Orange County

This election will be held on November 4, 2025. Republican incumbent Lt. Governor Winsome Earle-Sears and former Democratic US Representative Abigail Spanberger will face each other in the general election for Governor of Virginia.

The Democratic nominee for Governor, Abigail Spanberger actually fights to expand healthcare and reproductive freedom instead of rolling over when conservatives threaten to restrict abortion rights. She’s committed to investing in clean energy, holding polluters accountable, and reducing energy costs for working families. Her gun-safety agenda goes far beyond “thoughts and prayers,” taking on the NRA head-on instead of cashing their donation checks. Spanberger’s pragmatic progressive vision gives suburban moderates and left-leaners tired of corporate centrism and culture-war theatrics a real reason to show up.

The Opposition

The Republican nominee for Governor, Winsome Earle-Sears is all about slashing taxes for big corporations while telling unemployed workers that losing a job is “no big deal.” She grandstands against critical race theory and “woke” classrooms to score culture-war points instead of tackling real education challenges. By waving her Marine Corps credentials, she sells herself as the ultimate tough-on-crime candidate, conveniently ignoring how lax gun laws endanger communities. Her true believers are MAGA zealots who think banning books, rolling back reproductive freedoms, and erasing civil liberties are more important than looking out for working families.

Recommendation

Due to her advocacy for abortion access, gun violence prevention, and clean energy, Abigail Spanberger is the progressive candidate in this race.

This election will be held on November 4, 2025. Democratic Virginia State Senator Ghazala Hashmi and Republican John Reid will face each other in the general election for Lt. Governor of Virginia.

The Democratic nominee for Lt. Governor, Ghazala Hashmi is fighting to pump real money into public schools instead of the right’s perennial budget cuts and culture-war book bans. She defends reproductive freedom and Medicaid expansion for working families while conservatives keep dialing back healthcare access and waving anti-abortion placards. Her clean-energy agenda and environmental-justice bills actually target polluters, not the customary GOP handouts to pipeline lobbyists. Dreamers, suburban progressives fed up with partisan hijinks, and anyone who’d trade culture-war theatrics for equity and opportunity will cheer her unapologetic stand for Virginia’s working families.

The Opposition

The Republican nominee for Lt. Governor, John Reid is a self-styled small-government crusader who’ll happily cut taxes for wealthy donors while pretending he’s doing the same for working Virginians. He rails against “woke” curriculum and critical race theory, because apparently teaching actual American history is more offensive to him than runaway inequality. He touts law-and-order credentials and celebrity as a conservative radio host, hawking gun rights like they’re the ultimate public-safety strategy. He even plans to torpedo constitutional protections for same-sex marriage, proving that an openly gay candidate will stab his own community in the back for party unity, the perfect pick for culture-war diehards who prefer corporate giveaways to real solutions for working families.

Recommendation

Due to her advocacy for public education, abortion access, and environmental justice, Ghazala Hashmi is the progressive candidate in this race.

This election will be held on November 4, 2025. Incumbent Republican Attorney General Jason Miyares faces a challenge from former Democratic Virginia State Delegate Jay Jones.

The Democratic nominee for Attorney General, Jay Jones has pledged to sue the Trump administration every time it infringes on the rights of Virginians. He’s secured victories for abortion access, expanded Medicaid to cover thousands more Virginians, and even wrote anti-price-gouging measures to keep corporate vultures in check. His public-safety plan pairs smart gun-violence prevention and community-based crime interventions rather than recycling the right’s tired “lock ’em up” mantra for political ads. Grassroots progressives, consumer-rights advocates, and anyone sick of endless culture-war stunts will line up behind a candidate who actually puts families over fear-mongering theatrics.

The Opposition

Incumbent Republican Attorney General Jason Miyares cozies up to ICE, shaming local authorities who don’t cooperate with Trump’s policies of mass deportation, because terrorizing immigrant families is apparently his idea of due process. He grandstands on opioid crackdowns but turns a blind eye to corporate-friendly loopholes that keep the drug pipeline flowing. He bills himself as a federalism champion when suing Washington over environmental rules, conveniently ignoring states’ rights whenever big donors flash a check. His true believers are tough-on-crime zealots who think more ICE raids, harsher sentencing, and tax cuts for the wealthy are the pinnacle of compassionate governance.

Recommendation

Due to his advocacy for abortion access, gun violence prevention, and Medicaid coverage, Jay Jones is the progressive candidate in this race.

This election will be held on November 4, 2025. Democrat Sara Ratcliffe and Republican Karen Hamilton will face off in HD-62.

Virginia’s House District 62 spans parts of Culpeper County, all of Greene County, portions of Orange County, and all of Madison County in Virginia’s Piedmont region. In the 2024 election it remained a strong Republican district by comfortable double‐digit margins

Democrat Sara Ratcliffe is a Greene County resident and advocate. She was raised by a single mother, whom she became a caregiver for at a young age. Ratcliffe also became the primary caregiver of her father. She holds a B.A. in Political Science with a concentration in United States domestic policy from George Washington University. She worked as a political research assistant and has worked with legislators at every level of government. Ratcliffe and her husband have one son. 

