Survey Shows Earle-Sears’ Opposition to LGBTQ+ Workplace Protections, Adoptions, Marriages

Republican gubernatorial nominee Winsome Earle-Sears expressed strong opposition to a series of LGBTQ+ rights in a candidate questionnaire completed when she unsuccessfully ran for Congress in 2004. She responded “yes” to questions about whether she would vote to block same-sex couples from adopting children and oppose workplace protections for gay people, and she indicated that she believed homosexuality is an “immoral lifestyle choice.”

Virginia Republican gubernatorial nominee Winsome Earle-Sears speaks at a campaign rally on June 17, 2025. Photo by Charlotte Rene Woods / Virginia Mercury

The survey was conducted by Public Advocate of the United States, a conservative nonprofit organization that has advocated against same-sex marriage and in favor of laws that oppose abortion, reduce federal spending, and support “faith-based initiatives.”

Earle-Sears has often spoken about her Christian faith, of which some sectors do not support LGBTQ+ identities.

The Mercury reached out to Earle-Sears’ campaign to inquire if any of her stances had evolved in the decades since the survey, formatted for “yes” or “no” responses, or if she would like to elaborate further on her answers to it. Her campaign could not be reached for an interview or statement by the time of this publication.

Earlier this year in the Virginia legislature, Earle-Sears left a handwritten note on her signature of an anti-discrimination marriage bill that would protect same-sex unions, saying she was “morally opposed” to it. As the current lieutenant governor, she is obligated to sign bills that pass the legislature but chose to add the note.

Earle-Sears’ apparent opposition to LGBTQ+ rights also seems ill-matched with one of her running mates’ candidacy and identity.

Virginia Republican Lieutenant Governor candidate John Reid welcomed his boyfriend Alonzo Mable onto the stage after a speech at a rally on April 30, 2025. (Photo by Charlotte Rene Woods/Virginia Mercury)

She didn’t mention Republican lieutenant governor nominee John Reid, Virginia’s first openly gay statewide candidate, at public campaign events for months until the two appeared at an event in July with Attorney General Jason Miyares. A June phone call between Earle-Sears and Reid reported by National Review this month highlighted earlier tensions behind the scenes, when the lieutenant governor “repeatedly dodged Reid’s questions” and  “expressed her own distrust” of him.

Reid, whose campaign did not follow through on an interview request for this story, has spoken publicly about Earle-Sears since launching his campaign and vowed support for her election. The two recently appeared together in a video they posted to social media where he said he was excited about their campaigns.

“It’s going to be hard to fill your shoes, or high heels as the case may be,” he said to her with a grin. He then praised her and Miyares’ roles in Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s administration.

At that point,  Earle-Sears turned to the camera and emphasized how the trio would keep Virginia the “best place to live, work and raise a family” — a common refrain from Youngkin.

Pending this fall’s election results, Earle-Sears and Reid may have to put any personal differences aside in order to work together as top officials in the state — from signaling legislative priorities to state lawmakers to agreeing on state budget priorities. Governors have the final say on the state budget, but lieutenant governors preside over the state senate and can cast tie-breaking votes on critical issues.

The backdrop of both their campaigns is an in-progress effort to enshrine marriage protections in the state’s constitution, as now-defunct language inserted in 2006 bans same-sex marriages. While the executive branch does not formally contribute to constitutional amendments, if the proposal to remove the defunct ban passes the legislature next year and successfully clears a statewide ballot referendum by voters, Virginia would protect gay marriage. Advocates for the amendment stress its importance as the U.S. Supreme Court could consider undoing a decade-old ruling that federally protects such unions.

by Charlotte Rene Woods, Virginia Mercury

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