Virginia Republican who could become state's first woman governor shrugs off identity questions
Virginia Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears says she is not focusing on the potential historic chance of becoming her state’s first female governor and is instead concentrating on her policies and message.
"People are looking, I think, past the fact of my skin color, even my gender. It means that they want to hear a message," Earle-Sears told CNN in an article published Tuesday.
"So, I’m not really focused on the historic aspect," the presumptive Republican nominee added. "It’s wonderful. It’s good. But what are your policies? How will your policies help my family?"
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Earle-Sears, who is running unopposed in the GOP primary for governor to succeed term-limited Gov. Glenn Youngkin, said in a May 28 X post that she stands out from other candidates because she is not a "typical" politician.
Her Democratic opponent, former Rep. Abigail Spanberger, is also running unopposed in her primary, meaning Virginia will elect a woman governor this fall, no matter what.
Spanberger has said that she is excited about the prospect of becoming Virginia’s first female governor, telling CNN in the same piece that, "What I hear from voters is we would be so excited to have you be our first woman governor." However, the article noted she's not playing up her gender on the campaign trail.
"Certainly, when I’m out campaigning and spending time across Virginia, I know it is on the mind of some Virginians," but she said if she did win, "My focus is going to be on delivering on the promises and work that I set out to do when I began my campaign."
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Kelly Dittmar, director of research for the Center for American Women in Politics at Rutgers University, told CNN that she thinks gender is not the only factor at play for voters when they choose a candidate.
"The women themselves are very unlikely to use their gender solely as they’re making history as part of their campaign strategy, because it’s not something we’ve seen move voters in significant ways when it comes to who they’re going to vote for or even voter turnout," said Dittmar.
History suggests Spanberger is the favorite in the state that's gone blue in recent presidential elections, although Earle-Sears' allies say not to count her out and point out Youngkin was an underdog in 2021.
In 11 of the past 12 Virginia gubernatorial elections, the winner has been in the opposite party of the previous year's presidential election winner. In 2021, Youngkin won in an upset over Democrat Terry McAuliffe after Joe Biden was elected president in 2020. In 2017, Democrat Ralph Northam was elected a year after Donald Trump first won the White House.