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These centrist women on a group chat are leading Democrats in 2025
They jumped into politics in President Donald Trump’s first term. They ascended to Congress with similar resumes. They text all the time in a group chat. Now Abigail Spanberger, Mikie Sherrill and Elissa Slotkin are all playing leading roles for the Democratic Party — a trio of centrist women with national security backgrounds who helped retake the House in 2018 and this year hope to steer their beleaguered party back toward winning. Spanberger, 45, had already clinched the Democratic nomination for governor of Virginia heading into Tuesday’s primaries. She and 53-year-old Sherrill, the nominee in New Jersey, will lead Democrats on the ballot in the marquee races of 2025, testing the party’s ability to rebuild in Trump’s second term.
McQuinn to return to House; Dems line up November House challenges
Democrats on Tuesday all but completed their lineup for three Richmond-area races that are key to their hopes to expand their House of Delegates 51-49 majority, while Del. Delores McQuinn, D-Henrico, fended off a challenge from Henrico School Board member Alicia Atkins. Besides the three races where Democrats hope to unseat Republicans in the Richmond suburbs, Democrats also vied for the chance to flip a district in Suffolk and Chesapeake, while Republicans eyed Democratic seats in Prince William County and Virginia Beach.
House races: Austin victorious over primary challenger in HD 37 and other Southwest, Southside races
The table is set for November in Southwest and Southside Virginia after Tuesday’s primary elections determined the ballot for the general election in five House of Delegates races. Del. Terry Austin, R-Botetourt County, beat his primary challenger. In the Roanoke Valley, Democrat Donna Littlepage will go on to face Republican Del. Joe McNamara. In a district that spans Grayson, Pulaski, Smyth and Wythe counties, Mitchell Cornett outpaced Adam Tolbert in the Republican primary race for Del. Jed Arnold’s seat. And in Danville, Dr. Gary Miller, a Democrat, and Madison Whittle, a Republican, will face off in November for the seat currently held by Del. Danny Marshall’s, after Miller eked out a victory over Jasmine Lipscomb in the closest contest out of any of the House primary races across the state.
Hashmi, Jones join Spanberger on statewide Democratic ticket
The statewide Democratic ticket is set for the November election as state Sen. Ghazala Hashmi and former Del. Jay Jones won their primaries for lieutenant governor and attorney general Tuesday night. They will join former Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger, the Democratic nominee for governor, on the general election ticket. Hashmi, a Democrat from Chesterfield County, beat five opponents in a six-way primary for lieutenant governor on Tuesday. She is the first Muslim and first Indian-American nominated to statewide office in Virginia.
Even members of Congress have no clear idea of unemployment related to Trump cuts
How many Northern Virginia residents have lost their jobs as part of federal cutbacks and their ripple effects on the economy? Nobody seems to know for sure — including members of the U.S. Senate. “We’re still trying to get the right numbers,” Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) told the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments’ (COG) board of directors at a meeting last Wednesday (June 11). Warner said the best figure he could come up with was 168,000 Virginia federal workers and contractors facing unemployment, but he quickly acknowledged that number came from an online source. “Do not take that as gospel,” he said.
Chesterfield would restrict data center development under latest zoning update proposal
Chesterfield officials are now eyeing new restrictions on data center development as part of an in-progress zoning ordinance overhaul. If approved, data centers would be strictly a conditional use in Chesterfield. Currently, data centers can be built by-right in some zoning districts, meaning that they don’t require a review by the Board of Supervisors to be built under those areas’ current zoning. By making data center development a conditional use, all such projects everywhere in Chesterfield would need case-by-case zoning approval by county supervisors moving forward.
Loudoun County sheriff slams Democratic lawmaker over ‘false’ claims about helping ICE
Loudoun County Sheriff Mike Chapman on Tuesday accused a Democratic county supervisor of making “false” claims about deputies helping federal immigration authorities round up illegal immigrants. “Supervisor [Juli] Briskman’s false reporting is a shameful attempt to divide our strong community and undermine law enforcement in one of the safest major counties in the nation,” Sheriff Chapman said. He was responding to Ms. Briskman’s claim that deputies had detained someone for Immigration and Customs Enforcement after the person called police for assistance following a car crash.
In 2025 Virginia governor's race, Democrat Abigail Spanberger makes appeal based on her bio
Democrat Abigail Spanberger is emphasizing her life and career as she aims to become the next governor of Virginia at a time when her national party is searching for answers on how to win over voters after an election cycle filled with setbacks. The Spanberger campaign's new advertisement for the general election, first reported by CBS News, shows her reflecting on the various kinds of hallways she's walked through, starting with her education at Virginia's J.R. Tucker High School, before quickly pivoting to the CIA, where she was a case officer, and then to the Capitol, where she was a bipartisan-minded U.S. House representative.
Primary election results from Roanoke and New River valleys
Donna Littlepage claimed the Democratic nomination after a primary election in House District 40, according to unofficial results Tuesday night. Littlepage led by more than 1,000 votes over fellow Democrat Kiesha Preston. The district covers Salem, part of Roanoke County and three precincts in Roanoke City. ... To the north, incumbent Del. Terry Austin, R-Botetourt, commanded the vote against his first primary election challenger of his six-term tenure representing House District 37, according to unofficial results. He took 81% of the vote versus political newcomer Austen Schwend in Lexington ...
Candidates face sprint to nomination in special election for Connolly’s seat
Candidates in the Virginia special election to succeed the late Democratic Rep. Gerald E. Connolly are facing a sprint, especially compared with their counterparts looking to fill other open House seats this year. While those running for a vacant seat in Arizona will have had months to campaign before their July primary, the Democrats who’ve announced bids to complete Connolly’s term have less than a month to officially campaign for their party’s nomination for Virginia’s 11th District ahead of a September special election.