The candidates in Virginia’s race for lieutenant governor will make history when one of them is elected in November.
Virginia has never elected a woman for the position of lieutenant governor, and both candidates in the race Democratic Del. Hala Ayala and Republican Winsome Sears are women of color.
Voters in Virginia’s Democratic primary election picked Ayala Tuesday; Sears was nominated in May during a Republican party convention.
“This is going to be a landmark in Virginia,” said Virginia political analyst Bob Holsworth. “Whoever ultimately emerges victorious will certainly have a historical footnote attached to her name.”
The winner will be only the second woman elected to a statewide office in Virginia. The first was Mary Sue Terry, who was elected attorney general in 1985 and again in 1989. Virginia has elected two people of color to statewide offices: current Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax and former Gov. Doug Wilder.