Constitutional Amendments
Sara Ratcliffe will fight to protect abortion access and keep reproductive decisions a person and their healthcare provider.

Education
Sara Ratcliffe pledges to champion high-quality K-12 public education. She supports raising teacher pay and investing in early childhood education funding and. She also looks to increase skills training and apprenticeship programs and support for local community colleges.

Economy and Inflation
Ratcliffe advocates for paid medical leave and paid family leave and affordable, quality childcare. She wants to support small business and farmers, as well as job protection and creation for small-town Virginia. She fights for limiting overdevelopment and preserving rural natural resources.

Health and Human Services
Ratcliffe prioritizes access to local, affordable healthcare options and community-based mental health treatment options. She wants to see better rural healthcare accessibility and more options and flexibility for elder care. She advocates for affordable prescription drugs and substance abuse counseling, covered by insurance. Ratcliffe also wants to ensure that support and services are especially accessible to veterans.

Other Issues
Sarah Ratcliffe vows to foster communication between law enforcement and the community. She supports commonsense, bipartisan policies to prevent gun violence. She also advocates for protecting the LGBTQ community from harm and harassment. Additionally, she wants to increase highway and traffic safety, encourage sustainable farming, and expand broadband access and strong cellular service.

The Opposition

Republican Karen Hamilton is a small business owner and daughter of Christian missionaries. She holds a B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. After graduating, she worked as a structural engineer. She and her husband, who is currently serving in the Trump Administration, have three children. 

Karen Hamilton will not support HJ 1, which would enshrine reproductive rights in the Virginia Constitution. She states that enshrining abortion rights “subverts the very concept of rights.”

Karen Hamilton pledges to fight for better pay for teachers, as well as school choice as a way for public schools to compete for students. She homeschools her children. Hamilton wants to support our farmers by scaling back regulations and climate initiatives. She also wants to lower taxes and reduce regulations. Hamilton has expressed her support for federal law enforcement arresting immigrants. She will seek to repeal commonsense gun laws and oppose new legislation.

Recommendation

Based on her advocacy for quality public education, gun violence prevention, and affordable healthcare, Sara Ratcliffe is the progressive candidate in this race.

This election will be held on November 4, 2025. Incumbent Republican Delegate Phillip Scott faces a challenge from Democrat Forrest Miller in HD-63.

Virginia’s House District 63 covers parts of Spotsylvania County and Orange County in Virginia’s Piedmont region. In the 2024 election it remained a strong Republican district by comfortable double-digit margins.

Democrat Forrest Miller is a U.S. Army veteran who was born and raised in Alabama. Miller is a Bronze Star Medal recipient. He graduated from the Warrant Officer Candidate School in 2009. He holds a Master’s degree in Network and Communication Management, as an Associate of Applied Science in Network Administration. He previously worked at the White House Communications Agency. Miller lives in Spotsylvania County with his wife and two children. He has stated, “In full transparency until recently, I would have told you that I was a moderate Republican.”

Constitutional Amendments
Forrest Miller will support HJ 9, which would repeal the Commonwealth’s defunct same-sex marriage ban and guarantee marriage equality for LGBTQ+ Virginians.
While he has stated broad support for “current amendments to the Virginia Constitution and those to be added,” as of this writing, were unable to find Miller’s explicit support for HJ 1, which would enshrine reproductive rights in the Virginia Constitution or HJ 2, which would automatically restore voting rights to people upon release from incarceration.

Education
Forrest Miller pledges to improve schools by focusing on infrastructure. He advocates for expanded job training for teachers and raising teacher pay.

Economy and Inflation
Miller supports investing in roads, helping to develop solutions for traffic congestion points, and assisting in planning for expected growth.

Health and Human Services
Miller wants to promote access to care and ensure healthcare workers and first responders have access to equipment and training.

Other Issues
He wants to create opportunities for veterans and ensure they have access to needed services. Additionally, he pledges to ensure the families of veterans are always supported.

The Opposition

Incumbent Republican Phillip Scott was first elected to the House of Delegates in 2021. He attended Word of Life Bible Institute and Liberty University and holds a B.A. in Biblical Studies, a Master’s degree in Management and Leadership, and a Juris Master’s. Delegate Scott is currently working on a Ph.D. in Public Policy, specializing in National Security. He leads a team of background investigators for a government contractor. He and his wife have five daughters.

Delegate Scott does not support the constitutional amendments for abortion rights, voting rights restoration to returning citizens, or marriage equality. He voted against raising teacher pay, increasing the minimum wage, and establishing the Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act. He also voted against establishing a Prescription Drug Affordability Board and gun violence prevention bills.

Recommendation

While we found limited information on Forrest Miller's priorities and stances, his support for abortion access and raising teacher pay show that he is the more progressive candidate in this race.