November 6, 2024: Harris wins Virginia, Trump wins back U.S. Presidency; Charlottesville trails region in voter turnout
Plus: Other election results from around the Charlottesville region
Every four years, there is the potential for a shift in how the United States of America is governed at the top. For the first time in 132 years, a person who has already been president has been returned to office. This being Virginia, there’s another election scheduled for just a year away. Charlottesville Community Engagement will try to cover as much of all of this as possible. I’m Sean Tubbs, and this is what I do.
In today’s installment:
Democrat Kamala Harris wins Virginia but lost a majority of localities in Virginia’s Fifth District
Voter turnout in Charlottesville is much lower than in other localities in the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission
State Senator John McGuire will be the fourth person in ten years to represent Virginia’s Fifth District
Chuck Pace has won election to the Rio District Seat on the Albemarle School Board
A look at other races in the area
A look ahead to the next election a year from now
First shout-out: Supporting the Keswick Heritage Fund’s Love Better Project
The Keswick Heritage Fund is a partnership of several churches in Albemarle County that provides education support and opportunities for professional development. One of their outreach programs is the Love Better Project, which provides scholarships to Black students in the Keswick area. The fund was created soon after the inaugural scholarship was awarded in 2020.
Grace Episcopal Church, Union Grove Baptist, Union Run Baptist, Zion Hill Baptist and St. John Church are united for growth through community partnership and education. To learn more about the fund, the scholarships, and the churches themselves, visit their website at keswickheritagefund.com.
Harris wins Virginia but Trump prevails in popular vote and electoral college
Virginia is the only southern state where Democrat Kamala Harris had a majority of voters, and Republican Donald Trump carried the region on his way to having at least 277 votes in the electoral college. That’s seven more than needed to clinch his return to the White House.
With most of the votes in for Virginia, Harris currently has 2,226,566 votes to Trump’s 2,001,911. That’s 51.56 percent of the vote. The actual counts will shift slightly as canvasses occur today and throughout the week.
Harris carried Albemarle with 65.83 percent of the vote, or 42,472 votes. The reported turnout stands at 71 percent of the county’s 91,840 registered voters.
As an illustration of how partisanship manifests geographically, Augusta County went for Trump with 73 percent of the vote, or 31,719 votes. Turnout in Augusta was at 76 percent.
Harris took Charlottesville with nearly 84 percent of the electorate, or about 18,024 votes. Turnout in the city was 60 percent of the 35,762 votes cast.
The race was closer in Fluvanna County, where Harris had 52.48 of the vote to Trump’s 46.13 percent. Turnout was 76 percent of the 21,881 registered voters.
Nelson County was also closer than most localities in Virginia with 53.02 percent of voters selecting Trump. Turnout was 77 percent of the 12,108 registered voters.
Greene County went for Trump with 61.51 percent of the vote as did Louisa County with 62.4 percent of the vote. Turnout in Greene was 74 percent of the 15,885 registered voters. Turnout in Louisa County was at 75 percent of 31,518 registered voters.
“Our new President and fellow Republicans have a great opportunity to lead our country back to where it should be, and I look forward to that journey with dignity and respect for all,” said Cuckoo District Supervisor Christoper McCotter on his Facebook page earlier this morning.
This is the second election cycle for a newly redrawn Fifth District and the first presidential race. Twenty of the 24 localites went for Trump, though in Prince Edward County the Republican candidate has 4,595 votes to 4,396 votes for the Democrat.
Harris also carried the City of Danville with 59.83 percent of the vote but Lynchburg went for Trump with 51.55 percent of the vote.
McGuire wins election to Fifth District
For the fourth time in four years, Virginia’s Fifth District will be represented by someone else in the lower house of the United States Congress.
Republican State Senator John McGuire III has defeated Democrat Gloria Tinsley Witt with 57.35 percent of the vote to 42.2 percent.
