This November, 85 percent of Republican-controlled Virginia House of Delegates districts will play host to contested races. Fifty-six of the 66 GOP-held areas have a challenger running in them now – the most collective opposition the party has faced in more than a decade.
The state Department of Elections recently released a certified list of candidates for the House and, of the 100 races statewide, 67 will have more than one candidate. That’s the most since the 69 contested elections of 2009, according to the Virginia Public Access Project, which analyzed the list. In 2009, there were 32 contested races in Republican-held areas and 36 in Democratic ones.
While the uptick in candidates for districts led by the state’s majority party has been significant, the swell is contrasted on the other side of the aisle. Just 11 of the 34 Democratic-controlled areas will hold contested elections.
