Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears is set to become the first Black woman to serve as governor of a US state. This potential milestone comes after she officially launched her candidacy for governor of Virginia.
Earle-Sears is the first Black woman to occupy statewide office in Virginia history. However, she has now set her sights on the state’s highest political post.
Earle-Sears’ documents for running for governor in 2025 were accepted by the Virginia Department of Elections on Wednesday, according to WRIC.
Her campaign launched immediately after she declared that she was considering running for governor. Earle-Sears is the first Republican to formally seek the party’s nomination in 2025.
Current Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin will be unable to run for re-election since Virginia law prohibits governors from serving consecutive terms.
Currently, the lone Democratic contender for governor is U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger.
Earle-Sears was part of the Republican sweep of Virginia’s top offices in 2021, which included Governor Youngkin and Attorney General Jason Miyares.
Earle-Sears, a Marine veteran who emigrated to the US from Jamaica as a kid, defeated Democrat Hala Ayala to become Virginia’s second female statewide officeholder. The first was Attorney General Mary Sue Terry, who was elected in 1985.
Earle-Sears, a staunch conservative renowned for publicly discussing her Christian beliefs, has already broken down boundaries for women in politics.
Her political career began in 2001, when she shocked both parties by upsetting a 10-term Democratic incumbent in a predominantly blue area, becoming the first Black Republican woman elected to the House of Delegates.
She only served one term and chose not to run for re-election. She also ran unsuccessfully against U.S. Rep. Bobby Scott in what The Associated Press called “a campaign of raw invective.”
Earle-Sears has previously served on the State Board of Education and is currently the national chair of an organization advocating for former President Donald Trump’s re-election. She has also directed a men’s prison ministry, served as director of a women’s homeless shelter, and owned a plumbing and electrical supply business.