Virginia Governor’s Debate: Spanberger and Earle-Sears face off in exclusive debate

NORFOLK, Va. (Nexstar) — Former U.S. Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger squared off with current Virginia Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears in their only live, televised debate in the race for Virginia governor on Thursday night.

Spanberger is the Democratic nominee and Earle-Sears is the Republican candidate on the Nov. 4 ballot. Regardless of who wins, it will be a historic election as Virginia will elect its first female governor.

"Chasing History: The Race for Governor"

The exclusive debate began at 7 p.m. from the campus of Norfolk State University. The debate questioned the candidates on a wide range of issues impacting Virginians.

Two recent polls, from Emerson College Polling/The Hill and from Christopher Newport University's Wason Center, show Spanberger leading Earle-Sears 52% to 42% among likely voters.

Highlights from the debate can be found below:

Car Tax

Question: Ms. Earle-Sears, you have said you will axe the car tax in your first year in office, but you will have to replace the revenue for local governments. How will you come up with just over 3 billion dollars every year?

Earle-Sears:

Question: Ms. Spanberger, you've said you'd like to get rid of the car tax. Will you make a commitment here tonight that you will make that a priority? And where do you intend to find the money for local governments every year if the tax is eliminated?

Spanberger:

Political Violence

Question: Ms. Spanberger, you have called [Jay Jones’] comments disgusting and said you condemn violence. The question for you tonight is were you aware of the texts before they were released and will you continue to endorse jay jones to be the next attorney general of Virginia?

Spanberger:

Question: During the Charlie Kirk memorial, President Trump said, "I hate my opponent, and I don't want the best for them." Is there a place for that kind of political speech?

Earle-Sears:

Question: Ms. Earle-Sears, President Trump has endorsed the republican incumbent attorney general. Do you need Trump's endorsement to win the Virginia governor's race?

Earle-Sears:

Federal Workers

Question: Ms. Earle-Sears, knowing its impact on Virginia, if governor, would you ask the president to use his power to work with democrats to re-open the government?

Earle-Sears:

Question: Ms. Spanberger, knowing the shutdown's impact on Virginia, if governor, would you urge the two democratic senators to vote to re-open the government until a deal could be worked out with republicans?

Spanberger:

Data Centers

Question: Ms. Spanberger, what's your plan to make sure the data centers have the power they need and Virginians don't get stuck with the bill?

Spanberger:

Question: Ms. Earle-Sears, what's your idea for offsetting the high costs of data centers' energy demands and preventing additional rate hikes for Virginians?

Earle-Sears:

Brain Drain

Question: Ms. Earle-Sears, what policies or initiatives would you implement to make Virginia an attractive place for young professionals to live, work, and build their futures?

Earle-Sears:

Question: Ms. Spanberger, what economic policies or initiatives would you implement to make Virginia an attractive place for young professionals to live, work, and build their futures?

Spanberger:

Opponent Admiration

Question: Ms. Spanberger, what quality of your opponent do you admire?

Spanberger:

Question: Ms. Earle-Sears, what quality of your opponent do you admire?

Earle-Sears:

Trans Students

Question: Ms. Spanberger, focusing on K-12 schools, should transgender girls who are biologically males be allowed to use girls' bathrooms and play on girls' sports teams?

Spanberger:

Question: Ms. Earle-Sears, you say you do not support biological males identifying as females playing in girls' sports and have pledged to sign legislation restricting bathrooms by birth sex. Does this position discriminate against transgender girls?

Earle-Sears:

Reproductive Rights

Question: Ms. Earle-Sears, you have supported both a 15-week and 6-week abortion limit. As governor, what would you advocate for?

Earle-Sears:

Question: Ms. Spanberger, you say you want to keep Virginia the last bastion of reproductive freedom in the south. Do you support any limits on abortion?

Spanberger:

Immigration

Question: Ms. Spanberger, you've said using local and state police for ice raids is "dangerous." Are there any situations in which you would support local law enforcement assisting ice?

Spanberger:

Question: Ms. Earle-Sears, you've said you support local law enforcement's involvement with ice raids, but critics argue that in high-immigrant communities they're seeing fewer people reporting crimes and cooperating with police. Are you concerned about those negative impacts to public safety?

Earle-Sears:

Education

Question: Ms. Earle-Sears, you have stated you want parents more involved in their children's education. Would you include parents in designing school curriculum or should it be left up to the educators?

Earle-Sears:

Question: Ms. Spanberger, should the governor and state agencies decide which books are in school classrooms, or should parents have a voice in that decision?

Spanberger:

Marijuana

Question: Ms. Spanberger, you have stated your support legalizing a retail market for recreational marijuana that prioritizes public safety. What public safety concerns do you have?

Spanberger:

Question: Ms. Earle-Sears, the governor has vetoed bipartisan efforts to legalize a retail market for recreational marijuana twice. Would you sign a bill legalizing the commercial sale of any marijuana products in Virginia?

Earle-Sears:

Youngkin Legacy

Question: Ms. Earle-Sears, a central theme of your campaign is "let's keep a good thing going" referring to Governor Youngkin’s time in office. Is there anything that you would do differently?

Earle-Sears:

Question: Ms. Spanberger, Governor Youngkin is wrapping up his term with positive approval ratings according to our Emerson College/ Nexstar poll. Are there any Youngkin polices you would keep if you were elected governor?

Spanberger:

Early in-person voting runs from Sept. 19 through Nov. 1. Election Day is on Tuesday, Nov. 4.