Progressive Voters Guide Powered by Progress Virginia
Delores L. McQuinn photo
Democrat

Delores L. McQuinn

Website Endorsements (Twitter)

This election will be held on November 4, 2025. Democratic Delegate Delores McQuinn is running for reelection unopposed in HD-81.

Virginia's House District 81 includes Charles City County and portions of Chesterfield and Henrico counties to the East of the City of Richmond. In the 2024 election it remained strongly Democratic by double-digit margins.

Delores L. McQuinn is a veteran Democratic Delegate, a former Richmond School Board Vice Chair and City Council Vice Mayor, who has represented District 70 since 2009 and District 81 since 2024. A Henrico native with degrees from VCU and VUU, she chairs the Transportation Committee and serves on key panels like Appropriations, Education, and Rules. She is actively campaigning for re-election in November 2025.
Committee Assignments: Appropriations, Education, Transportation 


Constitutional Amendments
- Co-sponsored a Constitutional Amendment to enshrine abortion rights in Virginia’s Constitution
- Voted for a Constitutional Amendment to restore voting rights to returning citizens
- Co-sponsored a Constitutional Amendment to enshrine equal marriage rights in Virginia’s Constitution


Education
- Voted to raise teacher pay to the national average
- Voted to increase protections and support for cyberbullying
- Voted to authorize public colleges and universities to prohibit guns on school property
- Voted against a “forced outing” bill targeting transgender students


Economy and Inflation
- Voted to increase the minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2027
- Co-patroned a bill to establish paid family and medical leave
- Co-patroned a bill to repeal prohibitions on collective bargaining for public employees
- Did not vote on a bill to establish regulatory bodies for the cannabis industry in Virginia
- Voted to establish frameworks to preserve local housing
- Voted to establish the Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act


Health and Human Services
- Voted to establish a Prescription Drug Affordability Board
- Voted to establish the right to access and use FDA-approved birth control
- Voted to require health insurance plans to cover birth control


Other Issues
- Co-sponsored a bill to prohibit the manufacture, sale, and possession of assault-style weapons
- Voted to authorize Ranked Choice Voting for certain local elections
- Voted to establish regulations for “high-risk” AI


Recommendation

This is an uncontested race. Based on her history of supporting quality, affordable healthcare, gun violence prevention, and workers' rights, Delegate Delores McQuinn is the progressive candidate in this race.
Last updated: 2025-09-22

House District 081

Not in House District 081? Find your guide.

Election Day November 4, 2025
Find Drop Box Locations
Ballot Drop Boxes

Federal

Governor

Abigail Spanberger photo
Democrat

Abigail Spanberger

Website Facebook Endorsements Instagram (Twitter)

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.
Last updated: 2025-09-24

Lieutenant Governor

Ghazala Hashmi photo
Democrat

Ghazala Hashmi

Website Facebook Endorsements Instagram (Twitter)

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.
Last updated: 2025-09-24

Attorney General

Jay Jones photo
Democrat

Jay Jones

Website Facebook Endorsements Instagram (Twitter)

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.
Last updated: 2025-09-24

House District 081

Delegate

Delores L. McQuinn photo
Democrat

Delores L. McQuinn

Website Endorsements (Twitter)

Virginia’s new 81st House of Delegates district encompasses parts of Henrico City, parts of Chesterfield County, and Charles City County. With over 60,000 registered voters, this district leans strongly Democratic.

This election will be held on November 4, 2025. Democratic Delegate Delores McQuinn is running for reelection unopposed in HD-81.

Virginia's House District 81 includes Charles City County and portions of Chesterfield and Henrico counties to the East of the City of Richmond. In the 2024 election it remained strongly Democratic by double-digit margins.

Delores L. McQuinn is a veteran Democratic Delegate, a former Richmond School Board Vice Chair and City Council Vice Mayor, who has represented District 70 since 2009 and District 81 since 2024. A Henrico native with degrees from VCU and VUU, she chairs the Transportation Committee and serves on key panels like Appropriations, Education, and Rules. She is actively campaigning for re-election in November 2025.
Committee Assignments: Appropriations, Education, Transportation 


Constitutional Amendments
- Co-sponsored a Constitutional Amendment to enshrine abortion rights in Virginia’s Constitution
- Voted for a Constitutional Amendment to restore voting rights to returning citizens
- Co-sponsored a Constitutional Amendment to enshrine equal marriage rights in Virginia’s Constitution


Education
- Voted to raise teacher pay to the national average
- Voted to increase protections and support for cyberbullying
- Voted to authorize public colleges and universities to prohibit guns on school property
- Voted against a “forced outing” bill targeting transgender students


Economy and Inflation
- Voted to increase the minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2027
- Co-patroned a bill to establish paid family and medical leave
- Co-patroned a bill to repeal prohibitions on collective bargaining for public employees
- Did not vote on a bill to establish regulatory bodies for the cannabis industry in Virginia
- Voted to establish frameworks to preserve local housing
- Voted to establish the Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act


Health and Human Services
- Voted to establish a Prescription Drug Affordability Board
- Voted to establish the right to access and use FDA-approved birth control
- Voted to require health insurance plans to cover birth control


Other Issues
- Co-sponsored a bill to prohibit the manufacture, sale, and possession of assault-style weapons
- Voted to authorize Ranked Choice Voting for certain local elections
- Voted to establish regulations for “high-risk” AI


Recommendation

This is an uncontested race. Based on her history of supporting quality, affordable healthcare, gun violence prevention, and workers' rights, Delegate Delores McQuinn is the progressive candidate in this race.
Last updated: 2025-09-22

City of Richmond

Depending on where you live, you may have the below races on your ballot.

Richmond Commonwealth's Attorney

No Recommendation

This election will be held on November 4, 2025. Incumbent Democratic Commonwealth's Attorney Colette McEachin is running for reelection unopposed in the City of Richmond.


Richmond is Virginia's capital city, located in east-central Virginia at the fall line of the James River, covering about 60 square miles and home to approximately 229,000 residents. In the 2024 election, Richmond voters overwhelmingly supported Democratic candidates.

Incumbent Colette McEachin was first elected as Richmond's Commonwealth’s Attorney in 2019, becoming the first woman and the first African-American woman elected to the position. She holds a J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law. Her office has been accused of lacking an adequate system to hold police who abuse their power accountable. McEachin refused to reopen the investigation into the police murder of Marcus David-Peters, an unarmed black man who was shot by Richmond police while undergoing a mental health crisis. She concluded that the police officer’s use of force was justified. Additionally, she denied a request for communication between her office and ICE.

 

Recommendation

While McEachin is running unopposed, we have no recommendation in this race. However, we still encourage you to vote in this race and every race on your ballot. 

 

Portions of this recommendation have appeared in earlier versions of the Progressive Voters Guide.
 

Last updated: 2025-09-24