Virginia's 1st District Flips: Taylor Defeats Wittman 51.04% as Incumbent Concedes
The race for Virginia's 1st Congressional District was settled on Nov. 5. The Associated Press called the race before noon that day for the Democratic challenger, Shannon Taylor, a federal prosecutor from Henrico County, who defeated Republican Representative Rob Wittman, who has held the seat since 2007. According to figures released that day by the Virginia Department of Elections, Taylor won 51.04% with 207,882 votes, to Wittman's 48.72% and 198,417 votes. Wittman called Taylor within hours of the call to congratulate her and issued a statement conceding, saying he would serve out the remainder of his term. It is the first time in nearly half a century that Republicans have lost the seat.
The 1st District covers a large swath of eastern and central Virginia. Taylor had declared victory on election night, but the Associated Press waited until the count advanced further on Nov. 5 before formally calling the race. The same day, the AP also confirmed that Democrats had lost Virginia's 5th District, where Republican Representative John McGuire held his seat and the Democratic challenger, Tom Perriello, conceded.
Nationally, by the afternoon of Nov. 5, Democrats had won at least 254 House seats, their largest House majority since Barack Obama was elected in 2008. Virginia's results were seen as part of the Democratic wave in this year's midterm elections.
(Source: Virginia Department of Elections)
Source: Virginia Department of Elections
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：弗吉尼亚州议会大厦。（Wikimedia Commons，CC BY-SA 4.0） / Photo: The Virginia State Capitol.