“Thanks to God, it feels like ‘morning in America!’,” McGuire posted to his Facebook page this morning. “At sunrise, I thanked voters in Lynchburg, Virginia.”
McGuire also said he cannot wait to get to work. The Republicans have taken the U.S. Senate but control of the U.S. House of Representatives is still up for grabs with 380 out of 435 races called.
McGuire announced his candidacy last November just days after winning election to Senate District 10 because he thought incumbent Bob Good was not sufficiently loyal to Trump. He narrowly won in the Republican primary.
The victory means there will need to be a special election to fill the seat.
McGuire carried 21 out of the 24 localities in the Fifth District with Witt having majorities in Albemarle, Charlottesville, and Danville. Fluvanna County went for McGuire with 54.51 percent of the vote.
A small sliver of Albemarle County is within Virginia’s 7th Congressional District which went overall to Democrat Eugene Vindaman. However, 24 of the 33 voters in Albemarle went for Republican Derrick Anderson.
Vindaman had a narrow victory with 50.94 percent of the vote in the 7th District or 195,349 votes at press time.
In the United States Senate race, Democrat Tim Kaine won election to an additional term with 54.05 percent of the vote over Republican Hung Cao. At publication time, that’s 2,302,734 votes to 1,950,099 votes.
Pace wins election to Albemarle School Board
Other than the Town of Scottsville, there was only one race in Albemarle County this election cycle.
Chuck Pace has won election to the Rio District seat on the Albemarle School Board that he has occupied on an appointed basis since the beginning of the year. Pace defeated Jim E. Dillenbeck with 52.63 percent of ballots cast, or 4,435 votes.
“I plan to work even harder than I did last year with an aggressive schedule for visiting schools and working closely with the Virginia School Boards Association to get as much training as possible,” said in an e-mail response to a question. “I hope to represent everyone in the Rio District to the best of my ability.”
Pace was appointed to replace Delegate Katrina Callsen after she was elected to represent Virginia’s 54th House District. While School Board elections are non-partisan, the Albemarle County Democrats endorsed his candidacy.
Scottsville Mayor Smith currently leads opponent by three votes
In Virginia, towns are the only level of municipal government below counties or cities. As such, there are separate elections for their governing bodies.
As of this moment, incumbent Mayor Ron Smith has 114 votes to 111 votes for challenger Edward Payne. Payne is a Town Councilor who opted to run for the position of Mayor instead of seek re-election.
There were three positions for Town Council up for election this year, but only Alex Besette’s name appeared on the ballot. Bessette likely won re-election as there are 213 write-in votes to be processed.
Here are some other races in the region:
Steve Catalano easily won re-election to the Stanardsville District on the Greene County Board of Supervisors as he was the only candidate on the ballot.
There were 34 write-in votes for the open seat on the Stanardsville Town Council
In the Town of Mineral, Becky McGehee and David Hempstead had the most votes in a race for two seats that had three people on the ballot. Hempstead is an incumbent.
In the Town of Louisa, Roger Henry, Sylvia Rigsby, and Daniel R. Crawford had the most votes in a race for three seats that had four people on the ballot. Rigsby is an incumbent.
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Looking ahead to the 2025 election
There are 363 days until November 4, 2025 when there will be a statewide race in Virginia as well as local races in in cities and counties.
There are three seats up on the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors as the term of the Rio District, Jack Jouett District, and Samuel Miller District. So far none of the incumbents have announced their plans.
Diantha McKeel was first elected to the Jack Jouett seat in 2013 when she ran as an independent and defeated Philip Seay with nearly 70 percent of the vote. She was unopposed in 2017 and 2021 when she identified as a Democrat.
Ned Gallaway was first elected to the Rio District seat in 2017 and did not have an opponent on the ballot that year or in 2021
Jim Andrews is in his first term in the Samuel Miller District having been elected in 2021 in a race in which he was unopposed.
