OXON HILL, Maryland — Lt. Gov. Winsome Sears (R-VA) compared the current state of the United States to the dystopian novel 1984 by George Orwell during a panel at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Thursday.

Sears made the comments during a panel on parent activism and education, a major issue in her and Gov. Glenn Youngkin's (R-VA) electoral victories in 2021.

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"It is not 1963 — when my dad came — it's 1984," Sears said, referring to her father's immigration to the U.S. from Jamaica. "If we don't get a grip, we're going to be living in some kind of dystopian society. [We have] to fight for our children, our grandchildren, our nieces, our nephews."

Sears said the fight for school choice was the "new Brown v. Board of Education," referring to the 1954 Supreme Court decision that prohibited racial segregation in schools. The lieutenant governor said she was willing to lose her next election over the issue.

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"If I have to lose the next election so the children get an opportunity for a better education, I'll do it," Sears said. "It's not about maintaining a seat, it's about our children and our future. ... This is why you have to keep fighting."

The conference featured a number of prominent conservative figures and Republican politicians, including Sens. Rick Scott (R-FL), J.D. Vance (R-OH), and Ted Cruz (R-TX), as well as House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH). The panel that featured Sears was one of several panels that focused on issues such as parental rights, immigration, and border security.