NATIONAL NEWS

Ghazala Hashmi wins Democratic nomination for Virginia lieutenant governor

Jun 18, 2025, 8:01 AM

FILE - Virginia State Sen-elect, Ghazala Hashmi speaks to supporters at a Democratic victory party ...

FILE - Virginia State Sen-elect, Ghazala Hashmi speaks to supporters at a Democratic victory party in Richmond, Va., Nov. 5, 2019. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File)
Credit: ASSOCIATED PRESS

(AP Photo/Steve Helber, File)

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — The candidates for Virginia’s lieutenant governor are set to make history after Sen. Ghazala Hashmi won the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor on Wednesday.

Hashmi is the first Muslim and the first Indian-American to be nominated to appear on the ballot for a Virginia statewide office. She defeated five other candidates, including Democrats Levar Stoney and Aaron Rouse, to secure the nomination in a razor-thin primary race.

Hashmi will now face Republican John Reid, the first openly gay man to receive a major party’s endorsement for statewide office in Virginia, who became the de-facto nominee after his primary opponent left the race.

Her victory rounded out the Democratic ticket ahead of the November general election. It comes after former Del. Jay Jones became the party nominee for attorney general late Tuesday.

Virginia’s off-year elections typically draw national attention as a possible bellwether for politicians as they head into midterms in 2026.

Democrats held down-ballot races for their statewide ticket, which is being led by U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger, the party’s nominee for governor. The former congresswoman, whose candidacy managed to avoid prospective primary challengers, will go up against Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, the only person to qualify for the GOP primary.

Conservatives did not hold statewide primaries this year, with only one candidate in each statewide contest advancing to the general election ballot.

Earle-Sears became the Republican gubernatorial nominee after conservatives Dave LaRock and Amanda Chase failed to collect enough signatures to qualify for the ballot. Both LaRock and Chase initially challenged Earle-Sears for not being fully aligned with the White House.

Reid, a conservative talk-radio host, secured the Republican nomination for lieutenant governor despite intraparty quarreling over whether he was tied to a social media account reposting pornography, a charge he vehemently denied.

Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares sailed to his spot on the ballot after announcing his reelection bid.

Hashmi’s political career has been marked by its fair share of firsts: she was the first Muslim woman and the first South Asian American in Virginia’s upper chamber.

She emigrated from India to Georgia when she was four years old, later moving to Richmond after getting a doctorate in American literature. She spent most of her career as a professor, first at the University of Richmond and then at Reynolds Community College.

The Democrat managed to distinguish herself by touting her legislative chops. Hashmi began her career in the Virginia Senate six years ago after ousting incumbent Republican Sen. Glen Sturtevant. She was reelected to her seat in 2023.

In the Senate, Hashmi put forth bills establishing Virginians’ right to contraception, which passed both chambers but were vetoed by Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin.

___

Olivia Diaz is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

National News

Associated Press

Michigan, environmental groups challenge federal order to keep power plant open

DETROIT (AP) — Environmental groups and Michigan’s attorney general filed separate challenges Wednesday against a federal order that is keeping a coal-fired power plant open this summer. The environmental coalition said there’s no energy emergency that would justify keeping Consumers Energy’s J.H. Campbell plant alive in Ottawa County, near Lake Michigan. The U.S. Energy Department […]

3 minutes ago

U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres addresses the United Nations General Assembly, Monday, June...

Associated Press

Iran executed at least 975 people last year, the highest number since 2015, UN report says

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Iran carried out executions at “an alarming rate” last year with at least 975 people killed, the United Nations chief said in a report that also cited other human rights abuses, from barriers to freedom of expression to the use of torture and arbitrary detention. U.N. deputy human rights commissioner Nada […]

8 minutes ago

FILE - Ball State and South Florida play an NCAA college football game at Raymond James Stadium, Sa...

Associated Press

Florida officials let public universities free up millions to pay student-athletes

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida’s public universities can free up $22.5 million a year to compensate student-athletes under an emergency rule approved by a state board Wednesday ahead of a landmark legal settlement allowing schools to pay their players through licensing deals. The sprawling $2.8 billion antitrust settlement, going into effect July 1, allows schools […]

14 minutes ago

Karen Read hugs lawyer Alan Jackson after a not guilty verdict of second-degree murder is read in N...

Associated Press

Photos of Karen Read’s dramatic courtroom moment after acquittal on murder charge

DEDHAM, Mass. (AP) — Karen Read was found not guilty of second-degree murder and manslaughter in the 2022 death of her boyfriend, Boston police officer John O’Keefe. The jury convicted her of a lesser charge of drunken driving, however. Supporters erupted in cheers outside the courthouse as the verdict was read. Read, leaving with her […]

15 minutes ago

An adult New World screwworm fly sits at rest in this undated photo. (Denise Bonilla/U.S. Departmen...

Associated Press

The US plans to open a fly factory in Texas as part of its fight against a flesh-eating parasite

The U.S. government plans to open what amounts to a fly factory by the end of the year, announcing its intent Wednesday to breed millions of the insects in Texas near the border with Mexico as part of an effort to keep a flesh-eating parasite from infesting American cattle. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said sterile […]

19 minutes ago

This aerial photo taken June 17, 2025, in Glastonbury, Conn. shows the home of Mary Notarangelo, a ...

Associated Press

Retired detective found dead in hoarding conditions in Connecticut, months after she went missing

GLASTONBURY, Conn. (AP) — Mary Notarangelo lived a reclusive life in her later years, according to the few people who had contact with her. The retired police detective tended to her many birds at her Connecticut home and posted videos of them on social media, including one accompanying her on a trip to a local […]

27 minutes ago

Ghazala Hashmi wins Democratic nomination for Virginia lieutenant governor