ROANOKE, Va – In what many are calling a historic moment for Virginia, the 2025 governor’s race is already making headlines because the Commonwealth is on track to elect its first woman governor.
10 News anchor Abbie Coleman met with both candidates to probe their plans, their priorities, and their paths to history.
She sat down one-on-one with Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears to talk about her vision for Virginia and why she believes she’s the right person for the job.
You can watch Democratic candidate Abigail Spanberger’s interview here.
Read the full transcript of her interview with Sears below.
Thank you so much for joining us this morning.
Thank you. Thank you for having me, it’s a wonderful day.
Winsome Earle-Sears
It is a wonderful day. You’ve spent the last four years serving as lieutenant governor. Now, how has that experience shaped you, and how are you taking those experiences and using them in your candidacy?
So, you know, really, you think about who I am. I’m an immigrant to this wonderful country. And by the way, there is no perfect country. And America is just such a great country. And how is it possible that my father, who arrived at the height of the civil rights movement, just 17 days before Dr. King gave his I Have a Dream speech, here I am, an immigrant, and I’m second in command in the former capital of the Confederate states. What does that tell you? That America... If you work hard, and you know, and all I did was stay in school and study, here I am. And so, now I’m lieutenant governor. What does that mean? It means I get to preside over the Senate every time that they’re in session. It means that I’ve been able to break ties for the better of Virginia, because, well, it is my tie-breaking vote that provided the opportunity to put the definition of anti-semitism in our code and to keep our Jewish brothers and sisters safe. But then I did that way back in 2001 when I was first elected to the House of Delegates, and I was the one who brought the bill that protected us from the KKK. And in fact, about three months ago, somebody was prosecuted under that very same bill. So it’s all about service. I’ve done it in the United States Marine Corps. I did it when I led a men’s prison ministry. I’ve done it when I mopped the floors at a food pantry, and when I ran a homeless shelter. Service is what I do.
Winsome Earle-Sears
Now, let’s talk a little bit about the main issues of your campaign. What are your top priorities, as we kind of near the finish line of this?
Yes, so what I’m hearing from Virginians is, they like where we are. They like the economy that a Republican administration has provided. So the Youngkin-Earle-Sears administration, I’d like to call it the ‘YES’ administration, we are working hard for you, and you see the results. Our children, when it comes to their education, they’re doing much better, even though we’ve made the tests more accountable, because we know that our children can reach to the highest heights, if we provide the fertile ground. I know that, well, when it comes to taxes, people want them to stay low. We’ve done that. We have given back, the taxpayers of Virginia, over $9 billion, that’s with a ‘b,’ of their own tax money. We’ve ran a $10 billion surplus since we’ve been in office, and listen - This is even after we have funded mental health. You know, mental health, there’s something going on, especially with our young people. And, you know, somebody had to do something, and it was up to us to get it done. And so we put so much money into mental health. We’ve put over $300 million into childcare so that those who want to come back into the workforce can do that. When it comes to our workers, whether they’re federal workers or just people who want to come back into the workforce, we have created over 276,000 jobs. We have an additional 250,000 jobs that are still available. And we have seen, for example, that some of the federal workers have taken some of those jobs. And we have teed up, where if you want to be an entrepreneur, we can help you with that. So as a result, we have created over 15,000 new business startups [that have] never existed. I’m talking about new businesses. And they’re high-paying businesses. So, the people like what they see that we’re doing, we’re going to keep doing it with me. I’m the one who’s been there when we’ve made all this great progress. And, you know, we’ve been doing the work. I don’t know where my opponent has been, but we’ve been there. I don’t need all the job training. I am ready to take command of Virginia on day one.
Winsome Earle-Sears
Virginia is a very unique state. It’s very diverse. The needs of Northern Virginia are very different than the needs we have down here in Southwest Virginia. I know you’ve been boots on the ground here in Southwest Virginia a lot during this campaign. What have you been hearing from voters right here about what they want to see if you’re elected?
