Winsome Earle-Sears Embraces Anti-Trans Rhetoric in 2025 Campaign

Winsome Earle-Sears Shifts Campaign Focus to Anti-Trans Rhetoric

Winsome Earle-Sears, Virginia’s lieutenant governor since 2022, has pivoted her political campaign strategy to emphasize anti-transgender rhetoric as she runs for governor in 2025. This new approach has led to accusations of political opportunism.

Previously steering clear of LGBTQ issues, Earle-Sears has made transgender policies a central theme of her campaign. In January, she criticized Democratic opponent Abigail Spanberger, a former U.S. Representative, for supporting legislation aimed at preventing discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

On her Facebook page, Earle-Sears stated, “Congresswoman Spanberger voted for a bill that ‘prohibits discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation, and GENDER IDENTITY in areas including public accommodations and facilities’. This is not leadership—it’s dangerous. Virginians deserve a governor who will stand up for common sense and protect our families.”

Also in January, Earle-Sears advocated for state legislation that would ban transgender students from participating in sports teams that align with their gender identity.

The following month, she praised an executive order from former President Donald Trump aimed at enforcing a similar prohibition and criticized the state’s school sports organization for not adhering to the order. Earle-Sears remarked on X, “Girls’ sports are for girls. Period. The Virginia High School League is refusing to follow federal law and President Trump’s executive order, putting our state at legal risk and young women in danger. Every female athlete deserves a level playing field — this is non-negotiable.”

Earle-Sears has a history in Virginia politics, having served in the Virginia House of Delegates from 2002 to 2004 and on the Virginia Board of Education from 2011 to 2015. During her tenure on the board, she helped shape educational policies and regulations.

In 2014, while Earle-Sears was vice president of the board, a controversy arose at Gloucester High School in Virginia over a transgender student’s bathroom use. The school board decided to prohibit the student from using the bathroom matching their gender identity, although the state Board of Education chose not to intervene and stated they had no guidelines on transgender student issues.

The growing focus on trans issues aligns with Republican political strategies, particularly following Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin’s 2021 election victory, which was partly attributed to his emphasis on parental control over public school policies, including those affecting LGBTQ students.

However, a Washington Post-Schar School poll indicates that 50% of respondents believe Democrats handle issues related to transgender individuals more effectively than Republicans, who garnered only 33% support.