See below for a press release from the Elaine Luria for Congress (VA02) campaign, which is officially launching this this morning. As I wrote yesterday, the bottom line is that Democrats need a strong candidate to take on the disastrous Rep. Jen Kiggans next year. Whether that turns out to be Elaine Luria – who obviously is the strong frontrunner in this race due to her name ID, her impressive accomplishments in Congress (including participation on the January 6 committee), etc. – or one of the other Democrats running – James Osyf, Nila Devanath, Matt Strickler, Patrick Mosolf, Burk Stringfellow, Nicolaus Sleister, Michael Williamson (or someone else) – the main thing is we need to all focus on defeating Kiggans winning back the U.S. House. Period. And whoever offers the best shot at doing that, and at being an effective representative for VA02, should get our enthusiastic support…
P.S. As Sam Shirazi points out, “Spanberger won [the] current version of VA-2 by around 7%” – and that’s before possible redistricting next spring, which could make the district even “bluer.” Also note that Luria won in 2018 by 2.2 points (over then-Rep. Scott Taylor) and then in 2020 by 5.7 points (again over Scott Taylor), before losing narrowly (by 3.4 points) to Jen Kiggans in 2022.
U.S. Navy Veteran Rep. Elaine Luria Launches Campaign for Virginia’s Second Congressional District
Luria well positioned to unseat vulnerable Republican Jen Kiggans
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – Former small business owner, 20-year U.S. Navy veteran, and two-term member of Congress, Rep. Elaine Luria launched her campaign for Virginia’s Second Congressional District today to unseat vulnerable Republican
incumbent Rep. Jen Kiggans.
Rep. Luria is running to fight for the working families of Hampton Roads who work too hard yet face rising costs because of Kiggans’ failed leadership in Washington, and she enters the race as the clear frontrunner.
“I have served our country and the Commonwealth of Virginia since I was 17 years old, spending 20 years in the Navy as a nuclear engineer and four years as a member of Congress representing Hampton Roads. Service to our country means putting the interests of the people above all else–including political parties,” Rep. Luria said. “That’s why I cannot sit back and watch as Republicans in Congress create chaos while failing to address the rising cost of living and the issues that matter to Coastal Virginians. The hardworking people of Hampton Roads deserve a government that lowers costs, creates opportunities, and works to improve their lives. Virginians are hungry for change, and I look forward to getting back to work for Hampton Roads to make life more affordable for working families, grow our economy, cut health care costs, and strengthen our military.”
Vulnerable Republican Rep. Jen Kiggans has established a pattern of promising Virginians one thing in public, only to turn around and vote the other way in Washington. Kiggans lied when she promised to protect access to health care, only to turn around and vote for the largest cuts to Medicaid in history. Kiggans lied again when she promised to protect clean energy tax credits, but then “flip-flopped” and voted to take a “sledgehammer” to the credits instead. Kiggans has voted 100% of the time with Donald
Trump – demonstrating that she puts her D.C. party bosses ahead of the Virginians she claims to represent.
ABOUT ELAINE:
First elected in 2018, Rep. Luria served as the representative for Virginia’s Second Congressional District representing portions of Norfolk, Hampton, James City County, York County, the cities of Virginia Beach, Williamsburg, and Poquoson, and the entirety
of the Eastern Shore, winning a second term in 2020.
In 2021, Virginia’s Second Congressional District was redrawn to include the entirety of the Eastern Shore, cities of Virginia Beach, Suffolk, and Franklin, Isle of Wight County and portions of Chesapeake and Southampton Counties. Rep. Luria served the Second Congressional District from 2019-2023.
As a member of Congress, she served as Vice Chair on the House Armed Services Committee, on the House Veterans Affairs Committee as the Chair of the Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Subcommittee, the House Committee on Homeland Security, and the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol.
Elaine ranked as one of the most effective members in Congress and consistently ranked as one of the most bipartisan legislators in the House.
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