RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) – Democratic U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger declared victory Tuesday over Republican Yesli Vega in Virginia’s closely-watched 7th Congressional District race.
Spanberger, a two-term congresswoman and former CIA officer, declared victory in the race in front of supporters at her campaign’s election night event. Shortly afterward, the Associated Press called the race for Spanberger.
Spanberger will represent a newly drawn district anchored in Prince William County that Republicans had hoped to flip in the party’s quest to win back control of the U.S. House of Representatives.
Before the AP projected the race for Spanberger, Vega told supporters on stage that her campaign is monitoring votes coming in and wants to make sure “every vote is counted.”
A Vega spokesperson did not immediately respond to a text seeking comment. Election results are unofficial until they are certified by the State Board of Elections.
Vega, a member of the Prince William County Board of Supervisors and daughter of Salvadoran immigrants, defeated more established Republicans, including a state senator, to win the Republican nomination in June.
Spanberger was part of a group of Virginia Democrats who flipped their districts in 2018 when former President Donald Trump was in office, helping the party seize a majority in the U.S. House.
Virginia’s 7th Congressional District no longer spans from Culpeper and Spotsylvania down to Amelia and Chesterfield or has most of its voters from Henrico and Chesterfield counties, which accounted for nearly 280,000 out of the more than 450,000 votes cast in 2020.
The district now stretches from Greene County to King George and Caroline counties. Prince William County has the largest share of voters in the district, followed by Stafford and Spotsylvania counties, according to the nonpartisan Virginia Public Access Project (VPAP).
This story is developing. Stay with 8News for updates.
