Top 24 Virginia Political Stories of 2024

The following is not meant to be a comprehensive list, but these are 24 (I know, kind of a random number – 24 for ’24) of the top Virginia political stories of 2024 as I see them…in no particular order – and I’m sure I missed some. The bottom line is that 2024 was a horrible year politically for the country, with election results that could really spell disaster – hard to see how they won’t, honestly – going forward. Of course, not everything was bad in 2024, but the election of Donald Trump (although he lost Virginia by 6 points) will have repercussions, almost all negative, for the rest of our lifetimes, as well as for generations to come. With that, here are the top 24 Virginia political stories of 2024.

P.S. Again, obviously, Trump’s extremism, lunacy, lies and – appallingly – victory on November 5 – hung over everything this year, but I’m keeping this list focused on Virginia specifically, not on the insanity about to return to the White House.

1. In the Nov. 5 general election, Kamala Harris carried Virginia by nearly 6 points. It wasn’t quite up to Joe Biden’s 10-point victory over Trump in 2020, but Kamala Harris’ nearly 6-point win in Virginia matched Barack Obama’s margin of victory in 2008, and was a bit better than Hillary Clinton’s 5-point margin in 2016 (with Tim Kaine on the ticket). And while this certainly doesn’t mean that Virginia is a safe “blue” state in non-presidential years, it’s not looking like a “swing state” anymore in presidential election years.
2. In the Nov. 5 general election, Sen. Tim Kaine was reelected by 9 points over Republican Hung Cao. I was hoping that Kaine would crush Cao by 15+ points, but in the end, Kaine still won handily (54.4%-45.4%) over far-right-extremist Cao. Of course, in a sane world, Cao would have gotten a lot lower percentage than that, especially after Cao’s bizarre performance at the one debate he agreeed to participate in, Cao’s weird “podunk” comments, his outlandish/unhinged attacks on federal workers as “Communists,” etc. Still, a win’s a win, and we’re all just fortunate to have Sen. Kaine back in office for another six years!
3. Eugene Vindman easily won the June 2024 primary for the VA07 Democratic nomination. With 49.3% of the vote, Eugene Vindman easily defeated six other Democratic candidates (former Del. Elizabeth Guzman, Del. Brianna Sewell, Supervisor Andrea Bailey, Supervisor Margaret Angela Franklin, Carl Bedell and Clifford Heinzer) for the nomination to replace Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA07). On the Republican side, Derrick Anderson defeated Cameron Hamilton 45.2%-37.2% for that nomination.
4. Suhas Subramanyam narrowly won the June 2024 primary for the VA10 Democratic nomination. In a tight race, with no “ranked choice voting,” State Senator Suhas Subramanyam won the nomination to succeed Rep. Jennifer Wexton (D-VA10) – retiring for health reaasons – with 30.4% of the vote, followed by Del. Dan Helmer (26.6%), former VA Secretary of Education Atif Qarni (10.7%), Former VA Speaker Eileen Filler-Corn (9.3%), State Sen. Jennifer Boysko (9.1%), Del. David Reid (3.2%), Del. Michelle Maldonado (3.2%), Adrian Pokharel (2.3%), Krystle Kaul (2.2%), Travis Nembhard (1.6%), Marison Devoe (0.9%) and Mark Leighton (0.5%).On the Republican side, Mike Clancy easily won the nomination, with 64.4% of the vote, with former VA10 GOP nominee Aliscia Andrews finishing second with 21.4% of the vote.
5.  Leslie Mehta won the June 2024 primary for the VA01 Democratic nomination over Herb Jones. Mehta defeated Jones by a 2:1 margin (66.6%-33.4%) for the Democratic nomination to take on Rep. Rob Wittman (R-VA01). In November, Mehta lost to Wittman by a 56.3%-43.5% margin.
