Republican Winsome Sears, a staunch pro-life advocate, is locked in a tightening race against pro-abortion Rep. Abigail Spanberger for Virginia governor as Election Day on Nov. 5 approaches.
Recent polls are showing the contest narrowing amid fierce debates over protecting unborn children from abortion up to birth.
Pro-life leaders are rallying behind Sears, warning that a Spanberger victory could enshrine unlimited abortions in the state constitution, devastating thousands of babies and devaluing human life.
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The race has drawn national attention as Virginia’s off-year election serves as an early barometer for 2026 congressional battles, with Sears positioning herself as a defender of life against Spanberger’s push for expansive abortion. Sears, a Jamaican-American Marine veteran and former lieutenant governor, has boldly declared abortion “wicked and a direct attack on the Black community.”
Her campaign emphasizes rejecting a Democratic-backed constitutional amendment that would allow abortions through all nine months of pregnancy, a measure critics say would turn Virginia into the “abortion center of the southeastern United States.”
Olivia Gans Turner, director of the Virginia Society for Human Life, urged voters to support Sears as part of a “diverse pro-life team at the top of the ticket,” alongside candidates like John Reid for lieutenant governor and Jason Miyares for attorney general. In a pointed critique of the post-Roe v. Wade era, Turner highlighted how unlimited abortion since 1973 has fostered a “culture where human life is devalued, pregnancies are seen as problems to eliminate, and abortion is viewed as big business that corrupts doctors, healthcare workers, and social workers by ignoring the lives destroyed and failing to support mothers.”
The pro-life movement sees Sears’ election as essential to halting the amendment’s passage, which faces a slim pro-abortion majority in the House of Delegates by just two votes.
“Hold pro-life incumbents and flip seats in the House of Delegates to prevent the abortion amendment’s passage,” Turner wrote, framing the contest as a rejection of the “Party of Death.”
No pro-life Democrats are running for state offices, underscoring the stark party-line divide, with Democrats advancing the amendment alongside assisted suicide measures.
Spanberger has championed abortion access as a core issue, vowing to codify Roe v. Wade protections and block Republican efforts to impose restrictions. Her campaign has surged in fundraising, outpacing Sears by millions, but recent surveys indicate Sears closing the gap, fueled by turnout among pro-life voters and concerns over economic issues intertwined with family values.
Pro-life groups like the Virginia Society for Human Life are mobilizing door-to-door efforts and digital ads to boost Sears, arguing her victory would safeguard alternatives for mothers and end the normalization of violence against the unborn. With early voting underway and absentee ballots flooding in, the race remains fluid, but pro-life advocates remain optimistic.
“Supporting pro-life candidates like Sears is essential to reject the Party of Death,” Turner emphasized.
