By Michael Martz
Former Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger enters this election year with almost $10 million raised in her race for the Democratic nomination for governor.
Spanberger, who stepped down from Congress this month after three terms representing Virginia’s 7th District, reported on Tuesday that her campaign has raised about $9.6 million since she announced in November 2023 that she would run for governor instead of a fourth term in the House of Representatives.
She raised about $6 million in 2024 for her campaign, which appeared to have a clear path to the Democratic nomination until Rep. Bobby Scott, D-3rd, dean of the state’s congressional delegation, said publicly that he has not ruled out a run for governor.
Spanberger’s campaign touted her grassroots support, as shown by about 55,000 in donations of $100 or less, which made up about 90% of the money she raised. It said she has received 71,000 individual contributions, with about 70% coming from people in Virginia.
“We’ve seen an outpouring of grassroots support over the last year,” said Samson Signori, her campaign manager. “Virginians across all of our counties and cities are excited about Abigail Spanberger serving them as the next governor of Virginia.”
If Spanberger wins the party nomination, she is likely to face Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, who currently is unopposed for the Republican gubernatorial nomination. Earle-Sears has not released her latest accounting of campaign contributions, which is due on Wednesday.
If Earle-Sears faces Spanberger, the winner would become the first woman elected governor in Virginia’s history. Earle-Sears would become the first Black woman elected governor in any state.
The last fundraising deadline was in mid-July, before Earle-Sears announced her candidacy. Spanberger reported then that she had collected more than $7 million in contributions and held almost $5.4 million in cash.
A former CIA officer and inspector general for the U.S. Postal Service, Spanberger lives in western Henrico County with her husband, Adam, and their three daughters.
She won her first bid for public office in 2018, when she defeated Rep. David Brat, R-7th, in then-President Donald Trump’s second year in office. At that time, the 7th District included parts of Henrico and Chesterfield counties, as well as Spotsylvania County and a swath of Southside and the Piedmont, from Nottoway County to Culpeper County.
She won a second term in 2020 by narrowly defeating Rep. Nick Freitas, R-Culpeper. In late 2021, the Virginia Supreme Court approved a drastically different political map which moved the district from the Richmond suburbs to Northern Virginia, predominantly based in eastern Prince William County and the Fredericksburg region. She won a third term in the redrawn district in 2022, when she defeated Prince William Supervisor Yesli Vega.
Spanberger served as an adviser on battleground political districts to House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y. She backed the election of Rep. Eugene Vindman, D-7th, to the 7th District seat in November, when he defeated Republican Derrick Anderson.
Earle-Sears, born in Jamaica, is a U.S. Marines veteran who in 2001 became the first Black female Republican elected to the House of Delegates, defeating Del. Billy Robinson, D-Norfolk, a 20-year veteran.
She served a single two-year term in the House. In 2004 she ran for Congress and lost to Rep. Bobby Scott, D-3rd, by 38 percentage points.
In 2021, after 17 years out of elected office, Earle-Sears topped five rivals to win the GOP nomination for lieutenant governor, then edged out Democrat Hala Ayala in the general election.
Outside politics, Earle-Sears has worked as director of a homeless shelter; sold used cars; worked as a program manager for the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce; served as CEO of the Blue Ridge Association of Realtors; and owned and operated an appliance repair, plumbing and electric company.