6. In the Nov. 5 general election, Democrats held all of their (six: VA03, VA04, VA07, VA08, VA10, VA11) U.S. House seats from Virginia. The biggest risk for Democrats in terms of the U.S. House delegation this November were that Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA07)’s seat – in a competitive, “purple” district – could flip. Fortunately, in the end, Democratic nominee Eugene Vindman won, albeit narrowly, (51.1%-48.5%) over Republican Derrick Anderson (yes, the guy who was caught “trying to mislead voters by renting a family in his pictures”). As for VA10, it was always a lean-“blue” district, but Rep. Jennifer Wexton (D)’s retirement for serious health reasons meant that it was theoretically possible Democrats could lose the seat. Fortunately, in the end, Democratic nominee Suhas Subramanyam won fairly comfortably (52.1%-47.5%) over Republican Mike Clancy. Other incumbent Democrats – Bobby Scott in VA03, Jennifer McClellan in VA04, Don Beyer in VA08, Gerry Connoly in VA11 – all won easily, as did all Republican incumbents other than Jen Kiggans, who won relatively narrowly in VA02.
7. In the Nov. 5 general election, Rep. Jen Kiggans (R-VA02) defeated Democrat Missy Cotter Smasal. Kiggans is a really bad representative for VA02, and this district was seen as potentially winnable for Democrats, but unfortunately, Kiggans ended up defeating Democratic nominee Missy Cotter Smasal by a 50.7%-46.9% margin. Hopefully, Democrats have a strong nominee for 2026 and can finally beat Kiggans, because she richly deserves to lose for a whole host of reasons.
8. State Sen. John McGuire narrowly defeated Rep. Bob Good (R-VA05) for the VA05 GOP nomination.  This was a wild contest, with Good getting on Trump’s bad side by endorsing Ron DeSantis for president, then Trump throwing his weight behind McGuire, who narrowly defeated Good (50.3%-49.7%) for the nomination, then went on to win the deep-red district by 15 points on November 5 over Democrat Gloria Tinsley Witt.
9. Lt. Gov. Winsome Sears announced her candidacy for governor of Virginia: On September 5, Lt. Gov. Winsome Sears announced that she’d be running for governor of Virginia in 2025. This came a couple months after she announced she would NOT be running for reelection as Lt. Governor, but was “exploring” a 2025 run for governor (and desperately trying to get back in Trump’s good graces, after the two of them had a nasty public falling out). We’ll see next fall if former Virginia Lt. Governor Bill Bolling (R) is correct, that “2025 could be a big year for Virginia Democrats,” and that “I honestly don’t see either [Jason Miyares or Winsome Sears] being able to compete with Rep. Abigail Spanberger.” Let’s work to make that a reality, but definitely take nothing for granted!
10. Attorney General Jason Miyares announced he’s running for reelection, NOT running for governor. On November 18, Attorney General Jason Miyares announced that he’ll be seeking reelection next year, NOT running for governor, as many had thought he’d do, but instead essentially clearing the way for Lt. Governor Winsome Sears to be the 2025 VA GOP gubernatorial nominee next year. Unless, of course, far-right-extremist-nutjob former VA State Sen. Amanda Chase throws her hat in the ring? Or maybe soon-to-be-former Rep. Bob Good (R-VA05), another far-right-extremist-nutjob? We can only hope!
11. Dems, Republicans selected nominees for upcoming special elections on 1/7/25. With State Senators John McGuire (R-SD10) and Suhas Subramanyam (D-SD32) being elected to the US House – in VA05 and VA10, respectively – and with Del. Kannan Srinivasan (D-HD26) winning the Democratic nomination for Subramanyam’s State Senate seat, three special elections are coming up on 1/7/25 to fill their seats. Nominees for SD10 are Republican Luther Cifers and Democrat Jack Trammell; for SD32, the nominees are Democrat Kannan Srinivasan and Republican Tumay Deniz Harding; for HD26, the nominees are Democrat JJ Singh and Republican Ram Venkatachalam.
