Democrat Jennifer McClellan Wins Special U.S. House Election in Virginia

By Caroline Sullivan

WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Tuesday, Feb. 21, Virginia state Sen. Jennifer McClellan (D) won a special election for Virginia’s 4th Congressional District. McClellan earned nearly 75% of the vote to defeat her Republican opponent and secure the seat of late Rep. Don McEachin (D-Va.), who died in November after a battle with cancer.

McClellan prevailed on Tuesday in a Democratic-leaning district that includes Richmond and several rural parts of the state along the border of North Carolina. She will be the first Black woman to represent Virginia in Congress. During Virginia’s two-year period with a Democratic trifecta, in 2020 and 2021, McClellan led the introduction of the Voting Rights Act of Virginia, a state-level bill modeled after the federal Voting Rights Act that added important protections for voters.

Read Rep.-elect McClellan’s guest opinion for Democracy Docket here.