Hands down, this was a good debate for Republican Winsome Earle-Sears, and she needed it.
A portrait of courage and leadership, on Democrat Abigail Spanberger’s part, it was not. Rather than stand up for decency and call for her running mate, disgraced Democratic Attorney General candidate Jay “two bullets” Jones, to exit the race, she demurred and ignored.
Spanberger spent much of Thursday night’s Virginia governor debate trying not to answer one question: whether she still endorses Jay Jones after his violent text messages wishing death on Republicans came to light.
Throughout the debate at Norfolk State University, Spanberger called Jones’s words “abhorrent” but repeatedly refused to say she would pull her endorsement. When moderators pressed her directly, asking if she still supported him, she dodged, saying voters “have the information they need” and should “make their own decisions.”
She then spent several instances during the debate coldly staring into nothing as Earle-Sears pressed Spanberger on the point. It was weird and awkward.
It was a careful response that criticized Jones but avoided taking clear action. For a candidate who built her image around honesty and accountability, it came across as political calculation, a reluctance to break with her own party even over something as serious as talk of violence against public officials.
Earle-Sears immediately seized on the moment. Looking directly at Spanberger, she asked, “You have little girls. What would it take? Him pulling the trigger?” Earle-Sears pressed the point that real leadership requires moral clarity, not cautious political phrasing.
Spanberger tried to pivot to her policy record, moving to topics like abortion and education, but each time the moderators circled back, she repeated the same obvious, rehearsed talking points. The result was an experienced former congresswoman evading topics she didn’t want to discuss. It was the most public demonstration of why Spanberger is unfit to lead the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Earle-Sears kept the focus on Spanberger’s refusal to take a stand. Her approach was deliberate, casting Spanberger as another politician unwilling to hold her own party accountable. Republicans have accused Democrats of turning a blind eye to political violence when it comes from within their ranks, and Thursday’s debate gave them more ammunition.
Spanberger also dodged the question of boys in women’s locker rooms and boys playing in girls’ sports. She can’t answer either way for fear of enraging her left-wing base or alienating moderates who would prefer to keep high school girls and boys in separate locker rooms.
By the end of the night, Spanberger had condemned Jones’s words multiple times but still hadn’t said the one thing that would end the speculation: “I withdraw my endorsement.”
That silence hung over the entire evening. For Earle-Sears, it was a moment to project moral conviction and contrast her decisiveness with Spanberger’s hesitation. For voters watching, it was clear who was giving answers and who was avoiding them.
It’s unclear whether this debate will move the needle, but Spanberger did not score any points ot help her. If anything, Winsome Earle-Sears carried the night by hammering Spanberger on issues she refuses to discuss on the campaign trail.