcement working with United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement to detain and deport undocumented immigrants.
Spanberger was asked if there is any situation in which she would support local law enforcement agencies in working with federal immigration and customs enforcement. She pointed to her background as a federal law enforcement officer and said if there is an arrest or detainment warrant, local agencies should support federal agencies in the arrest of someone who is wanted for a criminal offense.
Earle-Sears was asked if she is concerned that fewer people are reporting crimes in high immigrant communities, out of fear of federal immigration and customs enforcement. She did not answer the question and pivoted to an attack on Spanberger.
And finally, the debate wrapped with education, legalizing marijuana and Youngkin’s legacy
Earle-Sears was asked if parents should be involved in designing K-12 education curriculum. She said yes and then pivoted to an attack on Spanberger.
Spanberger was asked if the government or parents should decide which books are available in schools. She responded by saying parent engagement is important and that she supports the strength of public schools. She then pivoted to an attack on Earle-Sears.
On to marijuana.
Spanberger was asked what public safety concerns she has about legal retail sales of cannabis. She said that transparency is important and a regulated market is necessary to maintain safety.
Earle-Sears was asked if she would sign a bill that would legalize the sale of recreational marijuana. She said that she believes in the benefits of medicinal marijuana and added that when the employees at her business tested positive, they could no longer work for her. She then pivoted to an attack on Spanberger.
And finally, the last question of the night came down to the current governor and his legacy. Earle-Sears was asked if there was anything she would have done differently from Youngkin, and she deflected the question.
Spanberger was asked if there were any policies of Youngkin’s that she would keep, to which she responded yes, he has made a strong path forward on advanced nuclear.
Thursday’s debate was the first and only to be agreed to by both candidates.
