November 8, 2016 (2016-11-08) 2018 → 7 4 1,843,010 1,859,426 | 8 3 1 1 48.74% 49.17% | |
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The 2016 United States House of Representatives elections in Virginia will be held on November 8, 2016, to elect the 11 U.S. Representatives from the state of Virginia, one from each of the state's 11 congressional districts. The elections will coincide with the 2016 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate and various state and local elections. The primaries were held on June 14.
Contents
2016 Virginia Redistricting
The Virginia Legislature's 2012 redistricting was found unconstitutional and replaced with a court-ordered redistricting on January 16, 2016.
District 1
Republican Rob Wittman has represented Virginia's 1st congressional district since 2007. He was re-elected in 2014 with 63% of the vote.
Wittman has announced that he intends to run for governor in 2017, but will still run for re-election in 2016.
Democratic nomination
A convention was scheduled for May 21 to select a nominee, with a filing deadline of May 7. Bowling Green Town Councilman Matt Rowe was the only candidate to file before the deadline, and was thus automatically nominated.
Independent candidate Gail Parker is also running.
District 2
Republican Scott Rigell is the incumbent of the 2nd district, which has a PVI of R+2. Rigell was first elected in 2010. Rigell declined to seek re-election. The district encompasses Virginia Beach and surrounding areas.
Candidates
Democratic primary
Scott Rigell's retirement was expected to make the race competitive, with the Rothenberg & Gonzales Political Report immediately changing the rating from Safe to Lean Republican. However, Shaun Brown, a community activist in Hampton, VA who had originally planned to primary US Representative Bobby Scott (D) for the 3rd district, ended up being the only candidate to file for the primary, making her automatically the nominee.
Candidates
District 3
Democrat Bobby Scott has represented Virginia's 3rd congressional district since 1993. He was re-elected in 2014 with 94% of the vote but, the district was made slightly more competitive following the court-ordered redistricting when all of its Richmond and Petersburg constituents were moved into the 4th district.
Republican primary
Marty Williams, former President of the Virginia State Faternal Order of Police and Chairman of the Chesapeake Planning Commission, is running.
District 4
Republican Randy Forbes, first elected in 2001, is the incumbent of the 4th district, but attempted to seek re-election in the 2nd district. The 4th district, which had a PVI of R+4, was changed from a Hampton Roads centered district to a Richmond-centered black-majority district following the court's redistricting. The district is considered a Safe Gain for the Democrats by many political analysts, including Larry Sabato's Crystal Ball.
Candidates
Candidates
District 5
Incumbent Republican Robert Hurt, first elected in 2010, is retiring in 2016. The 5th district, which has a PVI of R+5, is the largest district in the state and stretches from Virginia's southern border to the suburbs of Washington, D.C..
Republican nomination
The Republican party selected State Senator Tom Garrett as its nominee at a convention on May 14, with a filing deadline of March 31.
Candidates
Democratic primary
The Democratic party had scheduled a convention on May 7 to select a nominee. Jane Dittmar, the former Chair of the Albermarle County Board of Supervisors, was the only candidate to file by the filing deadline and so has been declared the Democratic nominee.
Candidates
District 6
Republican Bob Goodlatte has represented Virginia's 6th congressional district since 1993. He was re-elected with 75% of the vote in 2014.
Republican primary
Harry Griego, a pilot and Air Force veteran who made a 2015 primary challenge of State Delegate Chris Head, challenged Goodlatte for the Republican nomination.
Democratic primary
In 2014, Democratic candidate Bruce Elder, a Staunton City Councilman, had to end his campaign after being diagnosed with cancer. Democrats did not field any candidates to challenge Goodlatte for that year's election. No Democratic candidates announced in the early part of 2016, but Chris Hurst, a reporter for WDBJ in Roanoke who was the boyfriend of murdered reporter Alison Parker, had reportedly met with the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee to discuss a potential campaign for this district. By late May, the only declared Democratic candidate was Warren County Democratic Party Chair Tom Howarth. However, citing health issues, Mr. Howarth withdrew. Kai Degner, a member of the Harrisonburg City Council and former mayor of the city, became the nominee by acclamation in early June.
District 7
Republican Dave Brat has represented Virginia's 7th congressional district since 2014. He was elected in 2014 with 61% of the vote.
District 8
Democrat Don Beyer has represented Virginia's 8th congressional district since 2015. He was elected in 2014 with 63% of the vote.
Republican nomination
The Republican party selected a nominee at a convention on May 7.
Two candidates sought the Republican nomination: Charles Hernick, an environmental consultant, and Mike Webb, a retired Army officer. Hernick defeated Webb to become the nominee.
Independent candidate Julio Gracia is also running.
District 9
Republican Morgan Griffith has represented Virginia's 9th congressional district since 2011. He won re-election to a third term in 2014 with 72% of the vote.
Democratic primary
The Democratic party selected retired Army veteran Derek Kitts as the nominee in a May 21 convention. He defeated Bill Bunch, a farmer and retired postal worker. Roanoke Mayor David Bowers considered running but ultimately declined.
Independent candidate Janice Boyd is also running.
District 10
Republican Barbara Comstock is the incumbent in the 10th district. In 2015, Comstock succeeded Republican Frank Wolf, who served for 17 terms before choosing to not seek re-election 2014. The 10th district, which has a PVI of R+2, consists of the northernmost portions of the state. Comstock is running for re-election.
Comstock faced LuAnn Bennett, a real estate executive and ex-wife of former Congressman Jim Moran of the neighboring 8th District. Due to the competitiveness of the district and the ability of both candidates to raise large amounts of money, the race was expected to be one of the most heavily contested in the country. Democratic strategist Ellen Qualls said the 10th District is "essentially the swingiest district in the swingiest state." Libertarian candidate JD Thorpe ran as a write-in candidate.
In the first three weeks of her campaign, Bennett raised $281,000, while Comstock raised $2 million overall since January 2015.
District 11
Democrat Gerry Connolly has represented Virginia's 11th congressional district since 2009. He was re-elected in 2014 with 57% of the vote. He is the only candidate on the ballot for the seat in 2016.
Republican nomination
One person, John Wolfe, filed for the Republican nomination, which was to be decided at a convention on May 14, 2016. However, Wolfe did not campaign or even attend the convention, so the convention delegates rejected his nomination by a 3-to-1 margin. The 11th District Republican Committee searched for a new candidate, but ultimately decided no viable candidate was available and opted to focus on the presidential race and on defeating the Fairfax County meals tax referendum.