This evening, history was made as Winsome Sears secured the Republican nomination for Virginia Lieutenant Governor, becoming the first Black woman from any major party to do so. Sears, a decorated Marine who is also the only Black Republican woman to ever serve in the House as a delegate in Norfolk, won the nomination after five rounds of vote counting after this weekend’s convention across the state. According to vpap.org, Sears won with 54.39% of the tallied votes, defeating five other challengers. She joins gubernatorial nominee Glenn Youngkin and Attorney General nominee Jason Miyares as the Republican party seeks to regain control of the highest offices in the commonwealth.

Sears sent the following tweet after learning of her victory:

In addition to serving as a Marine, Sears is also an experienced business owner as a trained electrician according to her website. She has been appointed to to the US Census Bureau and the Advisory Committee on the Women Veterans to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs. Last year, she was the national chair of Black Americans to Re-elect the President, an organization focused on helping former President Donald Trump win re-election.

Prince William County Republican Chairman Tim Parrish offered the following statement on Facebook in response to Sears’ victory as well as her fellow nominees:

“Today I could not be more proud to be a Virginia Republican! The Virginia GOP is leading the most diverse ticket is the history of the Commonwealth. I am fired up and ready to get to work with Glenn Youngkin for Governor, Winsome Sears for Lieutenant Governor and Jason Miyares for Attorney General to make the Commonwealth of Virginia the safest and best place to live, work and raise a family!”

“Now Let’s Win!”

Youngkin, Sears, and Miyares now await the results of the June 8 Democratic primaries to see who they will challenge in the general elections.