Incumbent Creigh Deeds has secured the Democratic nomination for the 11th District State Senate race after winning 51 percent of the vote in Tuesday’s primary. Challenger Sally Hudson was trailing Deeds by about 750 votes as of Tuesday evening.
With more than 95 percent of polls reporting, Deeds earned just 13,335 votes compared to Hudson’s 12,782 as of Wednesday evening. District 11 has a registered voter population of about 162,000 — meaning election day voter turnout was about 16 percent. Over 12,000 early votes were cast in District 11.
As primary winner, Deeds will go on to the Nov. 7 general election where he will face Republican candidate Philip Hamilton and Independent candidate J’riah Guerrero.
Virginia’s 11th District includes most of Charlottesville and Albemarle County after last year’s redistricting, which combined former Districts 17 and 25.
Both Democrats, Hudson and Deeds ran against each other with similar progressive platforms. Both had progressive goals surrounding education reform, while their stances on gun control differed slightly. Hudson has challenged Deeds several times about his position on the issue, referring to his past voting record in which he had previously opposed legislation focused on gun control. He responded saying his views had since changed.
Deeds, who has been a Virginia State Senator since 2001 and is the incumbent candidate from former District 25, focused on funding state-run education efforts and limiting possession of firearms on college campuses. This initiative’s importance for Charlottesville has grown following the November 2022 shooting which left three University students dead and two injured.
Early voting for the primary began May 5 ahead of election day June 20. Online voting registration ended May 30, but same day voter registration remained available through Election Day.
Also during Tuesday’s election, candidates Katrina Callsen, Daven Norris and Bellamy Brown ran to represent Virginia’s 54th District in the House of Delegates — the same position Hudson occupied before launching her state senate campaign.
Callsen, current Chair of Albemarle County’s School Board, came out victorious with 46.9 percent of the vote, a majority compared to Norris’s 33.9 percent and Brown’s 19.3 percent.
Charlottesville City Council elections also took place during Tuesday’s election, with five candidates running for three open seats.
Natalie Oschrin, Class of 2011 College alumna, and incumbents Michael Payne and Lloyd Snook gained the majority of votes. These candidates have all voiced goals focused on public school funding, economic equality and increased housing.
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