Gun-Toting Ex-Marine Becomes Virginia’s First Female Lieutenant Governor

Virginia’s Republican lieutenant governor candidate Winsome Sears became the first woman—and woman of color—to be elected to the office Wednesday, WDBJ reported. “I am at a loss for words for the first time in my life,” Sears told supporters early Wednesday morning. She beat Democrat Hala Ayala in the race to succeed Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax. A Jamaican-born Marine vet, businesswoman and avid gun supporter, Sears noted the historic nature of her win early Wednesday morning. “There are some who want to divide, but we must not let that happen,” she said. “We have had a black president elected not once but twice and here I am, living proof.” Sears, who is also the first woman of color to win any statewide office in Virginia, will be the state’s first Republican lieutenant governor since 2014.