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Voters across Virginia will line up at polling places across the state Tuesday in a critical election to determine the next governor, House of Delegates seats and a long list of local races.
Political pundits will be reading the tea leaves to determine whether Democrats are gaining momentum, one year removed from their overwhelming defeat in last year’s presidential election and one year ahead of the midterms they hope to win to regain control in Congress.
The main event is the race for governor, which has pitted the current Republican lieutenant governor, Winsome Earle-Sears, against Democratic former U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger. The other major statewide offices of lieutenant governor and attorney general are also up for grabs.
All 100 seats in Virginia’s House of Delegates are also on the ballot, though some are not contested. Democrats have a slim 51-48 majority headed into November, with one current vacancy.
There’s also a slew of local races across Northern Virginia and the rest of the commonwealth.
Dates at a glance
- Early in-person voting: Sept. 19 through Nov. 1 (passed)
- Deadline to register or update voter registration: Oct. 24 (passed)
- Deadline to request mail-in or absentee ballot: Oct. 24 (passed)
- Election Day: Nov. 4
Voting on Election Day
Polls are open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 4. Voters in line by 7 p.m. will be able to cast a ballot.
All voters need to provide an acceptable form of ID or sign an ID confirmation statement at the polls or vote a provisional ballot. Those who vote a provisional ballot will have until noon on the Friday after the election to deliver a copy of their ID to their jurisdiction’s election board or sign a confirmation statement in order for their ballot to be counted.
The same rules apply when voting early.
A list of acceptable forms of ID is available online.
Vote by mail
In order to vote by mail in Virginia, voters must request a mail ballot, which can be done on the Virginia Department of Elections website.
Mail ballots must be postmarked on or before Election Day and received by noon on Nov. 7.
Voters should check in with their city of county elections office for information about drop boxes and their locations.
Who’s on the ballot?
Statewide races
Virginia is one of two states, along with New Jersey, that conducts statewide races, including its governor’s contest, in the year following a presidential election, meaning these races will draw attention from politicos across the U.S.
The top of the ticket features the closely watched governor’s race between Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears and Democratic former U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger.
A Roanoke College poll released in August showed Spanberger ahead of Earle-Sears. Spanberger also has a hefty fundraising advantage, having raised more than $40 million for her campaign to Earle-Sears’ nearly $17 million, according to the Virginia Public Access Project.
No matter who wins the general election, Virginia is set to elect a woman as governor for the first time this fall.
For lieutenant governor, voters will decide between Democratic state Sen. Ghazala Hashmi and Republican radio host John Reid.
Republican Attorney General Jason Miyares is seeking reelection, and is facing Democratic challenger Jay Jones, an attorney and former state delegate.
House of Delegates
All 100 House of Delegates seats are up for grabs during November’s election, but not all are contested. The contested races in the D.C. area are below:
An asterisk denotes an incumbent. Locations are within district but do not provide the full scope of the voting area.
- District 1, part of Arlington County
- Patrick Hope, Democrat*
- William “Bill” Moher III, Republican
- District 2, part of Arlington County
- Adele McClure, Democrat*
- Wendy Sigley, Republican
- District 6, Fairfax County (Great Falls, McLean)
- Richard “Rip” Sullivan Jr., Democrat*
- Kristin Hoffman, Republican
- District 7, Fairfax County (Reston)
- Karen Keys-Gamarra, Democrat*
- Cassandra Aucoin, Republican
- District 8, Fairfax County (Herndon, Oak Hill)
- Irene Shin, Democrat*
- Indira Massey, Republican
- District 9, Fairfax County (Chantilly, Centreville)
- Karrie Delaney, Democrat*
- Nhan Huynh, Republican
- District 10, Fairfax County (Centreville, Clifton, Braddock)
- Dan Helmer, Democrat*
- David Guill, Republican
- District 11, City of Fairfax and Fairfax County (Oakton, Fair Oaks)
- David Bulova, Democrat*
- Adam Wise, Republican
- Brandon Givens, Forward Party
- District 12, Fairfax County (Tysons, Vienna, Merrifield)
- Holly Seibold, Democrat*
- Nelson Figueroa-Velez, Republican
- District 13, Falls Church and Fairfax County (Merrifield, Seven Corners)
- Marcus Simon, Democrat*
- Sylwia Oleksy, Republican
- Dave Crance Jr., Libertarian
- District 14, Fairfax County (Annandale, Wakefield, Lincolnia)
- Vivian Watts, Democrat*
- Eric Johnson, Republican
- District 15, Fairfax County (Burke)
- Laura Jane Cohen, Democrat*
- Saundra Davis, Republican
- District 16, Fairfax County (Mount Vernon, Fort Hunt, Woodlawn)
- Paul Krizek, Democrat*
- Richard Hayden, Republican
- Shelly Arnoldi, Independent
- District 17, Fairfax County (Springfield, Franconia)
- Mark Sickles, Democrat*
- Naomi Mesfin, Republican
- District 18, Fairfax County (Springfield, Newington, Lorton)
- Kathy Tran, Democrat*
- Edward McGovern, Republican
- District 20, Manassas, Manassas Park, part of Prince William County
- Michelle-Ann Lopes Maldonado, Democrat*
- Christopher Stone, Republican
- District 21, Prince William County (Bull Run, Gainesville)
- Joshua Thomas, Democrat*
- Gregory “Greg” Gorham, Republican
- District 22, Prince William County (Linton Hall, Bristow, Nokesville, Buckhall)
- Elizabeth Guzman, Democrat
- Ian Lovejoy, Republican*
- District 23, Prince William County (Dumfries, Triangle) and Stafford County (Boswell’s Corner, Aquia)
- Candi King, Democrat*
- James Tully, Republican
- District 26, Loudoun County (Brambleton, Stone Ridge, South Riding)
- JJ Singh, Democrat*
- Ommair Butt, Republican
- District 27, Loudoun County (Sterling, Sugarland Run, Dulles)
- Atoosa Reaser, Democrat*
- Junaid Khan, Republican
- District 28, Loudoun County (Ashburn, Countryside)
- David Reid, Democrat*
- Janet Geisler, Republican
- District 29, Loudoun County (Leesburg, Lansdowne)
- Fernando “Marty” Martinez, Democrat*
- Scott Thomas, Republican
- District 30, Loudoun County (Purcellville) and Fauquier County (Marshall)
- John McAuliff, Democrat
- Geary Higgins, Republican*
- District 61, Fauquier County (Warrenton, Bealeton) and parts of Culpeper and Rappahannock counties
- Jacob “Jac” Bennington, Democrat
- Michael Webert, Republican*
- District 65, Parts of Stafford and Spotsylvania counties and Fredericksburg City
- Joshua Cole, Democrat*
- Sean Steinway, Republican
Local races
Most jurisdictions in Northern Virginia have local races of some sort, whether they are contests for mayor, county board, school board, city council or sheriff.
Check the full list of local races on the Virginia Department of Elections website. Voters can also check in with their county or city electoral board for more information on local races.
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