Washington — Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger will deliver the Democratic response to President Trump’s State of the Union address next week, party leaders in Congress announced on Thursday.
“Gov. Spanberger has always put service over politics — defending our national security and delivering real results for working families,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement. “She knows Americans want lower costs, safer communities, and a stronger democracy — not chaos and corruption. Gov. Spanberger will lay out a clear path forward: lower everyday costs, protect healthcare, and defend the freedoms that define who we are as a nation.”
Spanberger, a former congresswoman and CIA officer, was elected in November as Virginia’s first female governor, one of Democrats’ first major electoral victories since President Trump returned to the White House.
In a statement announcing her selection, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries highlighted Spanberger’s work as a postal inspector and in national security before she went on to represent Virginia in Congress beginning in 2019, calling her a “trusted public servant.”
“As the 75th Governor of Virginia and first woman ever elected to lead the Commonwealth, Abigail is a champion for lowering the high cost of living, saving healthcare from the relentless far-right assault and protecting the federal workforce so they can serve the American people without political interference,” Jeffries said in a statement.
Mr. Trump is set to deliver the State of the Union address on Feb. 24. The address will mark his first State of the Union of his second term. The president addressed a joint session of Congress in March of last year, but it was not considered a formal State of the Union address.
Jeffries said Spanberger “stands in stark contrast to Donald Trump, who will lie, deflect and blame everyone but himself for his failed presidency on Tuesday evening.” He said as the nation looks toward the 250th anniversary this summer, Spanberger “embodies the best of America as a mother, community leader and dedicated public servant.”
Leaders of the opposing party in Congress have selected rising stars within their ranks to deliver the rebuttal to the State of the Union address in recent years. Sen. Elissa Slotkin, a Michigan Democrat, delivered the response to the president’s address to a joint session of Congress last year. In the final year of President Joe Biden’s presidency, GOP Sen. Katie Britt of Alabama delivered the Republican response.
Spanberger said in a statement that Americans are “at a defining moment in our nation’s history” as the country contends with “rising costs, chaos in their communities, and a real fear of what each day might bring.”
“Next week, I look forward to laying out what these Americans expect and deserve — leaders who are working hard to deliver for them,” she said.