There are two seats open on the Charlottesville City Council. They’re currently held by Mayor Juandiego Wade and Vice Mayor Brian Pinkston, both Democrats. A Republican has not won election to City Council since Rob Schilling in 2002.
This will be the first time ranked choice voting will be utilized for the Democratic Primary which will take place on June 17.
There are four races on the ballot in Louisa County.
Republican Duane Adams has represented the Mineral District since 2017 when he defeated an independent candidate with 55 percent of the vote. He had no opposition in 2021.
Independent Tommy Barlow has represented the Mountain Road District since 2009. He has never faced an opponent on the ballot.
Republican Rachel Jones won election to the Green Springs District in 2021 when she defeated incumbent Bob Babyok Jr.
Independent Fitzgerald Barnes has represented the Patrick Henry District since at least 2001 when he faced opposition. He did not have an opponent in 2005, 2013, 2017 but did in 2009 and 2021 when he fended off Republican challengers.
There are three races on the ballot in Fluvanna County next year.
Independent Chris Fairchild won election to a first term in the Cunningham District in 2021 with no formal opposition.
Independent John Michael Sheridan won election to his first term representing the Columbia District in 2013 when he defeated another independent candidate. He did not face opposition in 2017 or 2021.
Independent Tony O’Brien has been the Rivanna District Supervisors since 2013 when he defeated a Republican candidate. He did the same thing in 2017 but faced no opponents in 2021.
There are two races on the ballot for the Greene County Board of Supervisors next year.
Independent Marie Durrer has represented the Midway District on the Board of Supervisors since 2017 when she defeated incumbent Jim Frydl by nine votes. Frydl is now the county’s planning director. Collins faced no opposition in 2021.
Steve Catalano was elected yesterday in a special election to fill a vacancy in the Stanardsville District. He was appointed to the position after Abby Heflin resigned. Catalano will be on the ballot again next year should he choose to run. He served one term as the at-large Supervisor after being elected in 2003.
There are three seats on the Nelson County Board of Supervisors next year.
Republican Jesse Rutherford has occupied the East District seat since 2017 when he defeated Democratic incumbent Allen Hale. Rutherford faced no opposition in 2021.
Independent Thomas Harvey has held the North District seat since at least 2001 when he ran unopposed. He was also unopposed in 2005, 2009 and 2013 but fended off opponents in 2017 and 2021.
Democrat Ernie Reed has held the Central District seat since 2017 when he defeated an independent with 57.3 percent of the vote. The race in 2021 was closed when he defeated Republican Pamela Brice with 50.9 percent of the vote.
Stay tuned for as much coverage of these races as I and my colleagues can muster.
Reading material for #756
Local voters motivated by the economy, reproductive and trans rights, Randi Hagi, WMRA, November 5, 2024
McGuire wins Virginia’s 5th Congressional District race, Dean Mirshahi, WRIC, November 5, 2024
McGuire beats Witt in Virginia’s 5th Congressional District amid GOP infighting, Markus Schmidt, November 5, 2024
Republicans on path to increase Lynchburg City Council majority, Matt Busse, November 6, 2024
4 employment actions to expect under a second Trump presidency, Emilie Shumway, Construction Dive, November 6, 2024
#756 is this one
What will the future bring? I don’t have a crystal ball, though I have a sense that all levels of government will be affected by a second Trump presidency. I will not make any predictions because that is not my role. My role is to write down what happens and capture what I can about the times we live in. I will continue to ask questions where I can.
I do know I want to know more about why this country is so divided, and I do wonder if the way we communicate with each other is going to change. I do wonder what things might have been like if regulations intended to block media consolidation had not been removed in the 1990’s. But the future is why I write.
I am a journalist and I strive to understand and explain this country where my parents moved in the 1960’s. I will continue to perform that role the way I have done. I believe I have earned the trust of a great many people and I believe there is a great deal of work to do to explain what changes will be coming. My role is not to speculate.
Your role? That’s up to you. I do know that however you are feeling today, I am hoping you will see my work as informative.
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