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Spanberger drop in approval rating ‘stunning’: Sabato

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by Ashleigh Fields - 04/07/26 2:59 PM ET

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by Ashleigh Fields - 04/07/26 2:59 PM ET

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Political scientist Larry Sabato said Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s (D) drop-off in voter approval is “stunning” months into her first term at the helm of the Old Dominion State.

Her approval rating sat at 47 percent, with 46 percent of voters disapproving and 7 percent expressing no opinion, in a poll from The Washington Post and the Schar School of Policy and Government.

The rating is 13 percentage points below the average for Virginia governors analyzed by the Post since the 1990s.

“A drop of that margin is stunning, and it should be greatly disturbing to the governor and the governor’s staff if it’s repeated in other surveys,” Sabato told ABC 7 News.

Spanberger hit the ground running during her first two months in office, issuing an executive order barring state agencies from entering into cooperation agreements with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and having Virginia rejoin the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.

Some analysts say the latter move will increase energy prices, while the Democratic governor campaigned on boosting affordability and increasing job opportunities for Virginians. Others have condemned the push to cut ties with ICE.

“Affordability is a great campaign theme, but almost an impossible governing one given the limited tools that a governor has to affect prices,” Mark Rozell, dean of the Schar School, told the Post.

“The public may like the particulars of some of her proposals, but as long as the overall environment on affordability remains unchanged, there is inevitable disappointment,” he added.

Independent voters are split in their view of Spanberger, with 45 percent approving and 46 percent disapproving of her first two months in office, according to the Post.

The survey was conducted March 26-31 among a random sample of 1,101 registered voters.

Last November, Spanberger won by a 15-point margin against her Republican opponent, former Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears. Democrats touted the win as a sign of their resurgence after losses nationwide in 2024.

However, Sabato said Spanberger now has to focus on reclaiming her base.

“That’s an example of where the Spanberger team has to change directions,” Sabato told ABC 7 News.

“They really haven’t put out very much about affordability. She has a case to make based on the legislation she proposed that was passed, and they’ve had a press conference or two here and there, but you really have to hit people hard with information before they can absorb it,” he added.

If she doesn’t promote her policies, the political analyst warned her approval rating could continue to sink.

“The good news for her is it’s early and she can change it, but the bad news is that I think she’s lost a point here and a point there, and a point over there, and these things add up, and before you know it, you’re below 50 percent and that’s where she is, if this poll is accurate,” Sabato said in the interview with ABC 7 News.

“She ought to be concerned about it, but they have plenty of time to change it,” he added.

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