Virginia Election Results 2019: Democrats Flip House, Senate

VIRGINIA — Democrats have gained control of the state House and Senate in the Tuesday, Nov. 5 general election as results continue to roll in. Going into 2020, Democrats will have a trifecta—control of the governorship, House and Senate—for the first time since 1993. Several other historic races were called, with Muslim women winning seats in the legislature, and the woman who flipped off President Trump winning a county board of supervisors race.

President Trump's low approval ratings had given Democrats hope, and the Republicans continued a downward spiral with Virginia voters.

A significant win for Democrats occurred in House District 40. Democrat Dan Helmer is the projected winner over Republican Tim Hugo, the last Republican state legislator representing Northern Virginia. With 22 of 23 precincts reporting, Helmer had 14,015 votes while Hugo had 12,172 votes.

Another key flip for Democrats happened in a Northern Virginia Senate race. Democrat John Bell is the projected winner in the 13th Senate District, a seat held by retiring Republican Richard Black. Bell defeated Republican and Loudoun County supervisor Geary Higgins for the seat, which represents parts of Prince William and Loudoun counties.

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Gains for Democrats in the 2017 election left Republicans with slim majorities in the House of Delegates and Senate. Going into the Nov. 5 election, Republicans had a 20-19 Senate majority and 51-48 House of Delegates majority, which include one vacancy in each chamber.

Because Virginia's 2019 general election is the only one where control of the legislature could change parties, it's also taken the national spotlight. Republicans and Democrats in the national level are looking at the results for insights on voters ahead of the 2020 presidential election.

Democrats hoped voters supportive of gun control will help secure victories. It remains to be seen how much the blackface scandals involving Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam and Attorney General Mark Herring and sexual assault accusations against Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax will affect Tuesday's election.

Key State Legislative Race Results

40th House District: Democrat Dan Helmer is the projected winner over Republican Del. Tim Hugo. Hugo, the sole Republican representing Fairfax County, downplayed party ties and touted work on local issues leading up to the election. Reports indicate voters' viewpoints on gun control and national politics could factor into the race. The 40th District includes part of Fairfax and Prince William counties.

42nd House District: Democrat Kathy Tran is the projected winner in Fairfax County's 42nd House District against Republican challenger Steve Adragna. Tran faced backlash earlier in 2019 for her unsuccessful bill regarding late-term abortions. Her comment suggesting the bill would allow infanticide drew controversy, but she later claimed to have misspoken.

28th House District: Democrat Joshua Cole is the projected winner with 13,325 votes to Paul Milde III's 12,289 votes. The district representing Fredericksburg and part of Stafford County was up for grabs after Del. Bob Thomas lost the primary.

33rd House District: Del. Dave LaRock is the projected winner in the Republican-leaning 33rd District, which includes parts of Loudoun, Clarke and Frederick counties. He faced Democratic challenger Mavis Taintor in the general election.

13th House District: Democratic Del. Danica Roem, the state's first transgender representative, won reelection in the competitive 13th District against Republican Kelly McGinn. Roem had 9,436 votes while McGinn had 7,343 votes, according to unofficial results. Roem was first elected in 2017 on a platform that emphasized fixes for the congested Route 28. The district includes Manassas Park City and part of Prince William County.

50th House District: Del. Lee Carter, a Democratic socialist, is the projected winner in the 50th House District. With all precincts reporting, Carter had 10,693 votes while Republican Manassas City Councilman Ian Lovejoy had 9,333 votes. The district includes Manassas City and part of Prince William County.

31st House District: Unofficial results show Democratic Del. Elizabeth Guzman defeated Republican D.J. Jordan in the competitive 31st District, which includes parts of Prince William and Fauquier counties.

51st House District: Del. Hala Ayala is the projected winner against Republican Rich Anderson in the Prince William County's 51st District race.

66th House District: House Speaker Kirk Cox defended his seat in the competitive 66th House District, according to unofficial results. With 25 of 26 precincts reporting, he had 13,586 votes and Democratic challenger Sheila Bynum-Coleman had 12,455 votes. The district includes part of Chesterfield County and City of Colonial Heights.

13th Senate District: Democrat John Bell is the projected winner in the 13th Senate District seat. This was a key flip for Democrats, as the seat was held by retiring Republican Richard Black. Bell ran against Republican Loudoun County Supervisor Geary Higgins for the 13th District seat, which includes parts of Prince William and Loudoun counties.

17th Senate District: Republican Sen. Bryce Reeves is the projected winner, defeating Democrat Amy Laufer in the Republican-leaning 17th District. The district encompasses Fredericksburg, part of Spotsylvania County and other areas.

Certain jurisdictions had decisive local elections in addition to state legislative races. In what might be perceived as an anti-Trump move, Loudoun County voters elected Democrat Juli Briskman to the board of supervisors. Briskman gained notoriety when she was biking and gave President Trump and his motorcade a one-finger salute as it was making its way to his golfing resort in Virginia. She lost her job working for a government contractor because of the publicity, but said she ran for local office to boost school funding, rein in irresponsible development, and make government work.

In Fairfax County, a woman just declared victory in her race to make history as both the youngest woman and first Muslim woman to hold elected office in Virginia. Abrar Omeish, 24, released a statement shortly before 10 p.m. declaring victory in her race for a seat for Fairfax County School Board At-Large, with unofficial results showing her finishing in second (the top three win seats) against five other candidates.

Other local races include Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, Falls Church City Council, Prince William County Board of Supervisors, Spotsylvania County Board of Supervisors and Stafford County Board of Supervisors.

Local election officials and ACLU of Virginia received reports of concerns at polling places. Fairfax County's Office of Elections received one claim of a compromised ballot. According to spokesman Brian Worthy, a voter claimed to have received a pre-marked ballot at a Reston polling place. The claim, first posted on Nextdoor, alleged the oval had been filled in for Republican candidate Arthur Purves in the 32nd Senate District race.

The voter was given a new ballot, and the ballot in question will be examined by the Office of Elections. There have been no other reports of alleged issues with ballots in Fairfax County.

Elsewhere in Virginia, one Richmond precinct did not have enough ballots in the morning, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported. In Stafford County, a voter reported that people are being assigned the wrong ballots in a split precinct involving the competitive House District 28 race. The Virginia Department of Elections confirmed to ACLU of Virginia that the issue had been resolved.