Abigail Spanberger was elected governor of Virginia, riding a message that President Donald Trump’s stewardship of the economy and federal government overhaul haven’t improved the lives of voters in the commonwealth.

Virginia is considered as a bellwether for the 2026 midterm elections. Along with another gubernatorial race in New Jersey, it’s one of the first major insights into how voters are feeling after nearly a year of Trump’s second term in office.

Home to the Pentagon, CIA and one of the largest concentrations of federal workers in the nation, Virginia is also one of the places most exposed to the impacts of Trump’s efforts to slash the federal bureaucracy. About 6 per cent of Virginia’s workforce is in the federal government, according to the Economic Policy Institute.

“We sent

See Full Page