Lost in the shuffle of the political discourse surrounding the first days of the 119th Congress, vote for House speaker, and President-elect Donald Trump touting the idea of purchasing Greenland, a special election was held in Virginia on Tuesday for three seats in the state legislature. Two of the elections were for seats in Virginia’s State Senate and the other was for a seat in the House of Delegates.
Democrat JJ Singh defeated Republican Ram Venkatachalam in the House’s 26th District election. With over 95% of the vote counted, Singh led Venkatachalam 61.6% to 38.4%, according to the New York Times. Singh’s victory ensured the party would control the state House, giving the Democrats a slim lead over the GOP, 51-49.
Republicans and Democrats earned a split in the races for the two seats in the state Senate. In the election for the senate seat from Virginia’s 32nd district, Democrat Kannan Srinivasan was declared the winner by the Associated Press. Srinivasan led Republican Tumay Harding 61.3% to 38.7%, with over 95% of votes counted, the New York Times reported.
In the election for Virginia’s 10th district state Senate seat, Republican Luther Cifers defeated Democrat John Trammell. Cifers led Trammell by over 17 points, 58.8% to 41.2%, according to the New York Times.
Cifers expressed gratitude and acknowledged the responsibility that came with his election victory.
“A lot of people believed in me and decided to trust me with this responsibility,” Cifers said in a statement. “I will do everything in my power to ensure that their trust is well placed.”
Srinivasan’s win, however, gave Democrats a 21-19 advantage in Virginia’s state Senate.
Democrats spend a significant amount of money on these races. Officials from the Democratic National Committee touted their importance after the defeat in the 2024 presidential election, according to multiple reports. Roger Lau, deputy executive director of the DNC, repeated the familiar strategy of tying Trump’s victory to a kind of political extremism. While unsuccessful in November, the message may have worked this time around.
“As we face increasing extremism at the federal level, it’s more important than ever for Democrats to fight back in the states, build local power, and win elections up and down the ballot,” Lau said in a statement before Tuesday’s election.
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Virginia’s chair of the Democrat Party, Susan Swercker, echoed Lau’s sentiments of extremism. After her party emerged victorious on Tuesday, she took a victory lap in a statement on Tuesday night.
“Today, voters in Loudoun County once again rejected Republican extremism by electing Kannan Srinivasan and JJ Singh,” said Swecker. “Their victories ensure that we maintain our majority in the General Assembly so we can continue passing legislation that benefits all Virginians while rejecting harmful policies.”
