Wikipedia

Abigail Spanberger

American politician

Abigail Anne Spanberger (née Davis; born August 7, 1979) is an American former CIA officer and politician. She is a U.S. representative from Virginia's 7th congressional district since 2019. She is a member of the Democratic Party. She was elected to the U.S. House in 2018 when she beat Republican incumbent U.S. Representative Dave Brat.

Abigail Spanberger
Official portrait, 2022
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Virginia's 7th district
Assumed office
January 3, 2019
Preceded byDave Brat
Succeeded byEugene Vindman (elect)
Personal details
Born
Abigail Anne Davis

(1979-08-07) August 7, 1979 (age 45)
Red Bank, New Jersey, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse(s)Adam Spanberger
Children3
EducationUniversity of Virginia (BA)
Purdue University (MBA)
WebsiteHouse website
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/serviceCentral Intelligence Agency
Years of service2006–2014
RankOperations Officer
Battles/warsGlobal War on Terrorism
Abigail Spanberger's voice
Abigail Spanberger speaks in support of the Inflation Reduction Act
Recorded August 12, 2022

In November 2023, Spanberger announced that she would be retiring from the House to run for Governor of Virginia in the 2025 election.[1]

Early life

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Spanberger was born Abigail Anne Davis[2] in Red Bank, New Jersey, on August 7, 1979,[3] where her father was a police officer and her mother was a nurse.[4] She was raised in Henrico County, Virginia, near Richmond.[5]

Spanberger graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Virginia and a Master of Business Administration from Purdue University.[5]

Early career

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In 2002 and 2003, Spanberger taught English literature as a substitute teacher at the Islamic Saudi Academy in Northern Virginia.[6] In the early 2000s, she was a postal inspector, working on money laundering and drug cases.[7]

In 2006, Spanberger joined the Central Intelligence Agency as an operations officer.[8] She helped fight against nuclear proliferation and terrorism.[9] In 2014, Spanberger left the CIA.[10] In 2017, Virginia governor Terry McAuliffe hired her to work for the Virginia Fair Housing Board.[11]

U.S. House of Representatives

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In July 2017, Spanberger announced her candidacy for the United States House of Representatives in Virginia's 7th congressional district in the 2018 election against Republican U.S. Representative Dave Brat.[12][13] She made the final decision to run after the House of Representatives voted to repeal the Affordable Care Act. In June 2018, Spanberger won the Democratic nomination with 73% of the vote.[14][15] Her campaign raised more money Brat's.[16] She won the November 6 general election by just over 6,800 votes.[17][18]

When Donald Trump was president, Spanberger voted with him 6.9% of the time.[19] She supported the first impeachment efforts against Trump.[20] She also did not like how Trump responded to the George Floyd protests.[21][22]

In 2020, she was re-elected with a 1.8% vote margin.[23] However, she criticized the Democratic Party's strategy for the 2020 election.[24] She also did not like how the party was becoming more progressive and supporting progressive ideas.[25] In 2022, she was re-elected with 52% of the vote.[26]

In a November 2021, Spanberger criticized President Joe Biden after the 2021 gubernatorial election when Republican Glenn Youngkin was elected governor, saying, "Nobody elected him to be F.D.R., they elected him to be normal and stop the chaos."[27] She also said the Democrats were not focusing on inflation as a real problem.[28]

In November 2023, Spanberger announced that she would not run for re-election in 2024, instead focusing on running for governor in 2025.[1] Former U.S. Army officer and Democrat Eugene Vindman was elected in 2024 to replace her.[29]

2025 gubernatorial election

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See the main article: 2025 Virginia gubernatorial election

On November 13, 2023, Spanberger announced that she would run for Governor of Virginia in 2025.[1] No one is running against her for the Democratic nomination since Richmond mayor Levar Stoney dropped out to run for lieutenant governor instead.[30]

Personal life

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Spanberger is married to Adam Spanberger. They have three daughters. In 2014, the family moved back to Henrico County. They live in Glen Allen, Virginia.[31][32] She is a Protestant.[33]

