The previous chief of workers to the late Rep. Gerry Connolly clinched the Democratic nomination to fill Connolly’s seat in a deep-blue Northern Virginia district, based on the native Democratic Occasion.
James Walkinshaw received with 59.54% of the vote in Saturday’s party-run major, based on outcomes posted by the eleventh Congressional District Democratic Committee of Virginia. He beat a area of 10 candidates that included state Sen. Stella Pekarsky and state Del. Irene Shin within the race for the particular election nomination.
Shin completed in second place with 14.27% of the vote, whereas Pekarsky positioned third with 13.40%, based on the get together’s tabulation.
Walkinshaw was Connolly’s chief of workers from 2009 to 2019 and has served on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors since 2020. Walkinshaw earned an endorsement from Connolly for this race earlier than he died.
He ran a marketing campaign targeted on stopping Trump’s “harmful” agenda, saying he would battle to guard the district’s greater than 50,000 federal employees.
“I’m honored & humbled to have earned the Democratic nomination for the district I’ve spent my profession serving,” Walkinshaw stated on X. “This victory was powered by neighbors, volunteers, and supporters who imagine in defending our democracy, defending our freedoms, and delivering for working households.”
The race drew some exterior spending, with Walkinshaw receiving over $2.4 million in assist from Struggle for Virginia’s Future and Shield Progress. Save Democracy PAC spent over $160,000 supporting Pekarsky, and Individuals Over Monopolies spent nearly $184,000 supporting Shin.
Struggle for Virginia’s Future additionally spent cash on detrimental adverts and robocalls criticizing Pekarsky for supporting a invoice that might maintain a referendum on a on line casino in Fairfax County.
Walkinshaw will advance to the September particular election, the place he’s the doubtless favourite to win, as then-Vice President Kamala Harris carried the district by 34 share factors in 2024. He’ll face Republican Stewart Whitson, an Military veteran and former FBI official.
