Wittman, Perriello Issue Concessions in Congressional Races

Two of Virginia’s congressional elections were so close on election night that the trailing candidates chose not to issue concessions.

Rep. Rob Wittman, the Republican who represents the 1st District, narrowly trailed Shannon Taylor. In the 5th District, Republican incumbent John McGuire had a narrow lead over Tom Perriello when he declared victory just after 11:30.

But the Democrat did not agree. “The race for the 5th District is too close to call and every vote must be counted,” Perriello’s team emailed in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

However, on Thursday afternoon, both men conceded.

“I congratulate Rep. John McGuire on his reelection and wish him well in his second term,” Perriello said. “I am grateful to the voters and more than 1,000 volunteers who helped us build a grassroots campaign that moved all 24 counties in the district in our direction, helped to flip the Lynchburg City Council, and almost defied the odds to flip a district that was 15 points, ruby red, just two years ago.”

McGuire, for his part, vowed to keep working hard to represent the district. “We’ll take each day one at a time and see where we can be effective with the Democrats and the Republicans to do what’s best for the 5th Congressional District” McGuire said on election night. He will be serving his second term in Congress.

In the 1st District, Taylor, Henrico County’s commonwealth’s attorney, declared victory at an election night event. “Together, we have won this campaign,” she told supporters while vowing to crack down on corruption in Washington. However, the Associated Press left the race undeclared.

On Thursday, Wittman admitted defeat. “While the outcome of this election is not what we had hoped for, I am profoundly grateful for the trust and confidence the people of Virginia’s 1st District have placed in me for nearly two decades,” Wittman said in his concession statement.

“I congratulate Shannon Taylor on her election and wish her success in representing the people of Virginia’s 1st District. The responsibility of public service is greater than any one election or individual, and I hope she will always put the needs of our communities first.”

Wittman and McGuire will be back in Washington together for a few more weeks before Taylor is sworn in. Both men will take part in the lame duck session that begins next week. The Senate is expected to consider a permitting reform bill that might then cross over to the House if it passes. Defense policy will also be on the agenda.

Last month, Wittman told the Daily Signal that the Senate should pass a bill to replenish weapon supplies. “The reconciliation bill that passed out of the House has $67 billion in it to restock these weapons magazines, and we already have the longer-term contracts to create some more certainty for the companies that produce these weapons,” Wittman said. “It should be the priority there for the Senate to be able to get this done just because of the national security implications.”

When the new Congress convenes in January, the Virginia delegation will contain eight Democrat members and three Republicans: McGuire, Ben Cline and Morgan Griffith. Virginia will not elect a U.S. senator again until 2030 after sending Mark Warner back for a fourth term this year.

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