References

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  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Rankin, Sarah (13 November 2023). "Virginia Rep. Abigail Spanberger is running for governor instead of seeking reelection to the House". AP News. The Associated Press. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
  2. ↑ "Abigail Spanberger (Col '01)". University of Virginia Magazine. UVA Alumni Association. October 19, 2017. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  3. ↑ Gonzales, Nathan L. (October 12, 2017). "Candidate Conversation - Abigail Spanberger (D)". Inside Elections. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
  4. ↑ Vozzella, Laura (November 12, 2023). "Virginia Rep. Abigail Spanberger to Run for Governor in 2025." MSN.com. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Abigail Spanberger's passion for languages led her to the CIA". The Richmond Times-Dispatch. May 12, 2018. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
  6. ↑ Vozzella, Laura (September 11, 2018). "Saudi School Dominates TV Ads in Race for Suburban Richmond Congressional Seat". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 17, 2019.
  7. ↑ "This former CIA officer says she can beat Virginia Rep. Dave Brat". The Washington Examiner website. May 30, 2018. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
  8. ↑ "Former CIA Officer Abigail Spanberger is on a mission for Virginia's 7th District". RVA Magazine. May 3, 2018. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
  9. ↑ "The operative: Abigail Spanberger". The Chesterfield Observer website. June 6, 2018. Archived from the original on October 9, 2018. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
  10. ↑ Who are they? Virginia's fresh faces in Congress, WTKR, Nick Boykin, January 4, 2019. Retrieved November 14, 2020.
  11. ↑ Hall, Madison (November 5, 2020). "RESULTS: Nick Freitas squares off against Democratic incumbent Abigail Spanberger in Virginia's 7th Congressional District". www.msn.com. Retrieved June 17, 2021.
  12. ↑ "Abigail Spanberger becomes the fifth female candidate vying for the Democratic nomination to run against Republican Congressman Dave Brat". Elle.com. July 11, 2017. Retrieved November 4, 2018.
  13. ↑ "'It's grilling time': Five women line up to challenge Rep. Brat". The Washington Post. July 24, 2017. Retrieved November 4, 2018.
  14. ↑ Wilson, Patrick (June 12, 2018). "Abigail Spanberger easily defeats Dan Ward in 7th District Democratic primary". The Richmond Times-Dispatch. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
  15. ↑ "Spanberger wins Democratic primary in Virginia's 7th Congressional District". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
  16. ↑ "Open Secrets breakdown of the 7th District". Open Secrets website. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
  17. ↑ Almukhtar, Sarah (November 7, 2018). "Virginia's 7th House District Election Results: Dave Brat vs. Abigail Spanberger". The New York Times. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
  18. ↑ "Virginia House". CNN. Archived from the original on November 9, 2018. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  19. ↑ "Tracking Congress In The Age Of Trump". FiveThirtyEight. January 30, 2017. Retrieved April 13, 2020.
  20. ↑ Ferris, Sarah (December 16, 2019). "Vulnerable Democrats to vote to impeach Trump". Politico. Retrieved December 16, 2019.
  21. ↑ Haltiwanger, John. "Trump's tear gas photo-op was 'frightening' to authoritarianism experts, who warn that his behavior will only get worse without 'fierce opposition'". Business Insider. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  22. ↑ Edmondson, Catie (June 2, 2020). "Trump's Response to Protests Draws Bipartisan Rebuke in Congress". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on September 27, 2020. Retrieved June 15, 2020. Representative Abigail Spanberger, Democrat of Virginia, a former C.I.A. officer, called his response the type of action 'undertaken by authoritarian regimes throughout the world.'
  23. ↑ "Abigail Spanberger declares victory over Freitas in 7th Congressional District race". nbc12.com. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  24. ↑ "Spanberger criticizes Democrats' strategy in caucus call". The Washington Post. November 5, 2020. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  25. ↑ Cillizza, Chris (November 6, 2020). "Analysis: This Democratic congresswoman just spoke some hard truth to her party". CNN. Retrieved November 28, 2020.
  26. ↑ "Virginia Seventh Congressional District Election Results". The New York Times. November 8, 2022. Retrieved December 10, 2022.
  27. ↑ Cillizza, Chris (November 4, 2021). "This Democrat thinks Joe Biden fundamentally misunderstood his mandate". CNN. Retrieved November 4, 2021.
  28. ↑ John L. Dorman (November 7, 2021). "Moderate Democratic Rep. Abigail Spanberger says Americans didn't elect Biden to be FDR". Business Insider. Retrieved November 14, 2021.
  29. ↑ Lillis, Mike (November 5, 2024). "Eugene Vindman Keeps Open Virginia House Seat in Democratic Hands". thehill.com. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  30. ↑ Vozzella, Laura (22 April 2024). "Richmond Mayor Stoney drops Va. governor bid, seeks lt. governor post". The Washington Post. Retrieved 23 April 2024.
  31. ↑ Holladay, Hilary (November 2, 2018). "Election 2018: Dave Brat and Abigail Spanberger". Orange County Review. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
  32. ↑ King, Sarah (May 12, 2019). "Virginia's Future Is Female". richmondmagazine.com. Retrieved May 21, 2019.
  33. ↑ "Faith on the Hill: The religious composition of the 116th Congress" (PDF). Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project. January 3, 2019. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 5, 2019. Retrieved March 9, 2021.

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