Moms Demand Action Volunteers Currently Make Up Nearly 20% of the Virginia House Democratic Caucus
RICHMOND, VA — Today, Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund announced its endorsement of former Congresswoman and Moms Demand Action volunteer Abigail Spanberger for Governor of Virginia, along with a $1 million investment in Virginia’s Governor’s race. The investment will include TV and digital ads, grassroots organizing, and direct voter contact. This afternoon, hundreds of Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action volunteers, alongside law enforcement and Virginia state legislators, will rally with Congresswoman Spanberger in Alexandria, Virginia to unveil the effort.
“As a former CIA officer and federal law enforcement officer who was also a Moms Demand Action volunteer, Abigail Spanberger understands that common-sense laws to keep guns out of dangerous hands are crucial to ensuring public safety,” said John Feinblatt, president of Everytown for Gun Safety. “Everytown is incredibly proud to support Abigail Spanberger, who has a long record of fighting tooth and nail to protect Virginia families.”
“Former federal law enforcement officer, Moms Demand Action volunteer, and now Virginia’s next governor—Abigail Spanberger is the leader this moment demands,” said Angela Ferrell-Zabala, executive director of Moms Demand Action. “Our movement is ready to go all in to elect Abigail so that Virginia becomes a Commonwealth where gun safety is about common sense, not partisan politics.”
“When I left my job at CIA, I wanted to continue serving my community. As a mom of three girls — and as someone who carried a gun every day as a federal law enforcement officer, keeping our kids safe from gun violence is personal to me. That’s why — years before I first ran for Congress, I put on a red shirt, stood alongside fierce women in my community, and became a Moms Demand Action volunteer,” said Abigail Spanberger. “As the next Governor of Virginia, I will sign legislation into law to help keep Virginia families safe from gun violence — not veto commonsense proposals for progress. I’m grateful to Everytown for Gun Safety and Moms Demand Action for their commitment to bringing Virginians together to build stronger, safer communities — and I’m grateful for their strong support as I work to serve Virginians as their next Governor.”
Abigail Spanberger is a former Moms Demand Action volunteer who recognizes that gun safety is a nonpartisan public safety issue. In Congress, Spanberger championed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, the first federal gun safety legislation in 30 years. She also supported gun violence prevention policies like closing the Charleston Loophole and implementing extreme risk protective orders.
Gun safety was a key issue in the 2023 Virginia elections: gun sense candidates and Moms Demand Action volunteers won major victories up and down the ballot, flipping the House of Delegates and ensuring a gun sense majority in the Virginia legislature. Moms Demand Action volunteers currently make up nearly 20% of the Virginia House Democratic caucus. 2023 post-election polling showed that 80%+ of battleground area voters said a candidate’s position on guns was highly important, and those voters supported strengthening gun laws by more than two to one.