The Politics Hour: Virginia Lt. Gov.-elect Ghazala Hashmi on what’s next after Democrats’ big election wins

The Politics Hour with Kojo Nnamdi

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Virginia Democrats had a big night in Tuesday's elections, sweeping all the statewide races and winning a supermajority in the House of Delegates. We broke down the historic election from all angles. We dove into the results with WAMU's Northern Virginia reporter, Margaret Barthel, and David Poole, founder of the Virginia Public Access Project.

We were then joined by one of the big winners, Lieutenant Governor-elect Ghazala Hashmi, to discuss what it means for Virginians and her historic election victory as the first Muslim woman to win statewide office in the U.S.

During the campaign, Hashmi dealt with comments about her background, including from her Republican opponent, John Reid, who suggested she was supported by "radical Islamists." Hashmi said voters made clear they disagreed with that rhetoric.

"It was Virginians who made their choice known, and the ugliness of the bigotry that my opponent was targeting me with was soundly rejected on Tuesday night," she said.

Hashmi said that, as Lieutenant Governor, she plans to focus on housing affordability, energy concerns, and healthcare.

Finally, Virginia Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell took the mic to discuss what the Democrats' "trifecta" means for governing, constitutional amendments, and the much-discussed redistricting plan. He cautioned that Democrats will need to navigate significant budget challenges, which could hamper the party's agenda.

"A lot of these new policies require money in order to implement," he said. "And given our budget situation, we're gonna have to figure out what we can afford and what we can prioritize."

At the top of the agenda when the General Assembly reconvenes in January will be raising the minimum wage, banning assault weapons, and paid family leave.

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