The Honorable William C. Mims, Senior Justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia, administered the oath of office to Abigail Spanberger.
Under a slate gray sky and a 46-degree chill, the gates opened at 11 a.m. at Virginia’s state Capitol in Richmond and people started squeezing in and filling the metal bleachers. At 11:30 a.m., as the inauguration-goers shivered in misty showers, an announcer said, “Our meteorologists tell me that the rain will stop at an important time, 12 noon.” Sure enough, it did and House of Delegates speaker Don Scott formally began the inauguration of Virginia’s 75th and first woman governor, Abigail Davis Spanberger.
Overcoming division and seeking unity became the theme of the day. Father Jim Curran from Norfolk’s Basilica of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception prayed for God “to unite us, open our eyes to our brothers and sisters and open our hearts to those with whom we disagree.”
With the imposing state Capitol designed by Thomas Jefferson as a backdrop, the state’s three new top elected officials took their oath of office, spouses by their side: Jay Jones, Attorney General; Ghazala Hashmi, Lieutenant Governor; and Abigail Spanberger, Governor. The new, ground-breaking governor is a mother of three, a three-term congresswoman and former Central Intelligence Agency officer.
Among the elected officials present were nine former Virginia governors. Spanberger saluted Douglas Wilder, the nation’s first African American governor, waving from several rows back, honoring his 95th birthday that day.
The Governor’s Address
Spanberger opened by thanking her parents seated behind her as models of public service, adding “There’s nothing more important than my three daughters,” glowing from her stand.
She said the peaceful transfer of power “represents something profound,” a tradition begun by a Virginian, George Washington, and called her new position “the honor of my life.”
She quoted Virginia’s first governor, Patrick Henry, who warned against divisions in 1799. “‘Let us not split into factions, which must destroy that union upon which our existence hangs,’ That was the challenge Governor Henry put to Virginia at the close of the 18th century,” Spanberger asserted. “And it is the charge we must answer again today. I know that the work of perfecting our democracy has never been finished.”
She cited the suffragists’ struggle for the right to vote. Wearing white alludes to the suffragists whose efforts paved the way more than 100 years ago. She recalled former Republican Virginia Governor Linwood Holton, who in 1970 stood up to segregationists, and said, "No longer can we be divided into opposing camps of political philosophy.”
While recounting chapters of Virginia history, Spanberger said that “today must be about our future and the story we will write together.” She challenged attendees to “to fix what isn’t working,” and without mentioning the U.S. President by name, urged her audience to respond to the “recklessness coming out of Washington,” and “an administration that is gilding buildings while schools crumble, breaking the social safety net and sowing fear across our communities — betraying the values of who we are as Americans, the very values we celebrate here on these steps.”
She pledged to help make housing, child care and health care more affordable and make Virginia’s “public schools the best in the nation.” She promised to stem gun violence. “And in Virginia, our hardworking, law-abiding immigrant neighbors will know that when we say we’ll focus on the security and safety of all of our neighbors, we mean them too.”
She closed by invoking Dr. Martin Luther King’s Pilgrimage of Prayer. “And it gives me cause to reflect on what our path forward must be, not a Pilgrimage of Politics, certainly not a Pilgrimage of Partisanship, but rather a Pilgrimage of Promise, Progress and Prosperity,” she said.
“My fellow Virginians, as we set an example for the country, the world, and most importantly, our children, let us: Choose to stand united. Choose to serve one another. Choose to act together,” she closed.
Blessings
In his benediction, Dr. Lance D. Watson, from Richmond’s Saint Paul’s Baptist Church, prayed for the “blessings of civility,” urging all to “embrace our unity.”
In the Blessing of the Ground, a ceremony performed by some of the state’s Indigenous people, Chickahominy Chief Stephen R. Adkins invoked the Creator to “heal our land” and “seek peace for all,” pointing out that “the blood of our native forefathers stained this very ground and warriors fought to protect the land from tyranny.”
Rev. Watson thanked the new governor for “the hope she represents.”
In an interview, former Eighth District Congressman Jim Moran echoed that theme, commending Spanberger for “emphasizing common sense government and bipartisan cooperation and for giving a speech inclusive of everyone.”
Celebrating Virginia’s Diversity
The parade around the Capitol spotlighted the state’s diversity, from firefighters to state park rangers, from step dancers to university mascots. The Virginia Military Institute’s 1,500 stern-faced cadets marched in lockstep around the Capitol like a rhythmic, rolling ocean, bagpipes blaring.
Colonial Williamsburg’s fifers and drummers recalled Virginia’s pivotal role in the country’s independence 250 years ago. Bands, choirs, the Virginia National Guard, Crooked Road fiddlers, India Bollywood dancers and the Hasang Korean School of Dance team delighted the crowd.
When the Girl Scouts paraded by, the announcer quipped, “Governor Spanberger, how many thin mints can we put you down for?”
The new governor was exuberant, clapping, swaying to the music and blowing kisses to parade participants, clearly relishing the day and her new role.
Sartorial Notes
Spanberger wore all white, including white, floor-length, maxi-coat and white gloves.
Spanberger’s husband, Adam, wore a formal morning coat, vest and ivory ascot. Male General Assembly members of the Inaugural Committee also wore morning coats, garments that are short in front and long in back with tails, a Virginia tradition.
Several media outlets reported that the Spanbergers will donate their inauguration clothing to Richmond’s Valentine Museum, with the First Gentleman’s attire displayed alongside former Virginia First Ladies’ inaugural gowns.
Given the chilly, showery weather, the Inaugural Committee’s free, clear plastic ponchos came in handy. Most inauguration-goers were bundled up in layers of heavy coats, raingear, scarfs, hats and gloves, but spirits soared.
Governor Spanberger and Lieutenant Governor Hashmi thoroughly enjoyed the parade.