Republican gubernatorial candidate Winsome Earle-Sears and Democratic gubernatorial candidate, former U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA).
Anna Moneymaker | Chip Somodevilla | Getty Photos
Polls closed in Virginia, with outcomes too early to name within the state’s elections for governor and lawyer common, NBC Information projected Tuesday night.
Voters within the commonwealth are poised to select between Democratic former U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger or Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears as their subsequent governor. The winner will succeed Gov. Glenn Youngkin, a Republican who underneath is barred underneath Virginia regulation from searching for a second consecutive time period.
Within the lawyer common’s race, Democratic nominee Jay Jones is hoping to unseat Republican incumbent Jason Miyares.
No matter who wins the gubernatorial race, the end result will make historical past: Virginia is certainly one of 18 states which have by no means had a feminine governor.
Polls of the governor’s race, certainly one of simply two such contests going down the yr after President Donald Trump’s election in 2024, constantly favored Spanberger.
In the meantime, the state AG’s race between Jones and Miyares tightened to an obvious toss-up amid a serious controversy.
Jones as soon as appeared more likely to dominate over Miyares, polls confirmed. However Jones’ marketing campaign got here underneath intense hearth early final month, when his 2022 texts envisioning violence towards a GOP political opponent have been printed by Nationwide Overview.
Jones repeatedly apologized for sending the texts, together with throughout his Oct. 16 debate with Miyares.
The scandal shook up elections statewide, with Republican teams spending hundreds of thousands on a flurry of advertisements attacking Jones, NBC Information reported. The texts emerged as Republicans have sought to hyperlink Democrats’ rhetoric to acts of political violence, together with the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Some Virginia Democrats disavowed the texts, however few if any referred to as on Jones to drop out of the race. Jones joined Spanberger and former President Barack Obama at a get-out-the-vote rally in Norfolk on Saturday.
Earle-Sears noticed a fundraising enhance because the controversy unfolded, and he or she sought to capitalize on the scandal in her mid-October debate versus Spanberger. However a number of polls launched shortly earlier than Election Day present Spanberger sustaining a double-digit lead over her opponent.
That is growing information. Please test again for updates.
