Dem’s McClellan Projected to Win Virginia Special Election: AP

by Ben Whedon   Virginia state Sen. Jennifer McClellan on Tuesday won election to Congress, becoming the state’s first black woman elected to the U.S. Congress from the state. McClellan defeated Republican Leon Benjamin in the race to fill the seat of late Democratic Rep. A. Donald McEachin, who represented the state’s Fourth Congressional District. The Associated Press called the race on Tuesday evening with McClellan claiming 67.5% of the vote to Benjamin’s 32.5%. – – – Ben Whedon is the night editor for the Just the News. He came to the company from Breitbart News and is a graduate of Washington and Lee University. Photo “Jennifer McClellan” by Jennifer McClellan. Photo “Leon Benjamin” by Leon Benjamin. Background Photo “U.S. Capitol” by José Matute.         Reprinted with permission from Just the News

Read the full story

Virginia Voters to Elect New Member of Congress in Special Election Tuesday

Virginia state Sen. Jennifer McClellan, D-Richmond, will face Republican challenger Leon Benjamin in a special election Tuesday to fill the 4th Congressional District seat left vacant by the death of Democratic Rep. Donald McEachin. 

The 4th congressional district, which stretches from Richmond to the North Carolina border, has had a Democratic representative since 2016 when McEachin was first elected to Congress. Leading up to the November election in 2022 when McEachin won reelection just weeks before his death, Cook Political Report designated the seat “solid Democrat.” 

Read the full story

Virginia Lobby Day 2023: VCDL and Republicans Focus on Blocking Democratic Gun Bills, Hope for More Action in 2024

RICHMOND, Virginia — Republicans and gun rights activists rallied at the Virginia Capitol on Monday, known as Lobby Day. They said this year’s General Assembly will be focused on blocking gun control legislation and on picking like-minded candidates for primaries and in the November general election. At a separate rally and a press conference Monday, Democrats announced measures aimed at preventing gun violence, but with Republicans controlling the House and Democrats controlling the Senate, both parties are likely to have little success in passing legislation.

“We’ve heard from the Virginia Senate that they’re the brick wall,” Delegate Tim Anderson (R-Virginia Beach) told the crowd outside the Bell Tower. “We saw them kill a lot of legislative priorities last year from Republicans. But what you’re going to see this year: the Democrats have dropped a lot of anti-Second Amendment bills, and what you’re going to see is this Republican majority in the House stand up to that and kill that in our public safety committee. And so that’s a big thing. You’re not going to see repeals of all of the laws that have offended us that the Democrats passed in 2020 and 2021, because while we can get them out of our house, they will die in the Senate.”

Read the full story

VA-04 Republicans Nominate Leon Benjamin for Special Election

Leon Benjamin is the Republican nominee for a special election in VA-04 after Benjamin won 57 percent of the votes in the first round of ranked choice voting in a Saturday canvass, Fourth District Republican Chairman Carey Allen told The Virginia Star.

“Thank you, VA-4, for your nomination to represent you in Washington! Together we will WIN this Special Election and ensure your voice is HEARD through the Halls of Congress. God bless you all,” Benjamin said in a social media statement.

Read the full story

Del. Bagby Withdraws and Endorses Sen. McClellan in VA-04 Race as Democrats Unite Against Sen. Morrissey

Delegate Lamont Bagby (D-Henrico) has withdrawn from the race for the nomination for the open VA-04 congressional seat and endorsed Senator Jennifer McClellan (D-Richmond), a move that comes as top Virginia Democrats try to block controversial Senator Joe Morrissey (D-Richmond) from taking the nomination for the safe-Democratic seat. After Morrissey announced for the race, endorsements from top Democrats like Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) started to come in, with more coming in after Bagby’s Thursday withdrawal.

Read the full story

Virginia State Senators Morrissey, McClellan Favorites to Win Special Election for Vacant VA-04 Seat

Governor Glenn Youngkin ordered a February 21, 2023 special election to fill late Congressman Don McEachin’s seat, setting off a tight timeline for nominations in the safe-D seat. Senator Joe Morrissey (D-Richmond), Senator Jennifer McClellan (D-Richmond), and Delegate Lamont Bagby (D-Henrico) are the top candidates for the race.

McClellan and Bagby have already filed to run for the race, but only Bagby has officially announced his candidacy. On Monday afternoon, Morrissey seemed to confirmed speculation that he would enter the race, announcing a “major announcement” to be made at a Tuesday press conference. At the same time, fierce Morrissey ally John Fredericks, publisher of The Virginia Star, tweeted “Breaking…!VA-04 Shakeup! In upcoming Special,centrist VA Sen Joe Morrissey (D) expected to get in the race tomorrow-11:30 am presser at Petersburg City Hall. His entry completely changes dynamics in big name crowded field. If he gets in, he wins!”

Read the full story

Leon Benjamin Announces Non-Profit Virginians for America First to Re-Take Virginia House

Former congressional candidate Leon Benjamin is founding a new political non-profit focused on helping Republicans retake Virginia House of Delegates seats. Virginians for America First will focus on grassroots training and education to retake control of the House in the 2021 elections by initially focusing on districts that recently flipped from Republican to Democrat control.

Read the full story

Republican Congressional Candidates Rally Richmond Area Supporters Ahead of Election Day

Virginia Republican congressional candidates and other conservative politicians gathered at a Chesterfield County restaurant in Midlothian on Monday night to fire up a small crowd of voters before Tuesday’s general election.

Hosted by Virginia Beach attorney, Tim Anderson, the event was intended to energize the crowd ahead of the election and help bolster the campaigns of Del. Nick Freitas (R-Culpepper), veteran Daniel Gade and pastor Leon Benjamin.

Read the full story

Sidney Powell Reveals Pattern of Corruption at Richmond Rally

Former federal prosecutor Sidney Powell spoke at a rally for Fourth Congressional District candidate Leon Benjamin on Tuesday night. Men in suits and women in formal dresses enjoyed appetizers as they listened to Powell. She’s also the attorney or former Trump National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, and is author of Licensed to Lie, a legal thriller/exposé of corruption in the Department of Justice.

Read the full story

Rand Paul, Ted Cruz Stump for Virginia Republican Candidates

It was cold and rainy, but approximately 150 people attended the Chesterfield GOTV Rally in a covered arena at Keystone Acres on Sunday afternoon. Senators Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas) headlined the event. Virginia candidates Nick Freitas, Daniel Gade, and Leon Benjamin appealed to supporters to not only vote, but to encourage friends and community members to vote.

Read the full story