State Governance

Abigail Spanberger was sworn in on Jan. 17, 2026, in Richmond as Virginia’s first female governor in a noon outdoor ceremony at the state Capitol administered by Senior Justice William Mims amid a cold drizzle; Ghazala F. Hashmi was sworn in as lieutenant governor — the first Muslim woman to hold statewide office in the U.S. — and Jay Jones took office as attorney general. In her inaugural address Spanberger sharply criticized the Trump administration for cuts to health care, imperiling rural hospitals, closing markets and driving up costs for groceries, medicine and housing, while urging Virginians to speak up and also to work together where possible.