Democrat Ralph Northam was projected to win Virginia’s race for governor Tuesday over Republican Ed Gillespie, as Democrats appeared headed for a big night across the board in races for lieutenant governor, attorney general and several key seats in the House of Delegates, based on exit polls and early returns.
Virginia’s election has been closely watched nationwide as a test of President Donald Trump’s status and impact on the tenor of politics in every state.
From Korea, Trump wasted no time lashing out at Gillespie. “Ed Gillespie worked hard but did not embrace me or what I stand for” the president tweeted before the final tally was in.
If those results held, it could signal a big win for Democrats in Virginia. In another closely watched race, in Prince William County, Democrat Danica Roem became the first openly transgender person to win a seat in Virginia’s House of Delegates. She beat longtime Republican incumbent Robert Marshall by a wide margin. At least four other Republican incumbents lost their seats.
That was part of a wave of apparent victories for Democratic candidates, including what looked like a sweep of statewide offices. Democrat Justin Fairfax appeared headed to win as lieutenant governor over Republican Jill Holtzman Vogel, and incumbent Attorney General Mark Herring was headed for re-election over Republican challenger John Adams. The race had been close in pre-election polling, and Northam had been criticized by some in his own party for waging a low-key campaign in a time of high passion and sharp rhetoric. But Virginians turned out in large numbers on a day of patchy rain around the state as Northam and the Democrats relied on an increasingly efficient system for getting voters to the polls, especially in the more populous parts of the state.
