Virginia Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears defended her record Sunday, rejecting Democrats’ efforts to tie her to President Donald Trump, who has not endorsed her campaign for governor, while highlighting Virginia’s economic gains under Republican leadership.
“Would I love the president’s endorsement? Of course,” the Virginia Republican told “Fox News Sunday.” “He’s doing good things for America.”
Meanwhile, Earle-Sears said that her state’s pro-worker, low-regulation policies are driving investment and pointed out that pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly just chose Virginia over 46 other states because of its strong business environment.
“We’ve removed job-killing regulations, 91,000 of them,” she said. “Businesses know they can thrive here without being forced into unions.”
Former Rep. Abigail Spanberger, the Democrat candidate for governor in Virginia, has accused Earle-Sears of backing Trump’s economic policies at the expense of Virginia’s federal workers.
Earle-Sears pushed back, saying Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s administration has expanded opportunities statewide.
“We’ve created jobs in Virginia,” she said. “There are over 250,000 openings. If [Spanberger] really cared about federal workers, she’d stop the political games and demand her party prevent government shutdowns.”
Earle-Sears also questioned federal data showing unemployment rising from 2.7% to 3.6% since she took office, pointing instead to local business growth.
“We’ve had over 15,000 new business start-ups,” she said. “More people are moving into Virginia than leaving. The U-Hauls are stopping here.”
She cited a $200 million company expansion adding 200 new jobs averaging $72,000 a year and criticized Fairfax County’s Democratic leaders for blocking 800 more.
“They wouldn’t help,” she said. “Is it a political game you’re playing with people’s lives?”
Earle-Sears also defended her support for the “Build to Work” bill, which Spanberger says would cut Medicaid coverage and close rural hospitals.
“How dare they try to instill fear in Virginians?” she said. “Those hospitals were closing long before this bill because of population loss, not policy.”
She said the bill restores Medicaid’s purpose by requiring able-bodied recipients to work, train, or volunteer at least 80 hours monthly.
“We’re not trying to make people fail,” she said. “When I ran a homeless shelter, I drove women to job interviews because I wanted them to succeed. This is about helping people stand on their own.”
With early voting underway, Earle-Sears said she remains focused on jobs, health care, and responsible government.
“We’re going to keep working in Virginia,” she said. “I know no other way.”
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