Ayala or Sears: Both would make history in Virginia election

By MATTHEW BARAKAT
Associated Press

FALLS CHURCH, Va. (AP) — As Election Day approaches in Virginia, one thing is certain: The state will elect its first woman and first woman of color to the lieutenant governor post. The two women seeking the job are fond of touting their unconventional political backgrounds. The Republican, Winsome Sears, is a former Marine who immigrated to the United States from Jamaica as a girl and vaulted to victory in her primary campaign with a campaign photo of her posing with a military rifle. The Democrat, Hala Ayala, claims African, Hispanic, Irish and Lebanese ancestry. She frequently refers to her “lived experience” as a single mother who almost died in childbirth. The lieutenant governor will serve as a tiebreaking vote in the state’s closely divided state Senate.