WASHINGTON (AP) — In Virginia, two incumbent Republicans are fending off tough Democratic challengers in U.S. House races in a difficult midterm climate for the GOP.
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Republicans → fend → GOP
Voters will also decide whether to reelect their Democratic U.S. Senator to a fourth term and decide a ballot measure that would codify reproductive rights in the state constitution.
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that → decide → constitution
A Democratic win in either congressional race could push the party closer to regaining control of the chamber.
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win → push → chamber
Democrats need to win three more seats than in 2024 to claim the majority and see President Donald Trump’s plunging approval rating as an opportunity to score wins in competitive districts.
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Democrats → need → districts
The 2nd Congressional District, which includes the city of Virginia Beach and the Virginia portion of the Delmarva Peninsula, has one of those competitive races.
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which → include → races
Rep. Jen Kiggans, the Republican incumbent, faces former Rep. Elaine Luria, a Democrat who lost the seat to Kiggans in 2022 after redistricting.
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who → face → redistricting
Kiggans won that race by less than four percentage points.
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Kiggans → win → points
The 2nd Congressional District has passed between Republicans and Democrats several times in the past few decades.
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District → pass → decades
In 2024, Kiggans defeated a different Democratic challenger by a margin of less than four percentage points.
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Kiggans → defeat → points
In the same election, Trump won the district over Kamala Harris by less than one-half of one percentage point.
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Trump → win → point
In the 2025 gubernatorial race, the area favored Democrat Abigail Spanberger.
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area → favor → Spanberger
Kiggans, a Navy veteran endorsed by Trump, has campaigned on her record in office and has attacked Luria for opposing a proposal to ban congressional stock trading in 2022, a position the latter reversed this year.
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latter → endorse → 2022
Luria, also a Navy veteran, has highlighted her opponent’s support for Trump’s war in Iran, a resonant issue in a district with a significant military population.
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Luria → highlight → population
Luria, who campaigned alongside Virginia U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, had raised about $8 million as of mid-October, according to financial disclosure documents.
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who → campaign → documents
Kiggans, who campaigned with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., raised about $7.6 million.
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who → campaign → million
In Virginia’s 1st Congressional District, Rep. Rob Wittman, a nine-term Republican, faces what may be his most difficult reelection battle yet against Democrat Shannon Taylor, a county prosecutor.
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what → face → Taylor
The bellwether district in the eastern part of the state, which includes Jamestown, Williamsburg, Yorktown and some of Richmond’s suburbs, reelected Wittman by a margin of nearly 13 percentage points in 2024.
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which → include → 2024
Wittman has asked voters to reelect him so he can continue being a voice for the district in Congress.
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he → ask → Congress
Taylor has focused her campaign on rooting out corruption in Washington and painted Wittman as benefiting from a corrupt system.
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Taylor → focus → system
Wittman has raised slightly more money than Taylor — $5.4 million to her $4.6 million.
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Wittman → raise → million
Millions more in outside spending have flowed into the race.
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Millions → flow → race
Virginia is one of four states with abortion-related measures on the ballot in the 2026 midterm elections.
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Virginia → relate → elections
If approved, Question 1 would enshrine reproductive rights in the state constitution, including the right to an abortion.
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Question → approve → abortion
The amendment would let state lawmakers regulate abortions in the third trimester of pregnancy, but also require that they be allowed under certain circumstances, including if the fetus is unviable or if necessary to protect the life of the mother.
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fetus → let → mother
If the amendment passes, it could allow state courts to strike down laws restricting abortion.
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courts → pass → abortion
Virginia is the only southern state that did not enact an abortion ban after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022.
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Court → enact → 2022
The ACLU of Virginia and Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia support the amendment, while the Family Foundation of Virginia and the Virginia Catholic Conference oppose it.
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Foundation → support → it
In the U.S. Senate race, three-term Democratic incumbent Sen. Mark Warner is expected to be reelected.
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Warner → expect → race
He is running against Bert Mizusawa, a Republican and retired Army major general who advised Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign.
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who → run → campaign
Here are some of the key facts about the election and data points the AP Decision Team will monitor as the votes are tallied:
When do polls close?
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polls → monitor → election
Polls close at 7 p.m. ET.
What’s on the ballot?
The Associated Press will provide vote results and declare winners in races for U.S. Senate, U.S. House, statewide ballot measures, House of Delegates and Arlington County Board.
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Press → close → Delegates
How many people voted in the last general election for statewide office?
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people → vote → office
About 3.4 million votes were cast in Virginia’s 2025 race for governor.
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votes → cast → governor
How much of the vote is cast early or by absentee ballot?
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much → cast → ballot
About 42% of votes in the 2025 race for governor in Virginia were cast early or by absentee ballot.
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% → cast → ballot
The latest advance vote totals for Virginia can be found in the AP’s advance vote tracker.
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totals → find → tracker
When are early and absentee votes released?
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votes → release → ?
Virginia jurisdictions are expected to vary in terms of how and when they release results.
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they → expect → results
The first vote updates of the night are expected to include results from all vote types: early in-person, mail and in-person on Election Day.
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updates → expect → Day
A small number of jurisdictions may include all or almost all of their early and absentee voting results in their first vote update of the night.
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number → include → night
…and 11 more, not listed.
The Aporia
