Ghazala Hashmi, VA Trailblazer, Wins Democratic Nomination For Lt. Governor

India-West Staff Reporter

RICHMOND, VA — State Senator Ghazala Hashmi, a former professor and a pioneering voice in Virginia politics, has secured the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor after a closely fought six-way primary.

The 60-year-old legislator, who became the first Muslim and South Asian woman elected to Virginia’s Senate in 2019, emerged as the victor on night on June 17 night with a message rooted in education, reproductive rights, and resistance to extremism in Washington.

Born in India and raised in the United States from the age of four, Hashmi carved a path from the classroom to the Capitol. A former English professor with a PhD in American literature from Emory University, she spent nearly three decades teaching in Virginia, including at the University of Richmond and J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College. She and her husband, Azhar, moved to the Richmond area in 1991.

On June 14, just days before the election, Hashmi energized a crowd of over 10,000 at the anti-Trump “No Kings” rally in Richmond the Virginia Scope reported. “He doesn’t want public servants. He wants courtiers,” she said, warning that democracy was at stake.

On primary night she edged ahead of key rivals, including former Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney and fellow State Senator Aaron Rouse. With about 484,000 votes cast, turnout reached approximately 8%. Hashmi led with over 131,000 votes, or 27.4%, narrowly beating Stoney, who had just over 128,000.

“Tonight, Virginians made history,” Hashmi said in her victory speech which was reported widely in local media. “We didn’t just win a primary, we sent a clear message that we won’t be bullied, broken, or dragged backward by the chaos in Washington.”

Hashmi’s win positions her on a groundbreaking Democratic ticket alongside Abigail Spanberger for governor and Jay Jones for attorney general. It will be the first time Virginia’s statewide ballot is led by two women and includes candidates who are South Asian, African American, and white.

Together, they will face a Republican slate that is equally diverse: Lt. Gov. Winsome Sears, the first Black woman and immigrant elected to statewide office in the state; talk radio host John Reid; and the first Latino elected as Attorney General in VA, Jason Miyares.