“Your elected leaders like Abigail Spanberger are failing you. She says she’s for women but her record is not.” – Riley Gaines
RICHMOND, VA — Following Virginia’s gubernatorial election, Independent Women’s Voice sounds the alarm on Governor-elect Abigail Spanberger’s radical agenda that threatens women’s spaces safeguarded under the previous administration.
“Virginia women are rightfully concerned about what Abigail Spanberger’s election means for our safety and our children’s schools,” said Carrie Lukas, president of Independent Women and Virginia mom. “Spanberger refused to stand up for women’s spaces and opportunities, and has talked about resuming Virginia’s status as a sanctuary state. That means more strain on resources and more crime. Let’s hope that as governor she listens to constituents who want common sense government and leadership.”
“Spanberger has already vowed to rescind Governor Youngkin’s directive that protected women’s sports and female-only spaces. That sends a troubling message to all girls in our state, including my young granddaughters: that their governor-elect chooses to disregard their safety, privacy, and rightful opportunities,” said Beth Parlato, senior legal advisor for Independent Women and Virginia resident. “While tonight’s results are disappointing, our commitment to defending women’s rights is far from over. Independent Women will hold her accountable and continue fighting for the policies and protections every female in Virginia deserves.”
“Virginia parents must get active! Sadly, Spanberger has no respect for parents and parent rights and even supports measures to diminish the rights of parents over their children’s health and wellbeing,” said Julie Gunlock, Northern Virginia resident and director of Independent Women’s Network. “Independent Women’s Network stands with Virginia parents and invites them to join with us so we can more effectively fight governor-elect Spanberger and protect our children as she rolls back years of progress made by the Youngkin-Sears administration.”
“It’s a shame that Virginia’s first female governor is one who’s so disingenuous,” said Stephanie Lundquist-Arora, mother in Fairfax County, Virginia, an author, and the Fairfax chapter leader of the Independent Women’s Network. “She has duped Virginians. She ran on affordability, but supports costly environmental regulations, as well as the Democrat-approved expensive cars and meals taxes. She speaks against political turmoil, but told Virginians to ‘let your rage fuel you’ and endorsed Jay ‘two bullets’ Jones for attorney general. She said she supports safety and privacy for girls, but quietly advocates boys in girls’ locker rooms and bathrooms. She claims to be for Virginians, but ran a campaign funded by outsiders, focused almost singularly against President Donald Trump. She’s a leftist in moderate clothing who is more suitable for Californians than Virginians.”
Throughout this election cycle, Independent Women ran a major radio ad campaign across Virginia exposing Spanberger’s record. These ads highlighted Spanberger’s failure to Stand With Women and protect women’s sports—an issue on which over 80% of swing voters agree is vital. Despite the countless victims of physical harm that men in women’s sports brings—including in her home state of Virginia—Spanberger doubled down time and time again, voting against every measure possible to protect women. Yet, Spanberger continues to be labeled as a moderate, even though her record clearly says the opposite.
In September, Independent Women’s Voice and women’s sports advocate Riley Gaines launched an ad campaign highlighting Spanberger’s “failed” rating on the Riley Gaines Stand with Women scorecard. The Scorecard, launched by Independent Women’s Voice and Gaines in 2024, grades incumbents and candidates on whether they support legislation that preserves female opportunities and private spaces.
Spanberger received a “failed” score for her 2024 vote against the ”Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act”—demonstrating that her tenure as governor will align with policies that undermine women’s rights.
“Your elected leaders like Abigail Spanberger are failing you,” says Riley Gaines in the ad. “She says she’s for women but her record is not.”
Watch Riley Gaines’ Stand With Women Virginia Ad.
Independent Women’s Voice remains determined in its commitment to providing a platform for women and girls to share their stories in the fight to keep women’s sports and women’s spaces female.
Read more about how Independent Women’s Network, the grassroots community of Independent Women, mobilized several of its Virginia chapters and more than 2,000 members across Virginia to sound the alarm on Abigail Spanberger—alerting voters that she is not the moderate she claims to be, but an anti-woman candidate whose policies undermine women’s freedom and opportunity:
- Fairfax County Times | Spanberger’s record shows she’s no moderate
- Washington Examiner | Will Virginia and New Jersey keep female sports female — and fair?
- Bacon’s Rebellion | Spanberger is the Antithesis of Standing with Women
- Inside Sources | Virginia Deserves Better Than Abigail Spanberger
- Fairfax County Times | Hispanic parents in Virginia deserve a voice — and Winsome Sears is listening | Articles | fairfaxtimes.com
- Townhall | I Escaped California’s Radical Policies. Virginia Doesn’t Have to Inherit Them.
- Townhall | Over a Million Reasons (Dollars) Why Spanberger Silently Supports Boys in Girls’ Bathrooms
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