Governor Abigail Spanberger signs executive orders on her first day in office. (Photo via shoredailynews.com)

After her Jan. 17 inauguration, Democratic Governor Abigail Spanberger hit the ground running with major reforms in several policy areas. On her very first day in office, she signed 10 executive orders, leading Virginia on a different path from former Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin’s approaches to education, immigration and race.

Spanberger made history as Virginia’s first ever female governor. She ran her campaign on a platform promising affordability, better schools and safer communities. According to fcnp.com, Spanberger won Falls Church by an incredible margin, capturing 84.39 percent of the vote, compared with 15.39 percent for Republican candidate Winsome Earle-Sears.

After taking office, Spanberger enacted several executive orders on her first day. Although most of the orders she signed focused on general welfare such as strengthening education, establishing an Economic Resiliency Task Force and prohibiting discrimination, her immigration policy policy has been controversial.

Prior to the election, former Governor Youngkin established Executive Order 47. This order directs Virginia law enforcement to collaborate with the federal government and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to manage illegal immigrants in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Youngkin commented that Virginia law enforcement would “partner with President Trump’s administration on federal immigration enforcement.” He explained that “criminal illegal immigrants” should be “sent back where they came from.”

However, on Spanberger’s first day in office, she rescinded Executive Order 47.

“Virginians have been deprived of critical public safety resources due to the directives in Executive Order No. 47,” she wrote in a statement alongside her order revoking the policy. 

She noted, “Federal authorities should enforce federal civil immigration laws—law enforcement in the Commonwealth should prioritize the safety and security of all residents in Virginia…”

Additionally, Spanberger is beginning to reshape Virginia colleges and universities. She appointed 27 members to the Board of Visitors for George Mason University (GMU), the University of Virginia (UVA) and Virginia Military Institute (VMI).

Spanberger ordered details about the procedures for board appointments, including member term lengths, reappointments and the evaluation process.” At UVA, Spanberger appointed 10 of the 17 total members for the Board of Visitors. At GMU, she appointed 12 of the 16 total members. She appointed five of the 16 members at VMI.

The Board of Visitors establishes broad policies, hires a university president, makes recommendations to governing bodies, sets tuition and makes sure the institution meets its goals.

With a Democratic Governor and Republican President, there may be more friction and hostility between levels of government, especially as Spanberger strongly reprimanded former Governor Youngkin’s orders. Her confrontational stance against both Youngkin and the Trump administration are bold yet unsurprising statements. 

Spanberger remains civil, saying she is “ready for partnership” with President Trump, although she “will not hesitate to push back.” However, President Trump is dismissive of her actions as Governor. During her campaign, he claimed she was a “disaster” and that she “couldn’t answer the most basic question.”

Spanberger has many other goals which she hopes to complete over her next four years. Looking forward, Spanberger is working on passing her “Affordable Virginia Agenda” in the general assembly to reduce cost of living. Additionally, she appointed Katie Frazier as Virginia’s Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry. Despite the fact that Spanberger has achieved much in a short period of time, she still has many other goals which she aims to complete over the next four years.