Appearing this Tuesday at the Center for American Progress’ Ideas conference in Washington D.C., Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger defended her veto of collective bargaining legislation passed by the Virginia legislature. Her move drew fierce ire from among her pro-labor Democratic supporters.

Spanberger said Tuesday, “I continue to support public sector collective bargaining. And I continue to look forward to a place where we’ll have a bill that I’ll sign into law. Importantly, I sent back valuable amendments…towards that legislation; they were summarily rejected. Those amendments were incredibly vital from an implementation standpoint and took the feedback of localities and community members about what it looks like to implement collective bargaining in the public sector in Virginia.”

She went on, “Standing up an entirely new system, as the chief executive who would be implementing it, is a big and substantial shift…state employees…would go first, so any hurdles, challenges, getting any of the practice/reps in…would be tested on the employees that I oversee. So by the point in time when our localities across…Virginia would be implementing an entirely new system, we would have gotten through some of the hurdles; 18 months later was the delay…Now notably, unfortunately, in the conversation related to my one veto, is lack of recognition of the fact that we are the first state in the south…I signed into law paid family and medical leave…I signed a bill to raise the minimum wage for all workers…” 

Spanberger added, “a farm workforce minimum wage bill, which importantly we built such a broad coalition such that we had support from labor and union leadership to the farm bureau. Heat protections for workers, wage theft provisions; the number of pro-labor, pro-worker, pro-Virginia bills that I have signed into law is substantial, consequential and I am deeply proud of my record. And I look forward to having conversations with my counterparts in the legislature about how we can continue to move forward and get to a place where we can also create an implementable and durable program as it relates to public sector collective bargaining.” 

In response to Spanberger’s veto of class action legislation, Falls Church State Delegate Marcus Simon wrote yesterday, “I appreciate that the Governor acknowledged the need for a Virginia class action mechanism and expressed support for getting this done. I also have complete faith in the ability of Virginia’s Circuit Court judges to responsibly manage class actions that judges in 48 other states have been able to master while ensuring fairness for all parties involved.

“I look forward to taking the Governor up on her invitation to continue this conversation next session. Given the importance of the issue, I hope we can spend the coming months working collaboratively and earlier in the process to address concerns and finally deliver a carefully crafted class action procedure for the people of Virginia.”

  Spanberger on Tuesday also vetoed legislation to establish a retail market for the sale of recreational marijuana, thwarting a priority of her fellow Democrats and leaving the state in regulatory limbo five years after the legislature legalized possession of small amounts of recreational weed.

Democratic majorities in both the House of Delegates and state Senate had passed bills this year on party-line votes to set up a mechanism for regulating and taxing the sale of cannabis products after several years of vetoes under the previous governor, Republican Glenn Youngkin.

Spanberger initially proposed substantial changes to the measures, but those were rejected by the General Assembly. That left her with a decision to either accept a bill she did not like or issue a veto.

In her veto statement Tuesday, Spanberger said she shares the legislature’s goal of establishing a market but suggested that lawmakers had fallen short of drafting rules that would keep the industry clean.

“It is critical that we incorporate lessons learned by other states and ensure that our regulatory framework is fully prepared to provide strong oversight from day one,” Spanberger wrote. “That includes clear enforcement authority and sufficient resources for compliance, testing, and inspections, and robust tools to crack down on bad actors who continue to profit from the illicit market.”

The measures were among several pieces of legislation that Spanberger nixed Tuesday, including her veto of a bipartisan bill to establish a board designed to hold down the prices of prescription drugs. 

Governor Abigail Spanberger yesterday took action to strengthen public safety, reaffirm federal law enforcement accountability, and provide guidance to Virginians holding public positions — including as poll workers, courthouse security personnel, and public school and hospital staff.

By signing House Bill 1482, Senate Bill 352, and Executive Order 16, Gov. Spanberger said she is “taking a fulsome approach to protect all Virginia residents from threats to their safety, security, and legal rights posed by increased and aggressive federal immigration enforcement actions.”

From January 2025 to March 2026, Virginia saw a significant increase in immigration-related detentions. While the Trump Administration claims they are focused on arresting criminals, only 30 percent of individuals held in immigration detention centers in Virginia during that same period of time had been convicted of a crime, Spanberger said.

The Governor signed House Bill 1482 and Senate Bill 352, which reaffirms Virginia’s commitment to transparency and accountability in law enforcement.

“Law enforcement officers wearing masks on American streets undercut basic expectations of accountability, sow fear and confusion, and erode the public trust,” said Gov. Abigail Spanberger. “Americans have witnessed the horrors of what can occur when masked federal immigration enforcement agents engage in fear-based policing and enforcement theatre on American streets — like in Minnesota where Renee Good and Alex Pretti were murdered.”

Gov. Spanberger continued, “With this law, Virginia is reaffirming that transparency, accountability, and a commitment to earning the public’s trust are prerequisite to enforcing the law in our Commonwealth.”