Heading into the June 21 GOP primaries, political observers closely watched the results in the 2nd and 7th districts that are currently held by Democrats, and now big-name political endorsements and campaign donations are pouring in as both parties fight for votes.
In the 7th District, voters in November will choose Democrat incumbent Abigail Spanberger or GOP challenger Yesli Vega. That race pits the Democrat, who famously defeated GOP incumbent Dave Brat in 2018, against Vega, a county supervisor for Prince William County. The GOP challenger, a native of El Salvador, also serves as a deputy sheriff.
After Spanberger won re-election in 2020, the 7th District lines have now moved after a redistricting map was approved last year by the Virginia Supreme Court. The new lines literally left the incumbent Democrat behind in her suburb of Henrico near Richmond. The new lines shifted to Northern Virginia and the Fredericksburg area, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
Rob Chambers, vice president of AFA Action, tells AFN the 7th District race is being watched closely because Spanberger narrowly won re-election in 2020 with a 50%-49% win over GOP candidate Nick Freitas in the General Election.
“Now with the redistricting,” he predicts, “it's looking like Yesli Vega is going to flip this seat to the ‘red’ column."
Vega is rated “Conservative” by the right-leaning IVoterGuide. She is described as a “conservative firebrand” by the Times-Dispatch newspaper, which called Spanberger a “centrist” Democrat.
“Now it is time to bring everyone, Republican and Democrat, together,” Vega said after her primary win, “because inflation doesn’t discriminate.”
In the 2nd District, which comprises the Tidewater area, the Republican winner was Jen Kiggans, a current state senator.
Kiggans, a nurse practitioner and former Navy helicopter pilot, is rated a “Moderate” by AFA Action. She will face incumbent Rep. Elaine Luria on the November ballot.
Chambers says Luria is “about as far left as you can get,” so voters could choose the more moderate GOP challenger and flip that seat in November.
The 2nd District race is also being described as a must-watch election fight leading to the fall.
Editor's Note: AFA Action is an affiliate of the American Family Association, the parent organization of the American Family News Network, which operates AFN.net.
