Tuesday's special elections in Virginia, the first in the nation since President-elect Donald Trump won the presidency, figure to test Trump's impact — and potential Democrat malaise — after his November victory.
On paper, the special elections in the state legislature — two in the House, one in the Senate — should go the way of Democrats in two and Republican in the other. However, after Trump's election victory, state Democrats are anxious about his momentum possibly helping the GOP steal one of the seats, according to The New York Times.
And the stakes are high should a Republican take one of the races in Loudoun County, which Trump lost in November — en route to losing the state — but gained 8.9 points over his performance in the Washington suburb in 2020. Democrats hold a 20-19 majority in the Virginia Senate and a 50-49 edge in the House of Delegates.
Democrat Kannan Srinivasan is favored to defeat Republican Tumay Harding in the 32nd Senate District, and Democrat JJ Singh, a former Capitol Hill aide, is expected to defeat Republican Ram Venkatachalam in the 26th state House district.
"It is a blue seat, but I don't take anything for granted," Srinivasan told CNN.
Democrat candidates are outspending Republicans heavily to defend the Loudoun County seats in the hopes that Democrat voters turn out despite Vice President Kamala Harris' landslide loss to Trump in November.
"2025 is a big year in Virginia and it starts with winning these crucial special elections to defend Democratic majorities and ensure the Democratic-led legislature can stand up to the extremism of Donald Trump and [Gov.] Glenn Youngkin," Roger Lau, Democratic National Committee deputy executive director, said in a statement to The Hill.
Republican Luther Cifers is expected to easily defeat Democrat Jack Trammell to fill the open Senate seat outside Richmond.
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