The 2025 gubernatorial election was held on Nov. 4, where Virginians turned out to local polls to vote on their governor for the next four years. After the final vote was tallied, Democrat Abigail Spanberger took her seat in the Virginia House of Delegates as the first female governor of Virginia, earning over 57% of votes against Winsome Earle-Sears (R).
After graduating from J.R. Tucker High School in Richmond and receiving a bachelor’s degree from the University of Virginia, Spanberger attended Purdue University and the GISMA business school in Germany, where she earned her MBA through a dual-degree program. Inspired by her father’s service to the country, Spanberger entered the workforce as a federal law enforcement officer in the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
“She worked drug cases and helped take child predators off the street,” Spanberger’s father, Martin Spanberger, said in a campaign ad. “Service is something I was always talking about, and I guess Abigail was listening.”
After four years of policing federal cases, Spanberger traded in her USPIS badge for a career in the CIA. As a Case Officer operating undercover, she assessed potential threats towards the United States, tracked transnational criminal organizations, and countered terrorism and the spread of nuclear weapons. Her extensive experience within the CIA raised concerns and suspicion amongst voters; however, for Spanberger, it has been the guiding post that has helped her navigate the political sphere.
“While sometimes people may realize that, really digging deep into the impacts of the choices or the policies that I’m pursuing and understanding the complex nature of every challenge, I think, is something that, with the background work in terrorism and narco trafficking cases, it does, in some ways, transfer,” Spanberger said in an interview with 10 News anchor Abbie Coleman in response to a question about how her background has shaped her platform.
In 2014, Spanberger stepped away from the agency and spent the next four years working in the private sector with EAB to collaborate with colleges and universities to uplift student conditions. Within that time, she witnessed the 2016 presidential election unfold, and felt motivated to voice her beliefs. This led to the announcement of her candidacy in July 2017 for the U.S. House of Representatives in Virginia’s 7th congressional district in the 2018 election.
“I was able to get involved in those races and watch really great people step forward and stand up for what they believe in and want to be a part of the political process,” Spanberger said in an interview with ABC News. “It was watching that example that led me to decide that I too wanted to step forward and run.”
After beating Dave Brat with 50.3% of votes, Spanberger made history as the first Democrat to win the seat since 1970. She was then re-elected twice and spent three terms as a congresswoman before deciding to run for governor.
“I got to thinking, if I want to have an urgency of impact, on things I care about most — which is kids, education and the stability of our communities — I think I want to run at the state level,” Spanberger said at a Commonwealth Conversation with The Greater Williamsburg Chamber of Commerce.
Throughout her campaign, Spanberger emphasized her goal of protecting the fundamental rights of citizens, maintaining community safety, improving public education, and easing the cost of living in Virginia. Her win sets the precedent for ambitious females striving to engage in politics for years to come.
“It’s a big deal that the girls and the young women I have met along the campaign trail now know with certainty that they can achieve anything,” Spanberger said in her victory speech. “It’s a big deal to the women older than I am who forged the path in dreams, hard work, and in a belief that change and progress would be possible, so that so many of us could follow in their footsteps in any career, in any role, in any challenge. The history Virginia is making tonight, it is yours.”