12. A possible Virginia Democratic gubernatorial primary might take place in 2025? The assumption has been that Abigail Spanberger had pretty much wrapped up the Democratic nomination for governor in 2025, but in recent weeks, rumors have been swirling that Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA03) might throw his hat in the ring. We’ll see if he ultimately does so, but for now, Spanberger remains the only declared Democratic candidate for governor, with a slew of endorsements, millions of dollars cash-on-hand, etc. – ergo, she’s the strong favorite for the nomination. For more thoughts on this potential matchup, see here.
13. Former Del. Jay Jones and Henrico Commonwealth’s Attorney Shannon Taylor announced their candidacies for the 2025 Democratic nomination for Attorney General. In November, former Del. Jay Jones officially announced his candidacy (although he’s been running, unofficially, for a long time now, racking up endorsements in the process) for the 2025 Democratic AG nomination, joining Henrico Commonwealth’s Attorney Shannon Taylor, who announced her candidacy in June.
14. The 2024 Virginia General Assembly, under Democratic control, passed a slew of excellent bills on a wide variety of topics – and Youngkin promptly vetoed most of them. It’s amazing, really, how bad a governor Youngkin is, and how 100% MAGA/hard right he’s gone. Case in point – the Virginia General Assembly, under Democratic control, passed a slew of excellent bills, and Youngkin either put in bad amendments or vetoed them. See For No Good Reason(s), Youngkin Vetoes Legislation That Would Have Raised Minimum Wage to $15/Hour, Created a Retail Cannabis Market, etc. (“MAGA Glenn also vetoes bill that “removes the farmworker exemption from the Virginia Minimum Wage Act.”); Youngkin Vetoes Last Remaining Gun Safety Bills on His Desk; Moms Demand Action, Students Demand Action Respond ; VA Senators, Delegates Rip Gov. Youngkin’s Veto of Bill That Would Have Closed “Boyfriend Loophole,” for “put[ting] victims of sexual and domestic abuse in grave danger”, “Youngkin has once again shown his true colors…stand[s] with Big Pharma than Virginians struggling to afford life-saving medicines”, etc.
15. Lawsuit filed against Youngkin’s “illegal voter purge”; Supreme Court allowed it. In early October, a coalition of groups filed a lawsuit arguing that Gov. Glenn Youngkin, AG Jason Miyares, etc. were engaging in “an illegal voter purge based on conspiracy theories.” Then, on October 12, the US Department of Justice also sued Virginia over this issue. And on October 25, a federal court ruled that the Youngkin administration must stop its illegal purge of voters. Then, on October 30, the right-wing-controlled US Supreme Court *allowed* Virginia to continue its purge of voter rolls right before the election.
16. Glenn Youngkin threw himself in completely/totally with MAGA, Trump. In his 2021 gubernatorial campaign, Youngkin tried to have it both ways, happily accepting Trump’s endorsement and praise on the one hand, while pretending to the media and in his TV ads to be some sort of “moderate.” Totally dishonest, as always, from Youngkin – yet the media bought it hook, line and sinker. Pathetic. Anyway, fast forward to 2024, and Youngkin dropped the faux-coy act, throwing in his lot 100% with MAGA, Trump, Vance, etc. Among other things, Youngkin spoke at a rally in Chesapeake with Trump, spoke at the Republican National Convention in support of Trump, attended a private fundraiser with JD Vance in Virginia Beach, etc, etc. Of course, no mea culpas from the WaPo, etc. about the fact that they were wildly wrong about MAGA Glenn Youngkin all along. Because that’s how they roll…
17. Youngkin, despite his groveling to Trump, did NOT get the VP nomination. After all that groveling to Trump, debasing himself and demonstrating that he has zero moral core – only concerned about power for himself – Youngkin wasn’t selected as Trump’s running mate anyway. Oh well!  Now, we’ll see if Youngkin joins the Trump administration in some capacity (although Youngkin said he has no plans to do so), if he runs for US Senate against Mark Warner in 2026, or something else. Because, unfortunately, it doesn’t appear that we’ll be done with Youngkin, politically speaking, once his term as governor ends in January 2026. Sigh…
18. In Alexandria, Justin Wilson’s tenure as Mayor – since January 2, 2019 – ended; he will be replaced by Democrat Alyia Gaskins. Congratulations to Alyia Gaskins, and we’ll see what’s in store next for Justin Wilson, who is only 45 years old.
