Democrat holds onto Virginia’s 11th Congressional District

There are two months left to go until election day across Virginia, but voters in the 11th District went to the polls on September 9 to fill a vacancy left by the death of Congressman Gerry Connelly in mid-May.

Democrat James R. Walkinshaw defeated Republican Stewart Whitson by a three-to-one margin in an election for a district that includes all of Fairfax City and the overwhelming majority of Fairfax County.

Walkinshaw served for more than a decade as Connelly’s chief of staff before getting elected to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors. His election means that once again there will be are six Democrats and five Republicans representing Virginia in the United States House of Representatives.

Walkinshaw was sworn in on September 10 and his Congressional website is live.

There are currently three other vacancies in the U.S. House.

• Representative Sylvester Turner (D-18) died on March 5, 2025 and a special election will be held on November 4, 2025.
• Representative Raúl Grijalva (D-7) died on March 13, 2025 and a special election will be held on September 23, 2025.
• Representative Mark Green (R-7) resigned on July 20, 2025 and a special election will be held on December 2, 2025.

Before you go: The time to write and conduct research for this article is covered by paid subscribers to Charlottesville Community Engagement. In fact, this particular installment comes from the September 10, 2025 edition of the program. To ensure this research can be sustained, please consider becoming a paid subscriber or contributing monthly through Patreon.