Party primaries in Virginia will be held on June 17 determining at least one statewide race as well as candidates for local offices throughout the Commonwealth. That means the early voting period opens up tomorrow.
“Virginia’s 45-day early voting period officially begins Saturday, May 3, but registrar offices that will be closed must offer early voting May 2,” reads an information release sent out Wednesday by the Virginia Department of Elections.
Early voting ends on Saturday, June 14.
Specifics about each locality are available. Visit the following links for more information about addresses to vote and hours you can do so.
Not in one of those areas? Check the Virginia Department of Elections website.
Across Virginia, there is a Democratic Primary for both Lieutenant Governor and Attorney General. Former Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger will be the Democratic nominee.
“All 133 Virginia counties and cities will have a Democratic primary, but only 31 will have a Republican primary,” the release continues.
That’s because there are no contested races for the Republican nominees.
The Republican Party technically had a primary for Lieutenant Governor, but one of the candidates has dropped out. Fairfax County Supervisor Pat Herrity dropped out due to health concerns, according to this account in the Virginia Mercury. Governor Glenn Youngkin has asked John Reid to drop out of the race due to the results of a candidate vulnerability check related to social media, but Reid has refused. For that story, follow the Virginia Political Newsletter.
Current Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears will be the Republican candidate for governor. Incumbent Jason Miyares is seeking another term. The position of governor in Virginia is limited to one term, but not so for the other two statewide offices.
There are six candidates in the primary for Lieutenant Governor, a race in which half of the campaigns have raised over a $1 million. The links in the following paragraphs go to each campaign website to learn more about who is on the ballot.
- Former Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney has raised $1,404,997 through March 31 according to campaign finance data compiled by the Virginia Public Access Project.
- State Senator Aaron Rouse (D-22) and former professional football player raised $1,185,215 in the period.
- State Senator Ghazala Hashmi (D-15) raised $1,056,688 through March 31.
- Babur Lateef, a former chair of the Chesterfield County School Board and a former members of the University of Virginia Board of Visitors, raised $970,265.
- Former federal prosecutor Victor Salgado raised $203,998.
- Union organizer Alex Bastani has raised $134,137.
There are two candidates in the Democratic primary for Attorney General.
- Former Delegate and former Assistant Attorney General Jay Jones raised $1,809,276.
- Henrico County Commonwealth’s Attorney Sharon Taylor raised $1,011,708.
Local races in Albemarle County and Charlottesville (and Augusta County)
Neither Delegate Katrina Callsen (D-54) nor Delegate Amy Laufer (D-55) have opposition in the primary and will advance to the November 4 election. The question is whether anyone will emerge to challenge them. So far the answer is no.
Senator Creigh Deeds (D-11) does not face re-election until 2027. He had a primary challenger in 2023 in former Delegate Sally Hudson. The race was very narrow with Deeds getting 50.87 percent of the vote.
There is a three-way race for two seats on the Charlottesville City Council in an election which will mark the first time the city will use the rank-choice voting method Council to determine candidates. The method was used last year to pick the name of the holiday tree.
Incumbents Brian Pinkston and Juandiego Wade are running as a pair against newcomer Jen Fleisher. So far the Wade-Pinkston Victory Fund has raised more money than Fleisher’s campaign as I reported last month.
So far I know of two campaign forums but there may be more. I could not confirm a third in time for publication.
- The Greenbrier Neighborhood Association has invited all three to participate in a virtual forum on May 14. Details on how to participate as we get closer.
- The Free Enterprise Forum will have an in-person forum at the Hillsdale Conference Center on May 28.
Charlottesville Tomorrow has also prepared a voter guide that so far has only been responded to by two of the three candidates.
There is a primary campaign for the Jack Jouett seat on the Albemarle Board of Supervisors.
Three of Albemarle’s six seats on the Board of Supervisors are up for election this fall, but there’s only one party primary coming up on June 17. That’s for the Jack Jouett District where Democrats Sally Duncan and David Shreve are competing for the open seat. Supervisor Diantha McKeel announced her decision not to seek a third term in late January.
There is at least one campaign forum scheduled for this race. The Free Enterprise Forum is hosting one at on May 21 at Journey Middle School at 5:30 p.m.
There is a contested race for the Board of Supervisors across the mountain in Augusta County. Both Justin T. Dimitt and Stephen Gripps Sr. are seeking the Republican nomination for the Beverley Mountain District. They’re seeking to replace G.L. “Butch” Wells who is retiring.
People can register for the primary election through May 27, 2025. You can check your registration status on the Citizen Portal run by the Virginia Department of Elections. Same day registration starts on May 28.
Before you go: This story was originally posted in the May 1, 2025 edition of Charlottesville Community Engagement. For more information on Town Crier Productions, please visit this section of the website.
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