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Spanberger breaks silence on ‘sanctuary’ claims as ICE clashes heat up
By Charles Creitz
Published April 09, 2026
Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger broke her relative silence on multiple controversial issues during her first three-plus months in office, claiming the Old Dominion is not a sanctuary state and poking holes in the context surrounding a damning favorability poll.
Spanberger has been under fire for undoing predecessor Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s 287(g) cooperation agreement with the Department of Homeland Security. Multiple heinous crimes have been committed in Virginia, allegedly by illegal immigrants and often under the auspices of sanctuary prosecutors.
Spanberger also faces criticism over an April 21 redistricting effort she backed that would draw out all but one Republican congressman.
"Virginia is not a sanctuary state — full stop," Spanberger said shortly after exiting the executive mansion in Richmond.
"There's a lot of misinformation out there. Certainly, everything that you might read on Twitter is not real, but it's actually pretty outrageous some of the things that have been reported along the way," she said, pointing to her executive order on immigration enforcement cooperation.
She said her directive was simply for state agencies, including VSP, not to place their troopers under DHS supervision.
"And I feel very strongly about that because [VSP] is a top-notch law enforcement agency. And I don't think it is responsible for us or me as governor or the Commonwealth of Virginia to put Virginia State Police under the supervision or direction of ICE."
According to a policy in neighboring West Virginia, only participating law enforcement personnel who are nominated, trained, certified and authorized have the authority to conduct delegated immigration officer functions under a 287(g) agreement. Only then will immigration enforcement functions be carried out under the supervision or direction of ICE.
Spanberger also pushed back on reports that she has banned Virginia law enforcement from any ICE cooperation or localities from entering into their own 287(g) agreements with ICE.
"That is not correct. My predecessor said they had to. I simply said I was not forcing them to," the governor said.
While Spanberger’s statement is accurate, a bill that would enact such a ban arrived on her desk March 31 from Sen. Saddam Salim, D-Dunn Loring.
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Abigail Spanberger conducted a bus tour through Virginia to connect with constituents while campaigning to become the governor of Virginia in the 2025 gubernatorial election in Fairfax, Va., June 26, 2025. (Maxine Wallace/The Washington Post/Getty Images)
Salim’s bill bans any law enforcement agency in Virginia from engaging in 287(g) agreements unless an officer is presented with a judicial warrant, subpoena or detainer for a suspected illegal immigrant that has been signed by a judge.
Spanberger said her Department of Corrections still provides a monthly list to DHS of noncitizens in its custody and that the press has incorrectly reported that Virginia can no longer coordinate with federal agencies at this juncture.
"It was only the 287(g) agreements that I said state agencies cannot enter into. … Task forces work together. All of that continues to be the case, [including] JTTF."
Spanberger said that if ICE asks Richmond for help and has a warrant related to a suspect’s actions, Virginia will be glad to assist.
She also pushed back on concerns over a Washington Post poll showing her with the lowest net favorability rating of any governor dating back to the 1990s.
"I would say if everybody hated me, why is everybody putting my face on their mailers for the referendum would be question No. 1," she quipped.
Spanberger has been criticized for opposing gerrymandering in support of a 2019 referendum currently in effect, but she again on Wednesday endorsed Virginia Senate President L. Louise Lucas’ controversial redraw.
She added that her election, a "seventeen-point swing," is "the only poll that matters. And now I’m doing the work for Virginia."
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"What matters to me in the end is what I am delivering for people. I knew when I first was elected that I would have a big target on me," she said.
The governor added that the critiques of her work are at odds with the fact that "everybody thinks I’m a convincing character" in festooning her likeness on innumerable redistricting mailers.
"I voted yes, and encourage others to do so," she said, dismissing claims she should be "barnstorming" Virginia in favor of the redraw as Gov. Gavin Newsom did in California and saying she is a first-term governor closing out her inaugural legislative session versus a last-term governor with national aspirations.
On Thursday, ICE Director Todd Lyons was asked about Spanberger and told Fox News Spanberger should "read the headlines" about what’s going on in Fairfax and elsewhere before breaking with ICE.
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"I never I thought, in my whole career, someone would campaign on going against law enforcement, right. ... Elected officials like the governor want to give me a call and work with us, that's what we want."
Fox News’ Bill Melugin contributed to this report.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/spanberger-breaks-silence-sanctuary-claims-ice-clashes-heat-up