Virginia Democrats have sent a sweeping gun-control package to Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s desk, while West Virginia lawmakers are debating the opposite approach — a proposal that would allow residents to lawfully obtain machine guns.
The dueling efforts highlight how sharply gun policy is diverging across the old Virginia border. More than 160 years after West Virginia split from Virginia during the Civil War, the two states are again charting very different political paths — with Democrats in Richmond advancing new firearm restrictions while Republicans in Charleston explore expanding Second Amendment rights.
Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger signaled she looks forward to “reviewing” the sweeping firearms ban from state Sen. Saddam Salim, D-Dunn Loring, when it reaches her desk next week.
“As the mother of three daughters in Virginia public schools and a former federal law enforcement officer who carried a gun every day, Governor Spanberger knows how important it is to make sure kids and families are safe,” Spanberger’s office said in a statement to Richmond’s ABC affiliate.
“The governor is grateful for the efforts of legislators and advocates to address gun violence in Virginia communities, and she looks forward to reviewing all legislation that comes to her desk.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Spanberger’s office to ask whether she plans to sign Salim’s bill but did not receive a response before publication.
The push comes as the political landscape in the two states continues to diverge. Republicans dominate West Virginia’s legislature with 31-2 and 91-9 supermajorities, and the Mountain State is one of just two states — along with Oklahoma — with no Democrat-majority counties. Democrats, meanwhile, strengthened their hold on Virginia’s government in 2025 and captured the governor’s mansion.
The ᴀssault weapons ban was introduced in January at the very start of the expanded Democratic majority’s rule in Richmond. Salim told FairfaxNow that there are “so many ᴀssault weapons in circulation” and that his bill will “gradually” take them off the street but stop short of retroactively criminalizing possession of any of the slew of newly-categorized “ᴀssault weapons.”
The Bangladesh-born lawmaker has also questioned how schools can remain safe spaces for children without requiring active-shooter drills.
