The sole gubernatorial debate between Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears and former Rep. Abigail Spanberger quickly devolved into a fight over the disturbing text messages in which Democratic attorney general candidate Jay Jones speculated about killing a Republican colleague.
By the time the debate was over, Ms. Earle-Sears and Ms. Spanberger had staked out differing views on a variety of topics, such as the government shutdown, abortion and transgender rights.
Trailing in the polls, Ms. Earle-Sears was the aggressor, repeatedly interrupting and talking over Ms. Spanberger, though the Democrat remained composed and did not take her opponent’s bait.
Ms. Earle-Sears wasted no time turning the debate toward the controversy over Mr. Jones’ 2022 text musing about killing the then-Republican speaker.
“Abigail, when are you going to take Jay Jones and say to him, ‘you must leave the race’?” Ms. Earle-Sears asked minutes into the debate. “He has said that he wants to murder his political opponent — and not only that, but also his political opponent’s children, two and five years old.”
Ms. Spanberger condemned Mr. Jones’ text messages as “absolutely abhorrent” and reaffirming her opposition to violent political rhetoric.
However, she repeatedly declined either to rescind her endorsement of Mr. Jones or reiterate it, stating that voters must judge whether Mr. Jones is a better fit to be the state’s top prosecutor than Republican Attorney General Jason Miyares.
Turning the focus back on her opponent, Ms. Spanberger criticized Ms. Earle-Sears for what she described as selective outrage. “It’s unfortunate that you only denounce violence when your side is the target,” she said.
“You routinely refer to me as your enemy. I’m not your enemy. You are not my enemy. We are political opponents, and tonight, voters are here to listen to the policy differences that we have. As we move forward, we must continue to set a good example for all of our children,” she said.
Ms. Earle-Sears repeatedly broached the issue, speaking over Ms. Spanberger as she attempted to answer questions, urging her to “have some political courage” and asking whether she was “saying political murder is all right.”
The debate in Norfolk comes less than a month out from Election Day and nearly three weeks into early voting, raising questions about how much the Jones scandal will affect the contests up and down the ballot.
Ms. Spanberger has held a commanding lead in the polls, including the latest Washington Post-Schar School survey of Virginia voters, which shows her ahead of Ms. Earle-Sears by a margin of 55% to 43%.
The winner will succeed Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who is term-limited.
Seeking a surge in momentum, Ms. Earle-Sears has intensified her attacks, portraying Ms. Spanberger as a liberal extremist, particularly on transgender rights.
She has repeatedly spotlighted Ms. Spanberger’s support for a congressional bill that would have prohibited discrimination against transgender people.
During the debate, Ms. Spanberger declined to say whether she would reverse Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s policy requiring students to use bathrooms that align with their biological sex, instead stating that such decisions should be left to local schools.
Ms. Earle-Sears seized on the moment, accusing her opponent of dodging the issue.
“My opponent will not answer the question, because she voted for men nude in girls’ locker rooms, bathrooms, and girls’ sports,” she said. “If your little girl comes home and said she was forced to undress in the locker room with a biological boy, what would you say?”
Ms. Spanberger replied that “there should not be nude men in locker rooms,” but Ms. Earle-Sears retorted, “But you voted for that.”
The debate hit on other cultural and policy clashes.
Ms. Earle-Sears accused Ms. Spanberger of supporting abortion on demand and being too lenient on illegal immigration.
In response, Ms. Spanberger argued that her Republican rival supports further restrictions on abortion access, opposes same-sex marriage, and believes firing someone for being gay should not be illegal.
“That’s not discrimination,” Ms. Earle-Sears replied.
The candidates also sparred over the ongoing government shutdown. Ms. Earle-Sears urged Ms. Spanberger to pressure Democratic Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark R. Warner to vote to reopen the government, accusing their party of “playing political football” with federal workers’ livelihoods.
Ms. Spanberger called for bipartisan cooperation to end the shutdown, arguing that it is exacerbating the challenges Virginians already face due to workforce cuts under the Trump administration.
“It is only increasing the challenge that they are facing after months and months of the attacks from this White House under DOGE,” she said. “The entirety of that time, my opponent has made light of federal workers losing their jobs, saying it’s not a big deal, and that everyone loses their jobs.”
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.
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