Democrats are on track to add another vote to their already-comfortable majority in the Virginia House of Delegates.
Garrett McGuire, who won a primary last month to become the Democratic nominee, has declared victory in today’s special election for the 17th House District, which covers the Franconia area of Fairfax County from I-95 to Hayfield and Huntington.
As of 9:20 p.m., McGuire led with 78% of the vote, a sizable margin over the 21.7% claimed by Republican nominee Christopher Cardiff, according to unofficial results from the Virginia Department of Elections.
“This is one of the greatest honors of my life,” McGuire said in a statement less than an hour after polls closed at 7 p.m. “I do not take the trust that the voters of the 17th district have placed in me lightly and I am fully committed to being the delegate they deserve. Thank you to everyone that made this possible, we will celebrate soon but for now, it’s time to get to work!”
Approximately 12% of the district’s 61,679 registered voters participated in the election, falling short of the 14% turnout reported for the Jan. 13 special election that saw Del. Gretchen Bulova succeed her husband to represent Virginia’s 11th House District.
The 17th district election was called to fill a seat vacated in December by longtime delegate Mark Sickles, who took office as Virginia’s new finance secretary on Saturday (Jan. 17) after Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s inauguration.
An AT&T lobbyist and board chair for the Hybla Valley-based nonprofit United Community, McGuire launched his campaign to succeed Sickles on Dec. 24, stating that he hoped to bring his experience with community service to give “the most vulnerable in our community” a voice in Richmond.
He quickly received endorsements from Sickles, Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay and several other top local Democrats, helping him narrowly defeat veteran teacher Joy McManus in a firehouse primary on Dec. 28.
For the general election, McGuire again faced an education-focused opponent, with Republicans throwing their support behind Cardiff — a homeschooling advocate who previously worked for the data analytics firm i360 — after a canvass on Dec. 29.
With today’s win, which will be certified once all mail and provisional ballots are counted after noon on Friday (Jan. 23), McGuire is set to join a legislative session that’s in full swing.
With majorities in both General Assembly chambers and a trifecta in all three statewide offices, Virginia Democrats hope to make progress on a range of priorities, including gun control, housing and environmental regulations. The party has already passed constitutional amendments related to abortion access, same-sex marriage, voting rights restoration and mid-cycle redistricting, setting the stage for voters to weigh in.
Votes are expected on all of the amendments in the November general election except for the redistricting one, which could appear on a ballot for a special referendum in April.
