In a Digital World, These Newly Elected Officials Aim to Shape It
In two high-stakes gubernatorial races that drew national attention, voters in New Jersey and Virginia handed victories to candidates who emphasised technology, innovation and digital economy issues alongside more traditional themes of cost, education and workforce. As the new administrations prepare to take office, several tech-policy priorities are already emerging.
New Jersey: Online safety and platform accountability
In New Jersey, Mikie Sherrill’s campaign placed a strong spotlight on the interplay of social media, algorithms and youth well-being. According to her campaign website, “As every parent knows, social media can have a devastating impact on our children—from promoting poor sleep habits to increasing loneliness, anxiety, and depression.”
The Governor-elect’s tech-agenda highlights include:
- An age-appropriate design code requiring social-media companies to prioritise health, safety and privacy of users under 16.
- Warning labels on social platforms about the risks to adolescent mental health.
- A “social media addiction observatory” at a New Jersey higher education institution.
- Policies to hold platforms accountable for algorithmic amplification of extremist or harmful content, and for scams that exploit older adults or veterans.
Virginia: Workforce readiness, AI & digital skills, modernization of state tech
Abigail Spanberger ran on a platform of preparing the Commonwealth for the tech-driven economy, especially via workforce development, digital skill-building and modernizing state IT systems.
Her “Growing Virginia Plan” promotes legislation to:
“Prepare the next generation of Virginians for 21st-century jobs. Develop a plan for school divisions, research institutions, and businesses to collaboratively prepare students by leveraging artificial intelligence and emerging technologies for jobs of the future.”
While in Congress Spanberger co-sponsored the Digital Skills for Today’s Workforce Act, a bipartisan bill “to amend WIOA to establish a new ‘Digital Skills at Work’ grant program to expand digital skills training within post-secondary education, adult education, and workforce development systems.”
For Spanberger, tech policy has been less about regulation of platforms, and more about building infrastructure of human capital, reskilling, state-digital transformation, and ensuring Virginia remains competitive in innovation sectors.
Not Just the Governors: Attorney Generals can have a large impact.
In Virginia, Jay Jones has been elected to be the new Attorney General. Jones plans to use the attorney general’s office to strengthen consumer protections in the tech sector. Key elements of his plan include:
- Creation of a child-safety unit within the AG’s office to target companies that “misuse minors’ data, expose them to harmful content or deploy manipulative, addictive design features”.
- Enforcement of existing privacy/data-protection laws such as the Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act (VCDPA) and the federal Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA); plus advocacy of new measures like an age-appropriate design code and social-media warning labels.
In New Jersey, the Attorney General is appointed by the Governor and approved by the State Senate. At this time, Governor-elect Sherrill has not put forth her potential Attorney General.
State Legislative Impacts:
While not specifically technology policy focused, the off year elections will have impacts (in the near term and in the future) on the makeup of the state legislatures. Virginia Democrats increased their House majority from 51 to 64 (one race is still too close to call) seats, paving the way for a 2026 session featuring new legislators and a potential shift away from the need for bipartisan support to move a bill through the chamber.
In California, the passage of proposition 50 will lead to a new congressional district map, which may lead to sitting Assembly and Senate Leaders considering moving into congressional races. While California does have term limits for their state legislature positions, the creation of a new map may spur unexpected moves.
From Ballots to Bills: Next Steps
In both states, early signals to watch include the appointment of chief technology or innovation officers, executive orders establishing AI ethics frameworks, and budget proposals expanding digital-skills or online-safety initiatives. The first 100 days will set the tone for how aggressively each administration moves from campaign pledges to implementation.
Technology policy has taken a front seat in recent elections, not only in campaign rhetoric but in detailed plans and policy records. As Governors-elect Mikie Sherrill and Abigail Spanberger prepare to take office, and Virginia’s new Attorney General Jay Jones steps into a role that will directly influence enforcement of privacy and online-safety laws, the focus now turns to execution. It is important to note however that many laws compelling content moderation, age verification, and design features are being consistently challenged on First Amendment grounds, with courts across the country having already issued injunctions against similar social media bills.
The coming year will test how these leaders translate platforms into programs, balance innovation with accountability, and define their states’ roles in an era of digital-economy transformation.
