Democrat Abigail Spanberger has won the race for Virginia governor after a closely watched election which her party hopes could signal a national trend.
With almost all the votes counted, the former congresswoman and CIA officer has defeated the state’s Republican Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears.
Virginia’s leadership usually swings between Democrats and Republicans, meaning the outcome might serve as a bellwether for the electorate’s mood going into next year’s midterm elections.
Democrats also picked up a win in a governor’s race in New Jersey and another in New York City which elected its first Muslim mayor, Zohran Mamdani.
The race in Virginia was being viewed as an indication of how people are feeling about the national government’s policies.
The southern US state is home to the Pentagon and many federal workers who have been affected by President Donald Trump’s sweeping spending cuts.
Spanberger, a former CIA officer and three-term congresswoman, who campaigned alongside former President Barack Obama last weekend, will become the first woman to lead the state.
“Tonight, we sent a message to the whole world,” the Democrat told supporters at a victory party on Tuesday night.
She declared that her state “chose pragmatism over partisanship and “our commonwealth over chaos”. Spanberger added that her victory “can set an example for the rest of the nation”. (BBC)
