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Winsome Sears, Virginia’s Next Lieutenant Governor, Makes History as First Black Woman to Win Statewide

Republican Winsome Sears became the first black woman to be elected statewide in Virginia, narrowly winning the lieutenant governor’s race Tuesday as part of a Republican sweep of state offices.

Sears, a former member of the Virginia House of Delegates, defeated Democrat Hala Ayala, a current House member.  

The polls in Virginia closed at 7 p.m., and the Decision Desk HQ website called the lieutenant governor’s race for Sears at 8:43 p.m.

At 12:30 a.m., Sears had 51.1% of the vote to Ayala’s 48.9% with 95% of precincts reporting. 

In May, Sears derided critical race theory, which along with other education issues became a key topic in the Virginia elections. 

“It’s going to be detrimental to our schools and not what we want,” Sears said of critical race theory in an interview on “Fox & Friends,” adding: “It supposedly is to help someone who looks like me and I’m sick of it; I’m sick of being used by the Democrats, and so are many people who look like me.”

In early September, Sears told Newsmax she “would support” a heartbeat law such as Texas’ new law, which bans abortions at about 6 weeks into a pregnancy, when a heartbeat is detectable.

Her campaign later told The Hill: “While Winsome personally supports protecting life and the most vulnerable, as a former legislator herself she also recognizes that Virginia is very different from Texas, and that ..."

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