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Mayoral election in Virginia Beach, Virginia (2020)
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| 2020 Virginia Beach elections |
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| Election dates |
| Filing deadline: June 9, 2020 |
| General election: November 3, 2020 |
| Election stats |
| Offices up: mayor |
| Total seats up: 1 (click here for other city elections) |
| Election type: Nonpartisan |
| Other municipal elections |
| U.S. municipal elections, 2020 |
The city of Virginia Beach, Virginia, held a general election for mayor on November 3, 2020. The filing deadline for this election was June 9, 2020.
Election procedure changes in 2020
Ballotpedia provided comprehensive coverage of how election dates and procedures changed in 2020. While the majority of changes occurred as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, some changes occurred for other reasons.
Virginia modified its absentee/mail-in voting and candidate filing procedures for the November 3, 2020, general election as follows:
- Absentee/mail-in voting: Drop-boxes to return absentee and mail-in ballots were used for the general election. The witness requirement for absentee voting was suspended, and all absentee and mail-in ballots had prepaid return postage.
- Voter registration: The state's voter registration deadline was extended from October 13, 2020, to October 15, 2020.[1]
- Candidate filing procedures: Petition signature requirements for unaffiliated and minor-party candidates for federal office in Virginia were reduced as follows: 2,500 signatures for presidential candidates; 3,500 signatures for U.S. Senate candidates; and 350 signatures for U.S. House candidates. The filing deadline for unaffiliated and minor-party congressional candidates was extended to August 1.
For a full timeline about election modifications made in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, click here.
Elections
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Candidates and results
General election
General election for Mayor of Virginia Beach
Incumbent Bob Dyer defeated Jody Wagner and Richard Kowalewitch in the general election for Mayor of Virginia Beach on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Bob Dyer (Nonpartisan) | 51.6 | 113,567 |
 | Jody Wagner (Nonpartisan)  | 43.8 | 96,400 | |
 | Richard Kowalewitch (Nonpartisan) | 4.4 | 9,570 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.2 | 387 | ||
| Total votes: 219,924 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Endorsements
Do you know of an official or organization that endorsed a candidate in this race? Let Ballotpedia know by email at editor@ballotpedia.org.
Additional elections on the ballot
- See also: Virginia elections, 2020
Mayoral partisanship
Once mayors elected in 2020 assumed office, the mayors of 65 of the country's 100 largest cities were affiliated with the Democratic Party.
Mayoral elections were held in 29 of the 100 largest U.S. cities in 2020. Seven party changes took place as a result of these 29 elections. Five offices held by Republican incumbents and two offices held by Democratic incumbents changed partisan control.
In Scottsdale, Arizona, independent David Ortega won the open seat. Incumbent Jim Lane (R) was term-limited. In Irvine, California, Democrat Farrah Khan defeated incumbent Christina Shea (R). In San Diego, California, Democrat Todd Gloria won the open seat. The incumbent, Kevin Faulconer (R), was term-limited. In Stockton, California, Republican Kevin Lincoln II defeated incumbent Michael Tubbs (D). In Honolulu, Hawaii, independent Rick Blangiardi won the open seat. Democratic mayor Kirk Caldwell was term-limited. In El Paso, Texas, Democrat Oscar Leeser defeated incumbent Donald Margo (R). In Corpus Christi, Texas, nonpartisan Paulette Guajardo defeated incumbent Joe McComb (R).
What was at stake?
Report a story for this election
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Candidate survey
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About the city
- See also: Virginia Beach, Virginia
Virginia Beach is an independent city located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is considered a county equivalent. As of 2020, its population was 459,470.
City government
- See also: Council-manager government
The city of Virginia Beach uses a council-manager system. In this form of municipal government, an elected city council, which includes the mayor and serves as the city's primary legislative body, appoints an executive called a city manager to oversee day-to-day municipal operations and implement the council's policy and legislative initiatives.[2][3]
Demographics
The following table displays demographic data provided by the United States Census Bureau.
| Demographic Data for Virginia Beach, Virginia | ||
|---|---|---|
| Virginia Beach | Virginia | |
| Population | 459,470 | 8,631,393 |
| Land area (sq mi) | 244 | 39,481 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White | 65.1% | 66.3% |
| Black/African American | 18.8% | 19% |
| Asian | 7.1% | 6.7% |
| Native American | 0.3% | 0.3% |
| Pacific Islander | 0.1% | 0.1% |
| Other (single race) | 2.1% | 2.8% |
| Multiple | 6.5% | 4.8% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 8.4% | 9.5% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate | 94% | 90.3% |
| College graduation rate | 37.3% | 39.5% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income | $78,136 | $76,398 |
| Persons below poverty level | 7.2% | 10% |
| Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2020). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2015-2020). | ||
| **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
Pivot Counties
- See also: Pivot Counties by state
Five of 133 Virginia counties—3.8 percent—are Pivot Counties. Pivot Counties are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 Pivot Counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states.
| Counties won by Trump in 2016 and Obama in 2012 and 2008 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| County | Trump margin of victory in 2016 | Obama margin of victory in 2012 | Obama margin of victory in 2008 | ||||
| Buckingham County, Virginia | 11.28% | 2.43% | 0.87% | ||||
| Caroline County, Virginia | 5.02% | 8.24% | 11.97% | ||||
| Essex County, Virginia | 2.14% | 7.30% | 10.35% | ||||
| Nelson County, Virginia | 5.59% | 2.72% | 9.15% | ||||
| Westmoreland County, Virginia | 7.14% | 6.95% | 10.24% | ||||
Note: Although it is highlighted in the map above, the city of Chesapeake is not considered a county and not included in our calculations as such.
In the 2016 presidential election, Virginia was a battleground state. Hillary Clinton (D) won Virginia with 49.7 percent of the vote. Donald Trump (R) received 44.4 percent. In presidential elections between 1900 and 2016, Virginia voted Democratic 56.67 percent of the time and Republican 43.33 percent of the time. In the five presidential elections between 2000 and 2016, Virginia voted Democratic three times (2008, 2012, and 2016) and Republican two times (2000 and 2004).
See also
| Virginia Beach, Virginia | Virginia | Municipal government | Other local coverage |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ This change was not due to COVID-19. This deadline was extended after the state's voter registration website crashed.
- ↑ City of Virginia Beach, "City Council," accessed August 11, 2014
- ↑ City of Virginia Beach, "Form of Government," accessed October 30, 2014
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