So, I want to let you know, it’s not since my campaign that I’ve been boots on the ground in Southwest. We’ve never really left the Southwest. You know why? Because I heard when we were running the folks in the Southwest said, you know, ‘you always come down here, all of you running for office and after you win we never see you again,’ and all I have is my good name and I have to protect that, and so I made a promise to the people in Southwest: You will see me. And so, you’ve not just seen me, actually. You’ve seen Jason Miyares. You’ve see our governor, just many times, coming. And it didn’t have to be an event like the flooding for so often. We just came because we wanted to hear. What do the people want? Well, I’m hearing about their electric bills. My God. You know, my electric bill goes $150, $200, and I’m screaming. And I’m hearing about electric bills that are $800, $1,600. Somebody has to do something, and that somebody is me. And so, I know that one of the reasons that the electric bill is so high, is because the Virginia Clean Economy Act, which was passed by every single Democrat - not one Republican voted for it- voted that we must do XXX, and so it’s driven up the cost. And my opponent supports that bill, and not only that, she is going to put us back into the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, which ties our energy policy to California. We can’t do that. So I’m making a promise to the people of the Southwest especially, and the Southside, who are also suffering under these high bills, I’m going to be the one in the room speaking with the power companies, speaking with all of the folks who are necessary to bring that bill down, because it shouldn’t be that you’re having to wonder whether you are going to pay [for] your groceries, your prescription drugs, your rent, or your mortgage, whatever it is. We can’t do that. And then another thing that I want to do, because half of life is showing up, I’m going to put a governor’s office somewhere in the southwest. We haven’t identified where yet. But you know, there’s something about being there. That people can say, ‘Oh, we see Winsome is working out of the governor’s office this day, this month,’ whatever it is. And I think that’s a good thing. And then, you know, they want to know, of course, about so many different things. Like, for example, how are you going to keep us safe? Well, you know, my opponent has taken money from the PAC that says you sign here that you’re going to defund the police and get rid of their qualified immunity. And we’ll give you this money. Well, she’s taken thousands of dollars in that aspect. I’m not going to do that, because I’ve heard from too many, too many of our folks who say, [such as] law enforcement, Department of Corrections personnel, that if we don’t keep, not just the right-to-work [laws], but if we don’t keep also our funding and our qualified immunity, then I’m gone. And we can’t have that because I can’t even talk about economic development if I don’t have the ability to say, ‘Look, this is our crime rate.’ When businesses want to come to Virginia, this is where we are when it comes to crime. This is where we are. So it’s all of that that the people care about. All of that.
Winsome Earle-Sears
Healthcare is a big concern, specifically for some of our viewers here at 10 News. A lot of them are worried that they’re going to lose their healthcare coverage. What do you believe is the best way to address this so that families don’t fall through the cracks?
Yes, absolutely not. We didn’t come this far to only go this far. I want people in Virginia to succeed, because if the people in Virginia succeed, well, Virginia itself, herself, succeeds. And so when it comes to healthcare, you know, from what I understand, when it comes to Medicaid, especially, it’s the state program, as you know. And we have a great many Virginians who need Medicaid. And no one is going to lose their Medicaid. Because, from what I understand, the bill says, is that if you are able-bodied, then you’re going to be required to either work, or go to school, or volunteer for at least 40 hours for the entire month. Now, I tell you that when I was the homeless shelter director, our able-bodied women, I wanted them to succeed, and so they couldn’t stay in a shelter and do nothing. And so I would even drive them to their appointments for job training. I would drive them to their appointments for job applications. I would drive them because I want them to succeed. So we have, in the budget also, about $500 million that we’re getting from the federal government, to help any holes that may exist, once some of this healthcare money, if it does disappear, to help them. Plus, we have access to an additional $500 million that will help. So, what I’m saying is, we have the ability, we’re gonna make sure that we take care of every Virginian possible. We don’t want anyone to lose their healthcare.
Winsome Earle-Sears
One of the things we spoke about last time was the car tax. That has been a big point for you. It’s definitely a move that would be popular with many drivers. How would you make that happen, and where would the replacement for that revenue come from?
Yes, good question. Not that you haven’t been asking good questions. But listen, people want to get rid of the car tax. They don’t like paying it. I mean, I have a car, 14-years-old, and I’m still paying the tax on this car, and I hear it from so many others. We actually, this very year, in January, Governor Youngkin put it in the budget to get rid of it. We have the money. Our localities would not have suffered. And yet, the Democrats voted against doing so, voted against it, and so this year it could have been gone. Now I hear that my opponent wants to do the same thing. Well, she needs to talk to her side of the political aisle because they don’t want it gone. With me, I’m not going to compromise. We must get rid of it. The people of Virginia have wanted it for so long. It is time.
Winsome Earle-Sears
I know parental rights have been a staple not just of your campaign, but of the Youngkin administration in general, and a lot of that comes down to transgender students in schools. How do you plan to address the concerns around this, because there are a lot of opinions on the topic.
