U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., told reporters Monday that Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger supports his decision to vote with Republicans on a deal to reopen the federal government after its longest shutdown in history. 

The agreement, which passed a procedural hurdle in a 60-40 vote Sunday night, would fund the government through Jan. 30, including food assistance, in exchange for a guaranteed Senate vote on the continuation of health care subsidies set to expire Dec. 31. House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican from Louisiana, has not committed to his chamber voting on extending the subsidies. 

A State Corporation Commission document released by U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., said some Virginians’ insurance premiums could double without the enhanced tax credits. 

Kaine said he decided to vote to reopen after getting a guarantee for no more reductions in force for federal workers. 

“If I can get important programs like SNAP funded … and then I can protect them [federal workers] going forward again, that gets me to yes. But I didn’t have those protections until over the weekend, and once I got them, I thought this is good for Virginia,” Kaine said. 

Kaine is one of seven Democrats and one independent — none of whom are up for reelection in 2026 — who voted with Republicans. 

Warner, a Democrat running for reelection next year, said he appreciated that “the proposal includes important language preventing further mass layoffs of federal employees. … But I cannot support a deal that still leaves millions ofAmericans wondering how they are going to pay for their health care or whether they will be able to afford to get sick. We owe the American people more than a short-term fix,” Warner said in a statement Sunday. 

Kaine was criticized by some progressives and advocacy groups for voting to open the government without securing an extension of the health care subsidies. 

“We believed the message to Congress was clear: Keep fighting to ensure Virginians keep their access to affordable health care,” said Rhena Hicks of Freedom Virginia, which advocates for lower costs through progressive policy. “While we wait to see where the Senate deal will go, we hope that Virginia’s senators will listen to their own constituents and hold Republicans accountable to address the health care crisis in our country.” 

Kaine dismissed the criticism Monday. 

“I don’t need to court anybody’s approval, and I don’t need to fear anybody’s judgment. If people think I made the wrong call, then it’s a free country,” he said. “There’s no guarantee I’m right. But what I’m telling you is [that] what I’m hearing from Virginians this morning, including our governor-elect, is, ‘Thank God you did this.’” 

Throughout the shutdown, Kaine and Warner said federal workers told them they supported their decision to push back against President Donald Trump’s administration. When VPM News asked Kaine what changed, he said the intensity of protests from SNAP recipients and federal workers contributed to his decision to reconsider. 

“The voices about the mistreatment were getting louder and louder and louder the longer this went on, and the voices from the SNAP recipients, who were Virginia’s most vulnerable people, were getting louder and louder and louder as it went on,” Kaine said. 

In response to a question from CBS News’ Margaret Brennan on Sunday, Spanberger said her wide victory last week should “absolutely not” be viewed as permission to continue refusing to fund the government. 

“My priority is focusing on the needs — the devastation, frankly — that more than 300,000 Virginians are facing, and that’s just the federal employees. Government contractors, they will never get made whole. The entirety of Virginia’s economy is impacted by this shutdown,” she said, adding that “the government needs to open and it needs to open immediately.” 

In a statement, Spanberger spokesperson Connor Joseph said Spanberger’s stance has been consistent and that she appreciates Kaine “fighting for protections for Virginia’s workforce and securing them as part of the negotiations.