On September 19, 2025, Virginia’s political landscape shifted into high gear as early in-person voting opened for the state’s closely watched gubernatorial race. At the center of the contest are Democrat Abigail Spanberger, a former congresswoman, and Republican Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears. With both candidates making highly visible appearances across the Commonwealth, voters are being asked to weigh in on a campaign defined as much by local pocketbook concerns as by the powerful national currents swirling out of Washington, D.C.
Spanberger kicked off her day at a polling station in West Henrico, just outside Richmond, casting her own ballot before heading to three early voting locations in Henrico and Fairfax counties. According to CBS News, she emphasized the issues that have become the pillars of her campaign: affordability, jobs, and education. "Whether it’s because you just saw your rent go up, or you think you might want to buy your first house, or you’re trying to pick up your prescription at the pharmacy for your kid, for your parents, for yourself, issues of affordability continue to be top of mind for people across Virginia," Spanberger told CBS News.
Throughout the day, Spanberger met with voters, fielding questions and sharing her plans to address the rising costs that have become a daily challenge for many Virginians. Her Affordable Virginia Plan, Growing Virginia Plan, and Strengthening Virginia Schools Plan were all on display as she sought to reassure voters that her administration would focus on lowering healthcare, housing, and energy costs while investing in the state’s economic future and public schools. "People want a Governor who will stand up for Virginians, a Governor with plans to make impacts on the biggest challenges we are facing," she told NBC4, echoing a message of practical problem-solving over partisanship.
Meanwhile, Earle-Sears was rallying supporters in Chesterfield County, joined by Governor Glenn Youngkin and Vivek Ramaswamy. The Republican hopeful leaned heavily on Youngkin’s economic record, promising to continue the job creation and deregulation efforts that have defined the current administration. "We’ve got a lot more work to do. We’ve got regulations that we still need to get rid of," Earle-Sears declared at her rally, as reported by CBS News. "We’ve got more jobs that we need to produce."
Yet, the race is about more than just local economic policy. National issues—especially those tied to former President Trump’s administration—have taken center stage. Spanberger has been vocal in her criticism of the Trump Administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led in part by Ramaswamy, which has overseen significant federal workforce cuts. According to the University of Virginia’s Weldon Cooper Center, Virginia lost 7,800 federal jobs in the first half of 2025 alone and is forecasted to lose a total of 9,300 government jobs by the end of the year. This is a significant blow in a state with nearly 150,000 civilian federal workers as of last year, second only to California.
Spanberger has argued that these job losses are not just numbers on a page—they ripple through the entire Virginia economy, affecting small business owners, restaurant workers, and government contractors. "We’ve seen just a constriction of various parts of our economy," she explained to NBC News. "That impact is significant, certainly, in our communities." She has made it clear that the next governor must be willing to "stand up for our federal workforce" and push back against what she calls "bad policies coming out of Washington that will further raise costs at this consequential time."
This message appears to be resonating with some voters, especially those concerned about the Trump Administration’s legacy on the state’s economy. As WUSA9 reported, a Virginia voter said, "One of her pillars of her campaign is making Virginia more affordable, and you know, with federal workers losing their jobs with the tariffs cranking up prices, that’s something that could affect every Virginian." Another added, "I don’t like what Trump is doing and if you support Trump, you’re supporting his agenda. And I just can’t live that way anymore."
Earle-Sears, for her part, has dismissed Spanberger’s criticisms as divisive, instead highlighting her own record and that of Governor Youngkin. "We are going to make sure that Virginians are told if they want a job, we have a job," she told CBS News. "We’re continuing to create jobs." She has also attacked Spanberger’s positions on immigration, pointing to the Democrat’s promise to roll back some collaboration between Virginia authorities and federal immigration agents.
Beyond economic and policy debates, the campaign has been colored by the broader national climate, particularly the recent assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk at a college debate in Utah. The shocking event has injected new concerns about political violence into the race. Spanberger called Kirk’s death "absolutely horrifying," stating, "The fact that a man engaged in a First Amendment debate, whether one agrees with him or not, the fact that he was gunned down in broad daylight because of his political activism is an atrocious reality that everyone should denounce." Earle-Sears echoed this sentiment, saying, "Just because he was using his First Amendment rights, he was gunned down." Both campaigns have reportedly increased security in the wake of the tragedy, according to CBS News.
Amid the charged atmosphere, polls suggest Spanberger holds a lead over Earle-Sears—one recent Wason Center poll put her up by twelve points among likely voters. Still, Spanberger has urged her supporters not to take anything for granted. "I know that we’re going to run hard through election day," she told the Richmond Times-Dispatch, emphasizing her goal of building a broad, bipartisan coalition.
Spanberger’s campaign has also sought to highlight her willingness to reach across the aisle. As she told FOX5, "I’ve yet to meet a Republican who says that they’re opposed to my priorities related to removing red tape when it comes to being able to increase housing supply, when it comes to ensuring that Virginia is actually generating more energy here at home, that’s not an area of disagreement. When we talk about the fact that when you go to the pharmacy and prescription drugs are just too high. That is an area that at least we agree on the problem. So now let’s set about finding a solution."
With 45 days remaining until election day, the stakes are high for both sides. Virginia’s economy, battered by rising unemployment and the effects of federal job cuts, is at a crossroads. The state has faced seven consecutive months of rising unemployment—the longest such streak since the Great Recession—and it recently lost its CNBC ranking as "America’s Top State for Business," a fall attributed in part to the disproportionate impact of federal layoffs.
Spanberger’s Growing Virginia Plan aims to reverse these trends by investing in workforce training, expanding trade opportunities, and strengthening the economy for working families. Earle-Sears, meanwhile, is betting that voters will respond to a message of continued deregulation and job creation, anchored by the Republican record in Richmond.
As early voting gets underway, Virginians are making their voices heard. The outcome of this contest will not only decide the state’s next governor but could also offer a preview of how national economic and political debates will play out in the years to come.