She’s a rising star within the Republican Party.
And her latest move has the potential to turn a blue-leaning state bright red for years to come.
Meet Virginia Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears. She, alongside Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin and Attorney General Jason Miyares, helped flip the state of Virginia back in 2021 from a historically Democratic-leaning state to complete control by Republicans.
Youngkin’s approval rating is very high. But Virginia’s Constitution prohibits governors from serving consecutive terms, meaning Youngkin is ineligible to run in 2025.
However that doesn’t mean that Youngkin’s popularity in Virginia will suddenly disappear.
On Wednesday, Earle-Sears filed paperwork to run for governor.
Sears’s paperwork was accepted Wednesday by Virginia’s Department of Elections, according to Nexstar’s Richmond (VA) affiliate WRIC.
If she secures the Republican nomination, Earle-Sears will face off against U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) in November 2025.
Earle-Sears hasn’t shared a formal announcement regarding her decision yet. However, she is hosting a “special event” Thursday evening at an oyster bar in Virginia Beach.
Join me today at Chick's Oyster Bar in Virginia Beach at 5pm!https://t.co/NCeadossbm pic.twitter.com/25kMGkDk1M
— Winsome Earle-Sears (@winwithwinsome) September 5, 2024
Earle-Sears, who is a former state delegate, is the first woman of color and second woman to hold statewide office in Virginia. The commonwealth has never had a female governor, making a potential Sears versus Spanberger match-up historic. Sears would also be the first Black female governor in U.S. history.
Sears and Youngkin made waves in Virginia in 2021 when they flipped the blue-leaning state one year after President Biden’s general election victory over former President Trump.
Youngkin and Sears focused their campaign on what they called parents’ rights in education, zeroing in on curriculums in public schools.
The news of Earle-Sears potentially running for governor has been well-received so far:
YAAAAAAAAAAAAAA *breathes* AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA *breathes again* AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAS! Let's do this! #VoteRed #KeepVARed https://t.co/QYEZE6oZpw
— The🐰FOO (@PolitiBunny) September 5, 2024