By Anna Bryson

Former Rep. Abigail Spanberger, the presumptive Democratic nominee for governor, walked into the Virginia Department of Elections on Monday morning and turned in 40,872 petition signatures — more than four times the required number — to get on the ballot.

The campaign team for Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, the leading GOP candidate for governor, turned in her signatures Monday as well — about half as many, according to the campaign.

Statewide candidates have between Monday and April 3 to turn in the required 10,000 signatures, and candidates are listed on the ballot in the order that they qualify. For statewide candidates, the 10,000 signatures must include 400 from qualified voters in each of the state’s 11 congressional districts.

Spanberger held a rally at Capital Ale House in downtown Richmond on Monday morning before turning in her petitions.

“When we’re talking about more than 40,000 signatures, that’s more than 40,000 people across the commonwealth who signed to ensure we had access to the ballot,” Spanberger told reporters before her rally. “We’re excited to bring these lovely bankers’ boxes over and make clear that we have the organization, certainly not just to get this done, but to ensure we win in November.”

Earle-Sears was not at the Department of Elections office on Monday.

“I want to thank the tens of thousands of Virginians who want to keep common sense in the Commonwealth,” Earle-Sears said in a written statement. “With their support, we will win this race. Today just reaffirms that we have got what it takes to make that happen. I am committed to leading our Commonwealth with integrity, vision, and a steadfast dedication to the values that make Virginia exceptional.”

Earle-Sears’ GOP primary competitors, former state Sen. Amanda Chase, R-Chesterfield, and former Del. Dave LaRock, R-Loudoun, did not turn in their petitions on Monday. Both jumped in the race in late February, facing a steep hurdle to collect 10,000 signatures by April 3.

Attorney general

All three attorney general candidates turned in their signatures on Monday.

Incumbent Attorney General Jason Miyares, a Republican who is running for reelection, turned in more than 14,000 signatures, according to his campaign team. Miyares was not at the elections office on Monday.

In a post on X, Miyares thanked his supporters and said, “This campaign is about you and keeping Virginia the best place to live, work, and raise a family.”

The two Democratic candidates for attorney general, Henrico County Commonwealth’s Attorney Shannon Taylor and former Del. Jay Jones, D-Norfolk, both personally turned in their signatures on Monday. Taylor said she collected more than 18,500 signatures; Jones nearly 20,000.

Taylor said Monday is another major step in her campaign, coming off what she called a “very large swell of momentum.”

“When I’m interacting with the voters, we know that they like my message of experience … having been a prosecutor,” Taylor said in an interview outside the elections department.

“When I talk about the cases I’ve worked on, whether it be prosecuting the Klansmen in Henrico, being the special prosecutor for one of the white supremacists who marched on the lawn at the University of Virginia, and having that 30 years of experience, they know that when I say I’m going to fight for them, that they can count on that.”

Jones said in an interview: “It’s a huge day for us because it reflects the volunteer-driven effort that we put in over the last several months, which reflects broad-based support from every corner of the commonwealth as we head towards November to go and take the Attorney General’s office back.”

Lieutenant governor

Five of the six Democratic candidates who have filed to run for lieutenant governor turned in their signatures on Monday: former federal prosecutor Victor Salgado, who said he gathered close to 19,000 signatures; former Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney, more than 14,000; Sen. Ghazala Hashmi, D-Chesterfield, more than 16,000; Sen. Aaron Rouse, D-Virginia Beach; and Prince William County School Board Chair Babur Lateef, with more than 13,000. Rouse thanked the “thousands of Virginians” who helped him file but did not specify the number of signatures.

Democrat Alex Bastani, a longtime labor leader and former employment attorney, did not turn in his petitions on Monday.

Salgado said in an interview at the elections office on Monday afternoon that there may be opportunity for reform in the ballot access petition process so that non-establishment candidates can have access to the ballot — but nonetheless he got it done.

“We are going to be on the ballot. We’re going to provide real choice to the electorate in this election — somebody who has a track record of stepping up and standing up to Trump,” Salgado said.

“I’ve done it before. He didn’t want Arpaio prosecution. We stuck to our guns (and) convicted that man.”

At the Justice Department, Salgado prosecuted former Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio in a 2017 criminal trial in which Arpaio was convicted of violating a federal judge’s order to stop racially profiling Latinos.

Only one of the three Republican candidates for lieutenant governor turned in all his required signatures on Monday: Fairfax County Supervisor Pat Herrity. He will be at the top of the primary ballot.

“Since announcing our campaign on January 3rd, the outpouring of support from across the Commonwealth has been overwhelming,” Herrity said in a statement. Herrity said he turned in more than 15,000 signatures.

The other two candidates, Richmond radio host John Reid and James City County businessman and Navy veteran John Curran, did not turn in all of their signatures on Monday.