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Claire Russo
Claire Russo (Democratic Party) ran for election to the U.S. House to represent Virginia's 5th Congressional District. She lost in the Democratic primary on June 23, 2020.
Biography
Russo is a senior management consultant and former member of the U.S. Marine Corps. Her professional experience also includes working as a civilian adviser to the U.S. Army and as a fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations with a focus on the role of women in combat. Russo received a B.A. in political science and international relations from Tulane University in 2003.[1][2]
Elections
2020
See also: Virginia's 5th Congressional District election, 2020
Virginia's 5th Congressional District election, 2020 (June 23 Democratic primary)
Virginia's 5th Congressional District election, 2020 (June 13 Republican convention)
General election
General election for U.S. House Virginia District 5
Bob Good defeated Cameron Webb in the general election for U.S. House Virginia District 5 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Bob Good (R) | 52.4 | 210,988 |
 | Cameron Webb (D) | 47.3 | 190,315 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.3 | 1,014 | ||
| Total votes: 402,317 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for U.S. House Virginia District 5
Cameron Webb defeated Claire Russo, Roger Dean Huffstetler, and John Lesinski in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Virginia District 5 on June 23, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Cameron Webb | 66.6 | 35,965 |
 | Claire Russo | 18.2 | 9,833 | |
 | Roger Dean Huffstetler | 9.9 | 5,337 | |
 | John Lesinski | 5.4 | 2,902 | |
| Total votes: 54,037 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Kim Daugherty (D)
- Shadi Ayyas (D)
Republican convention
Republican convention for U.S. House Virginia District 5
Bob Good defeated incumbent Denver Lee Riggleman III in the Republican convention for U.S. House Virginia District 5 on June 13, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Bob Good (R) | 59.8 | 1,517 |
 | Denver Lee Riggleman III (R) | 40.2 | 1,020 | |
| Total votes: 2,537 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Campaign themes
2020
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Claire Russo did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
Noteworthy events
Campaign video about sexual assault in the US Marine Corps
On May 21, 2020, Russo released a video as part of her congressional campaign that discussed her experience with sexual assault while serving in the United States Marine Corps. Russo stated in the video, "It was 2004. I was attending the Marine Corps Ball when I was drugged and raped by a superior. The military told me they wouldn't prosecute, but I was determined to find justice."[3] When the military did not issue a court-martial and refused Russo's request to transfer base locations, Russo filed a lawsuit against Douglas Dowson with the San Diego district attorney's office in civilian court.[4] Dowson was charged with six counts of sexual assault and pleaded guilty to one count of sodomy of an intoxicated person. He was sentenced to three years in prison and served 19 and a half months before being honorably discharged from the Marines.[4][5]
In an interview with Shondaland following the release of the video, Russo called her assault the "defining moment for me getting into this race."[6] The New York Times reported that Russo's ad was "the first to feature a candidate’s personal recollection of rape, according to political strategists and organizations that track political ads."[4]
See also
2020 Elections
External links
- Search Google News for this topic
- Campaign website
- Campaign Facebook page
- Campaign Twitter page
- Campaign Instagram page
Footnotes
- ↑ Claire Russo for Congress 2020, "About Claire," accessed May 29, 2020
- ↑ LinkedIn, "Claire Russo," accessed May 29, 2020
- ↑ YouTube, "Tough Fights," accessed May 29, 2020
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 New York Times, "A Campaign Milestone: ‘I Was Drugged and Raped,’ Heard in a Candidate’s Ad," May 21, 2020
- ↑ Business Insider, "This Marine Was Raped By A Captain And The Military Did Nothing," May 3, 2012
- ↑ Shondaland, "Why I Ran for the First Time: Claire Russo Knows First Hand Why Our Government Systems Must Change," May 27, 2020
