Va. voters decide key congressional primary races that could tip balance of power
Visit WTOP’s Election 2024 page for our comprehensive coverage.
Voters in Virginia have finished casting primary election ballots in races that could contribute to a drastic shift in the balance of power in Congress in the fall.
Polls closed on these critical contests, as well as local races across the state, at 7 p.m.
This story will be updated as results come in Tuesday night. Here’s what you need to know:
Competitive race takes shape in Va.’s 7th
Virginia’s 7th Congressional District, which includes parts of Prince William, Stafford, Spotsylvania and Culpeper counties, is up for grabs after Democratic Rep. Abigail Spanberger’s decision to step away from the seat to run for governor next year. The district is considered to lean blue, but Republicans believe they have a shot to flip the seat.
Seven Democrats were vying for the nomination Tuesday, none of which Spanberger endorsed. As far as fundraising, career military officer Eugene Vindman led the pack with more than $5 million raised for his campaign, according to the Virginia Public Access Project. No other candidate raised more than $400,000.
- 2024 Virginia primary: Local primary election results
- 2024 Virginia primary: US Senate, House races (live results)
Vindman’s main opposition in the primary was state Del. Briana Sewell and former state Del. Elizabeth Guzman, according to political analyst Chaz Nuttycombe.
Other Democratic candidates include Prince William County Supervisor Andrea Bailey, lawyer and Army veteran Carl Bedell, Prince William County Supervisor Margaret Angela Franklin and Army veteran and former U.S. State Department official Cliff Heinzer.
On the Republican side, Nuttycombe said Derrick Anderson, a former Army Green Beret, is the favorite among a field of six candidates, which also includes ordained minister and White House appointee Terris Todd, entrepreneur John Prabhudoss, retired Marine Jonathon Paul Myers, entrepreneur and author Maria Martin, and Navy SEAL veteran and Homeland Security official Cameron Hamilton.
Crowded field of Democrats in Va.’s 10th
A change is also coming in Virginia’s 10th Congressional District, which covers Fauquier and Loudoun counties, parts of Fairfax and Prince William counties, as well as the cities of Manassas and Manassas Park.
There, Democratic Rep. Jennifer Wexton announced she’s leaving the job due to health issues. The district is firmly blue, but a competitive and deep field of 12 Democrats formed to replace Wexton:
- Jennifer Boysko — Virginia state senator
- Marion Devoe Sr. — Former chief operations officer for the White House Executive Office
- Eileen Filler-Corn — Former speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates
- Dan Helmer, Virginia delegate
- Krystle Kaul — Educator and former senior defense official
- Mark Leighton — Librarian and administrative faculty at George Mason Law Library
- Michelle Maldonado — Virginia delegate
- Travis Nembhard — Lawyer and former assistant attorney general
- Atif Qarni — Marine Corps veteran and former Virginia secretary of education
- David Reid — Virginia delegate
- Suhas Subramanyam — Virginia state senator
- Adrian Pokharel — retired Army captain and former NSA and CIA intelligence officer
Republicans in Virginia’s 10th District had the choice between four candidates — government contractor Manga Anantatmula, retired Army officer Alex Isaac, lawyer and business executive Mike Clancy, and Marine Corps veteran and Gov. Glenn Youngkin administration official Aliscia Andrews.
Who will be Republican’s Senate hopeful?
Republicans in the Commonwealth also had a critical choice to make regarding which candidate will challenge Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine in November.
Virginia has not elected a Republican U.S. Senator since 2002, but there has been recent Republican success in a statewide election, with Youngkin’s victory in 2021.
Five Republican candidates entered the running to take on Kaine, including Navy veteran Hung Cao, former DeSantis congressional staffer Scott Parkinson, lawyer Jonathan Emord, Marine veteran and attorney Chuck Smith, and Army veteran Eddie Garcia.
WTOP’s Nick Iannelli contributed to this report.