A rising star among Democratic Party moderates, Virginia’s first woman governor, Abigail Spanberger, was elected on the same night last November as New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani, a Democratic socialist. In a wide-ranging interview with François Picard, Spanberger outlines a pragmatic vision of politics rooted in coalition-building, institutional trust and addressing voters’ everyday concerns through practical governance rather than ideological confrontation.
She argues that electoral success begins with engaging directly with people – going door to door and listening to their priorities. Asked whether Germany’s chancellor is right to worry about US election interference in upcoming regional elections, where the far-right AfD is leading, Spanberger says: “As a proud American, the fact that the question is a relevant one, I find that distressing.”