19. Arlington Democrats chose JD Spain as their nominee for County Board, and Spain went on to win easily in November. Using Ranked Choice Voting, Arlington Democrats selected JD Spain as their nominee for County Board to replace retiring Board member Libby Garvey. Spain – a progressive, pro-“Missing Middle” candidate –  defeated several others (including anti-“Missing Middle” candidate Natalie Roy and progressive Tenley Peterson), went on to win easily in November.
20. The race to succeed term-limited Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney was won easily by Danny Avula. Avula (known as “Richmond’s Dr. Fauci”; served as Commissioner of Social Services for both Governors Northam and Youngkin) didn’t just win the Richmond mayor’s race, but did so convincingly, with 46.4% of the vote in a 5-person field (the runner-up was Michelle Mosby, with 25.4% of the vote, followed by Harrison Roday with 12.9% and Andreas Addison with 11.7%), and without having to go to a runoff. Impressive!
21. The Roanoke City mayor’s race came down to the wire, with Democrat Joseph Cobb narrowly winning. A Roanoke College poll had Cobb up 50%-26% over Republican David Bowers, but in the end, Cobb just barely won, by a 1.5-point (37.7%-36.2%) margin. Anyway, a win’s a win, so congratulations and good luck to Mayor-elect Cobb!
22. The 2025 Lt. Governor Democratic field shaped up: To date, four Democrats (State Senator Ghazala Hashmi announced on May 2; Prince William County School Board Chair Babur Lateef announced on March 8; State Senator Aaron Rouse announced on May 16, Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney switched from the governor’s race to the Lt. Governor’s race on April 23) have announced for the 2025 Lt. Governor nomination. We’ll see who ends up running on the Republican side…
23. The Mountain Valley Pipeline, after years of delays and cost overruns, entered service. Many of us fought this polluting boondoggle, but in the end – after years of delays and cost overruns – the Mountain Valley natural gas pipeline entered service in June, with the ability to “move up to 2.0 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) of natural gas from Wetzel County, West Virginia, to an interconnection with Transcontinental Gas Pipeline’s (Transco) compressor station 165 in Pittsylvania County, Virginia.” The stupidest thing about this is that it locks in methane and CO2 emissions for decades to come, at a time when we desperately need to be RAPIDLY slashing our greenhouse gas emissions. Also, the billions of dollars spent on this pipeline COULD have been spent on energy efficiency, solar, wind, etc. But noooooo. Ugh.
24. A proposed new Wizards/Caps arena in Alexandria stirred up a TON of discussion/debate in early 2024, but ultimately imploded. For more on this story, which involved a great deal of debate/discussion last spring, see After Demise of Potomac Yard Arena, Alexandria Mayor Justin Wilson Says “there were things that occurred during this process that pushed the limits of what is appropriate”; With Critical Legislation on the Line, Glenn Knows What Really Matters to Virginians: a Billionaire’s Sports Arena; BREAKING: “The City of Alexandria has ended negotiations related to the Potomac Yard Entertainment District opportunity and the proposal will not move forward.” (Mayor Justin Wilson: “we have come to the conclusion that the General Assembly process is not going to produce a proposed that protects our financial responsibilities and respects our community’s values”); Coalition to Stop the Arena at Potomac Yard Argues “This stunning lack of transparency calls for the utmost of skepticism and scrutiny.”; etc. Also note that this was a HUGE failure for Gov. Youngkin, and also a major loss for Alexandria Mayor Wilson, both of whom pushed hard for the deal – but didn’t get it done.

So what items would you add? There’s also the proposed Tysons casino and probably a bunch more stories that could join this list…