Yes, yes. So, you know, my policies will work for everyone’s children, whether they’re transgender, whether they are, whatever it is. You know, if you’re a Democrat parent, a Republican parent, independent, anybody in between. What we’re simply saying, and the parents are saying is this: We want our girls to not have to compete against biological boys in sports. It’s just not fair. Girl sports are for girls. There it is. The other thing parents are telling us is: They don’t want their girl children to have to undress in locker rooms with biological males. It’s that simple. Privacy is an issue. And remember who we’re talking about - we’re talking girls who are just coming into their bodies. You know, they’re trying to understand what’s going on. And you know, we have things going on in our heads. You know, we were there and we just want privacy. What could be wrong about that? And as you see, just because that was what I was espousing, that everyone has equal rights, then that sign showed up that said, you know, ‘Winsome, if trans [women] can’t be in your bathrooms, then blacks can’t drink at my water fountain?’ What century are we in that this is what we’re talking about? I mean, this woman went from me as an individual to Black people in general. And here’s the problem I have with that: That sign had been held up for a whole hour. And there were 150 Democrats, about 150 to 200 of them. And nobody told her not to do that. And it took me asking my opponent to come out and say something for her to say anything meaningful. We can’t have that, not in Virginia, not in America.
Winsome Earle-Sears
I know that throughout this election, you have kind of trailed in the polls and also in fundraising. How do you plan to kind of pick up and keep up momentum as we head into the last leg of the election season? I mean, the election is right around the corner.
So here’s the thing, it will come as no surprise to anyone that Democrats generally outraise Republicans. I mean, two to one, three to one. So what do we do? Well, we pray, as everybody knows, I’m a praying woman. And we just know how to spend the money better. And so you’ve seen now the momentum, as you say, picking up. And so we’re getting the money in, we’re making it go farther. But I think more than anything than money, because this election isn’t going to turn on money. It’s going to turn on the common-sense ideas that we have. The taxes that are low, the car tax that we’re going to get rid of, the gas tax that we’ve gotten rid of. There’s so many things that we’re doing that put more money in people’s pockets. The first $20,000 of law enforcement and Department of Corrections personnel, I’m not going to tax the first $20,000 of their salary. The keeping us safe aspect. The bringing jobs to Virginia. All of this is what the people of Virginia have said that they like. And then you talk about the polls. And, you know, polls go up, they go down, they go sideways, but our internal polls show that we’re actually closer than the other polls they’re showing. And so we know that we are on the right track because we have the right ideas. And as people start paying more attention, we’re going to win, because a win for Virginia will be, actually, a win through me. We’re gonna show up at the polls, and we’re gonna keep the good times going. Virginia must succeed. She will, with me.
Winsome Earle-Sears
Abortion and reproductive rights, those are also, not just statewide, but nationally, very big topics. Where do you stand on these issues, and what specific policies do you want to see put in place in the commonwealth?
So, you know, I am mindful that fully 40% of all abortions, believe it or not, are being had by Black women who only make up 7% of the population, child birthing population. And so my question is, who doesn’t want Black women to have their children? And then my opponent believes that abortion should be legal up until the hour, even the very minute that the baby could be born. But we know this to be true of the Democrat Party because the former Governor Ralph Northam himself, a pediatric neurosurgeon, a baby doctor, said that when the infant is born, we’re going to keep the infant safe until the mother decides what to do. What are you talking about? So what I want to do is ask my opponent: What’s your limit? Why would you want abortion up until the time and the minute that the baby could be born? But in general, I say let’s get together and figure out, what are we going to do? There has to be a compromise somewhere. It’s not my personal view. It’s what do the people of Virginia want? We can do this.
Winsome Earle-Sears
Winsome, if elected, you would make history. Not just as the first female governor, but the first Black female governor. What would this mean to you? What would it mean to you as a little girl, and to other young women who may be watching?
When I am elected [laughs]. History is great, and yes, it will be historic, you know, that I would be the first Black governor, female. But after that, what? What are you going to do to ensure that you’re not making my life any harder, for example, than it already is? What are you going to do to make sure that [the] government is accountable to me, to make sure that government is transparent? That, if a situation comes up, I can generally think about where you’re gonna go with this, because this is the common-sense path. You know, it’s not some far-out thing. The people of Virginia wanna know, are you gonna leave Virginia better than you found her? Are you gonna break down barriers to my employment? Barriers to my entry into success? Barriers for my children to succeed in life? That’s what I’m about, you know, this wonderful country offered me these opportunities, and I want to reach back and keep bringing other people along and saying, come, come. This is my vision for Virginia. Let’s all lift up each other. I mean, I haven’t done all the kinds of service that I’ve done, to not help people. That’s what I’m about.
Winsome Earle-Sears
Is there anything that we didn’t touch on that you would like to add as we wrap up this campaign season?
Go Virginia, Win with Winsome!
Winsome Earle-Sears
Well, Winsome, thank you so much for joining us.
Thank you, thanks very much.
Winsome Earle-Sears