BREAKING: Dem Abigail Spanberger wins VA governor’s race: DDesk

The election was called with about 5 percent of the vote in on Tuesday evening.

In the weeks heading into the election, polls tightened with Spanberger and Sears after fallout from revelations that nominee for state attorney general in Virginia, Jay Jones, had wished death on a GOP politician as well as the politician's children.

During debate with Sears and Spanberger, the Democrat did not pull her endorsement of Jones after being asked repeatedly about the matter.

With Spanberger becoming the next governor of the state, it flips party power from the GOP to the Democrats, as Governor Glenn Youngkin was elected previously. Sears has served alongside Youngkin as Lieutenant Governor, and pressed Spanberger on issues concerning trans students on girls' sports, bathrooms, as well as others.

On Election Day, Sears' final pitch was that Spanberger would raise taxes in Virginia, be softer on crime, advocate for open borders, would increase energy costs when she spoke to the press on Newsmax.

Spanberger posted around the same time to X, "All year, Virginians have seen our economy come under attack, jobs get ripped away, and prices skyrocket. They’re tired of the chaos. They’re ready for a Governor who will be laser-focused on growing our economy and lowering costs — a Governor who will put them first."

During the campaign, the Democrat tried to focus on issues with the economy and avoided the topic of boys playing in women's sports and going in bathrooms. Sears, on the same topics, talked often about the cost of living, but hammered Spanberger on the trans issue.