The Republican field in the race to challenge incumbent U.S. Representative Abigail Spanberger for Virginia’s 7th Congressional seat is a crowded one.
Former Green Beret Derrick Anderson, State Senator Bryce Reeves (R-Spotsylvania), Spotsylvania County Supervisor David Ross, Stafford County Board of Supervisors Chair Crystal Vanuch, Prince William County Supervisor Yesli Vega, teacher Gina Ciarcia, and Gary Adkins are among the candidates running in the Republican primary.
Delegate John McGuire (R-Goochland) had been prominently mentioned as a candidate for Virginia’s Seventh Congressional District prior to redistricting but he has yet to make his plans known. A prominent Virginia political operative told The Virginia Star that McGuire is likely to run for the state Senate.
Reeves raised just over $250,000 as of the last quarterly FEC report. Anderson took in just over $289,000. Other financial reports are not currently available.
Former Secretary of Energy Rick Perry, former ICE Director Tom Homan, Senator Marco Rubio, SEAL PAC, and FreedomWorks have all endorsed Reeves. His endorsements amongst his Virginia General Assembly colleagues is significant, as he is endorsed by State Senator Richard Stuart (R-Westmoreland), Delegate Rob Bell (R-Albemarle), Delegate Nick Freitas (R-Culpeper), Delegate Tara Durant (R-Stafford), Delegate Phillip Scott (R-Spotsylvania-), and former Speaker of the House of Delegates Bill Howell.
Redistricting has changed the 7th Congressional District significantly since the 2020 election, which saw Spanberger defeat Delegate Nick Freitas 50.8%-49%.
The new 7th Congressional District is composed of Stafford, Culpeper, Spotsylvania, King George, Orange, Greene, Madison, and Caroline counties as well as Fredericksburg City. It also contains parts of Prince William and Albemarle counties.
According to vpap.org, 73.4% of the district population is located in Prince William (35.5%), Stafford (20%), and Spotsylvania (17.9%). The bulk of the district population had previously been Chesterfield, Henrico, and Goochland. Candidates with strong community ties to Prince William, Stafford, or Spotsylvania are likely to do well, although if several candidates run strong in the same area, the vote could be diluted. Representative Spanberger’s supporter base in the old Seventh Congressional District was largely in Henrico and Chesterfield.
Prior to redistricting, the 7th Conressional District encompassed much of Central Virginia, including all of Orange, Culpeper, Goochland, Louisa, Nottoway, Amelia, and Powhatan counties. It also included large portions of Chesterfield and Henrico counties.
The Cook Political Report rates the 7th Congressional District as a D+1 on their partisan index and rates the race as a Lean Democrat.
Former candidates who announced prior to redistricting but have dropped out of the race include John Castorini, Tina Ramirez, State Senator Amanda Chase (R-Chesterfield), and former McDonnell administration appointee Taylor Thornley Keeney.
Representative Spanberger has represented the 7th Congressional District since she defeated former GOP congressman David Brat in 2018, by a margin of 50.3%-48.4%.
The Republican primary will take place on June 21, 2022.
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Aaron Gulbransen is a reporter at The Virginia Star and The Star News Network. Email tips to [email protected].
Background Photo “Virginia State Capitol” by Famartin. CC BY-SA 4.0.
