This story was reported and written by our media partner the Virginia Mercury.
Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger and Gov. Glenn Youngkin stepped out of the Executive Mansion on Thursday with their spouses, smiling as they paused to talk with reporters. The couples had just shared a lunch of crab cakes and “Virginia wine,” Youngkin said, as he and Spanberger discussed their transition of power in the months ahead.
Because governors are statutorily required to live in the mansion — part museum on the ground floor and living quarters upstairs — the Spanberger family will soon need to learn the layout and get briefed on the quirks of living and governing from within Richmond’s Capitol Square for the next four years.
“It was a wonderful discussion about the transition process and some of the basic realities of what this is going to be for our family,” Spanberger said. “We’ve got our transition office open up and running.”
She expressed gratitude to Youngkin, his wife and his team for sharing their insights.
Spanberger’s transition team, announced this week, includes people she worked with during her time in Congress, others with White House experience, and experts from across the state, including higher education and health care.
Co-chair Yohannes Abraham is a visiting professor at the University of Virginia and served as director of former President Joe Biden’s transition team. Fellow co-chair Kelly Cannon is the CEO of the Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association Foundation. Bonnie Krenz-Schurman will serve as chief of staff and Karen Mask as transition director — both worked for Spanberger in Congress. Another co-chair, Samson Signori, managed her campaign for governor.
Health care and food on the table
Asked about her first policy priorities as governor — with Democrats also controlling both the House of Delegates and state Senate — Spanberger pointed to affordability issues she emphasized on the campaign trail.
“Increasing housing supply, lowering costs in housing, in energy, and ultimately in health care,” she said. “Obviously, there’s going to be some challenges along the way with some of the specific federal legislation.”
Those challenges stem from Congress’ reconciliation bill passed this summer, which includes changes to Medicaid and hospital funding that could leave thousands of Virginians without coverage health insurance and strain vulnerable hospitals.
Congress has also been gridlocked since early October over annual appropriations bills, triggering what has now become the longest government shutdown in U.S. history.
The U.S. House has not met since mid-September, while the U.S. Senate has repeatedly failed to advance resolutions. Both parties have blamed the other as Democrats push to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies — affecting about 100,000 Virginians — and Republicans accuse them of holding the government “hostage.” Republicans, however, currently control both chambers of Congress and the White House.
In her Election Night victory speech, Spanberger called on both parties in Congress and President Donald Trump to work together to end the shutdown as soon as possible.
Spanberger, once ranked as one of the most bipartisan members in Congress, campaigned on bringing the same pragmatism to the governor’s office.
Thanks to the budget decisions under Youngkin and the General Assembly, Virginia currently has a surplus that Spanberger and lawmakers will decide how to use in the 2026 budget, which could include addressing health care fallout from federal policy changes.
Meanwhile, food assistance has become an immediate concern for roughly 850,000 Virginians who rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The shutdown has prevented beneficiaries from receiving payments, though the Trump administration was ordered by a court to release contingency funds.
Youngkin recently established a temporary state-level version of SNAP using surplus funds to bridge the gap. He also set in motion longer-term changes — which Spanberger will inherit — to help social service agencies reduce error rates.
Under the reconciliation bill, states with high error rates in SNAP payments may be forced to cover more of the program’s cost in the future.
“There are many things that are still in motion that we will talk about, that hopefully will continue,” Youngkin told reporters Thursday. “That’s what this is all about and why this transition period is one of cooperation to make sure that Governor-elect Spanberger’s administration is ready to go on Day One and any way we can help in that we will do.”