Obama’s Last-Minute Rally for Virginia Democrat Abigail Spanberger as Earle-Sears Closes Gap
Former President Barack Obama plans to sweep into Virginia to buttress the gubernatorial campaign of Democrat nominee Abigail Spanberger as polls show a suddenly tightening race.
Spanberger announced Tuesday morning that Obama will join her in Norfolk, Virginia, for a rally on Nov. 1, three days before election day. In a news release, the former congresswoman highlighted the importance of the rally’s location, noting that Obama last visited the Hampton Roads area in 2012 during his presidential reelection campaign.
A month ago, Spanberger was leading the polls by upwards of 12 points. A Christopher Newport University poll of likely voters showed Spanberger with 52% to Republican nominee Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears’ 40%, with 8% undecided.
Quantus Insights conducted the most recent poll showing Spanberger now ahead of Sears by five points. The survey of 1302 likely voters had 51% for Spanberger and 46% for Sears, with 2% undecided.
The Spanberger rally announcement comes days after President Donald Trump endorsed Earle-Sears. Obama endorsed Spanberger in a new ad funded by her campaign.
“Virginia’s elections are some of the most important in the country this year, and I am proud to endorse Abigail Spanberger for governor,” Obama said in the ad.
“Republican policies are raising costs on working families so billionaires can get massive tax cuts,” he claimed.
According to the White House, the Trump administration has saved the average American family over $1,300 per year just with deregulatory initiatives. In August, after Congress passed The One Big Beautiful Bill, the White House announced taxpayers should see an average tax cut of over $3,500 in 2026.
Earlier this month, former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton appeared at a fundraiser for Spanberger in Northern Virginia.
In an almost identical ad, Obama endorsed Mikie Sherrill, the Democrat gubernatorial nominee in New Jersey.
