Democratic Virginia delegate announces state Senate bid

The General Assembly building complex is on Preservation Virginia's 2016 list of the most endangered historic places in the state, in Richmond, Va., Monday, May 2, 2016. Virginia's most endangered historic places includes African-American cemeteries, an old plantation site plundered by treasure hunters as well as the General Assembly building. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)(AP/Steve Helber)

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A Democratic state delegate has announced her bid to run for state Senate in a closely watched race that could determine partisan control of the upper chamber.

Del. Debra Rodman announced this week that she’s planning to challenge Republican Sen. Siobhan Dunnavant in November for her Richmond-area seat.

The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports that Gov. Ralph Northam’s political action committee encouraged Rodman to run.

Rodman is a professor at Randolph-Macon College and an expert witness in federal refugee cases. She faces Veena Lothe, an immigration lawyer, and Marques Jones, the former chairman of the Henrico County Democratic Committee, for the Democratic nomination.

Dunnavant is one of a handful of Republican senators Democrats are hoping to unseat in a bid to flip control of the Senate, where Republicans have a 21-19 advantage.

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Information from: Richmond Times-Dispatch, http://www.richmond.com