North Carolina Can Benefit From Virginia’s Political Mistake
Tuesday night, Virginia voters decided to elect a Democrat Governor, Lt. Governor, and Attorney General, effectively erasing the gains Republicans made in the Old Dominion with Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin.
Since his election in 2021, Youngkin championed a classic Republican economic agenda of deregulation, energy abundance, lower taxes, and maintaining a business-friendly environment.
Youngkin’s agenda delivered results for Virginia. In 2024, CNBC recognized Virginia as the number one state for business, narrowly beating out North Carolina. Since 2022, Virginia has attracted over 260,000 jobs and $140 billion in additional investment. This economic progress is now at risk with the ascendance of Governor-elect Spanberger, Attorney General-elect Jay Jones, and a Democrat dominated Virginia House of Delegates.
Unlike Youngkin, who has a deep background in the private sector, Spanberger has worked only in education and government before being elected to Congress. Jones’s career is largely dependent on his father, a big-time Virginia Democrat who campaigned on resisting President Trump and on opposing corporate mergers. Finally, with the dramatic shift in the Virginia House of Delegates, Republicans will have little to no political power to stop bad legislation.
Here are three things Virginia Democrats campaigned on that will dramatically undermine the business climate Youngkin recruited businesses to for their major projects.
Spanberger has previously supported ending right-to-work laws on the federal level and plans to change Virginia’s law on the issue. Given the new political environment, this likely means that Virginia will soon have some of the most pro-labor union laws.
Spanberger signaled her intention to return Virginia back to the regional climate pact. This would place an enormous regulatory restriction on Virginia’s energy supply, effectively capping Virginia’s economic development potential.
Finally, Jay Jones is a partisan hack, not a serious Attorney General focused on enforcing and upholding the laws. Businesses need an Attorney General focused on the law, but Jones will be focused on suing President Trump and businesses to score political points.
Virginia has one of the shortest legislative sessions in the country, and Virginia Democrats will sabotage their business environment in record time in 2026. North Carolina is in a strong position to capitalize on Virginia’s self-inflicted political mistake.
In contrast to Virginia, North Carolina’s right-to-work laws will remain strong. The North Carolina General Assembly passed the “Power Bill Reduction Act” over Stien’s veto, powering North Carolina’s economic growth. Finally, while Attorney General Jackson is as partisan as Attorney General-elect Jones, North Carolina has a divided executive, and Republicans control the Commissioner of Agriculture and Labor, reducing the risk of frivolous, politically-motivated regulations.
Bottom Line: As Virginia businesses watch Democrats destroy the business climate, they should know that North Carolina was named the top state for business in 2025. And that the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina is ready to help them find a location that will help them thrive, by simply moving to their neighbor to the south.
