Virginia House of Delegates elections, 2017 (timeline)

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2017 Virginia House Elections
General	November 7, 2017
Primary	June 13, 2017
Filing deadline	March 30, 2017

2017 State Legislative Elections

2017 State Legislative Special Elections

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This page contains Ballotpedia's coverage of the aftermath of the 2017 Virginia House elections between November 7, 2017, and May 13, 2018.

On election night, 15 House seats flipped from Republican to Democratic control, bringing the partisan balance in the chamber from a 66-34 Republican advantage to a 51-49 Republican advantage. In the weeks following the election, the results of the races in Districts 28, 40, and 94 were unknown due to close margins of victory for the Republican candidates and, in District 28, lawsuits related to voting irregularities. Republicans eventually held all three seats. In the District 94 race, a recount showed a tied race between incumbent David Yancey (R) and challenger Shelly Simonds (D). Yancey eventually won a coin toss for the seat, which guaranteed Republicans their one-seat majority for the 2018-2019 legislative session.

The timeline below details recounts, legal challenges, and other events that occurred in the aftermath of the elections. For more on the elections, see Virginia House of Delegates elections, 2017.

• November 2017
• December 2017
• January 2018
• February 2018
• May 2018

November 2017

November 7

• 11:59 PM ET: Democrats flipped 13 seats in the Virginia House elections. They defeated 10 Republican incumbents and won three open seats previously held by Republicans. Democrats needed to win 17 seats to take control of the chamber for the first time since 1997. There were seven races that had not been called according to the New York Times. Six of the seven races featured a Republican incumbent facing a Democratic challenger and one race was for an open seat vacated by Speaker of the House Bill Howell (R).
• 11:59 PM ET: The following districts were too close to call and will ultimately decide who controls the chamber: District 27, District 28, District 40, District 68, District 84, District 85 and District 94.

November 8

• 2:52 AM ET: Two races called: District 84 and District 85. Republicans held onto District 84, but Democrats won District 85 by defeating incumbent Rocky Holcomb (R). This brought the total number of Democratic gains to 14.
• 10:30 AM ET: Five races remain too close to call. Of the five races too close to call, Republicans lead in three and Democrats lead in two. In District 27, Roxann Robinson (R) has a 124-vote lead over Larry Barnett (D). In District 28, Robert Thomas Jr. (R) has an 86-vote lead over Joshua Cole (D). In District 40, Donte Tanner (D) has a 68-vote lead over Tim Hugo (R). In District 68, Dawn Adams (D) has a 326-vote lead over Manoli Loupassi (R). In District 94, David Yancey (R) has a 12-vote lead over Shelly Simonds (D).
• 11:00 AM ET: Democrats pick up District 68 after incumbent Manoli Loupassi (R) concedes. Democrats have a 49-47 advantage with four races still uncalled.
• 11:30 AM ET: The last time the Virginia House of Delegates was tied 50-50 was 1997. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, the two parties adopted a power-sharing agreement where both were equally represented on committees.
• 12:00 PM ET: Four races remain uncalled. Recounts are likely. Virginia law allows losing candidates to ask for a recount if the apparent difference between the winning and losing candidates was less than one percent. So far, at least one candidate, Shelly Simonds (D-94), has announced she will ask for a recount.
• 12:30 PM ET: Of the 15 Republican seats that Democrats have flipped, 14 were won by Hillary Clinton (D) in 2016. Of the four remaining seats that have not been called, two were won by Clinton and two were won by Donald Trump (R).
• 1:00 PM ET: In an analysis of the available unofficial vote returns, Ballotpedia found that Democratic candidates won 54.8 percent of all votes that were cast for one of the two major parties. These returns include the votes cast in 40 seats without major party opposition (28 Democratic and 12 Republican).
• 1:30 PM ET: According to the Washington Post, the reported vote count for Delegate Tim Hugo (R) in the District 40 race was 100 votes lower than it should have been. With this 100-vote swing, Hugo took a narrow lead over Donte Tanner (D), who had previously led by 68 votes. Republicans now have leads in all four uncalled races that could go to recounts. If Republicans win all four seats, they will have a 51-49 majority in the chamber.
• 5:02 PM ET: An additional 83 votes for Delegate Tim Hugo (R) in the District 40 race were found in a vote canvass, increasing Hugo's lead over challenger Donte Tanner (D) to 115 votes.
• 5:56 PM ET: Virginia House Republican leader says his party won a 51-49 majority in the chamber. Republican Speaker-designee Kirk Cox said the November 8 vote canvass showed that Republican candidates won seats in District 40 and District 94, meaning his party would retain control of the chamber.

November 9

• 11:00 AM ET: According to Virginia law, recounts can take place if the official result of a race shows a difference of one percent or less between two candidates. Official results will be certified by the State Board of Elections (SBE) on or after November 20. The apparent loser of a race must ask for a recount within 10 days of certification. Republicans still lead all four races that have not been called or conceded. According to the Richmond Times-Dispatch, House Democrats have retained a Washington, D.C. law firm to assist them in the recounts.
• 4:30 PM ET: Republicans retain District 27 after Larry Barnett (D) concedes to incumbent Roxann Robinson (R). With Barnett's concession, Republicans now have won 48 seats. Democrats have won 49. There are three races for Republican-held seats—District 28, District 40, and District 94—that remain too close to call.
• 5:00 PM ET: The Virginian-Pilot reported that District 85 incumbent Rocky Holcomb (R) will seek a recount after being defeated by challenger Cheryl Turpin (D). The race was officially called for Turpin and, as of November 9, the unofficial vote totals put the margin outside the range needed for a recount. Holcomb needs the official margin to be less than one percent to ask for a recount.

November 10

• 2:15 PM ET: Voters have until 12:00 PM on Monday, November 13 to certify provisional ballots. Voters who either lacked the legally-required photo identification or had their status as a qualified voter questioned on Election Day were able to cast provisional ballots. Learn more about how these voters can ensure their ballots are counted here. With the slim margins in Districts 28, 40, and 94, provisional ballots could impact the final result and help determine which party controls the chamber in January 2018.

November 13

• 3:30 PM ET: Provisional ballots for District 28 will be counted on Tuesday, November 14. Local officials are set to count ballots cast by voters who were unable to verify their identity or their registration status on Election Day but later came back with proof. Vote totals were supposed to be counted on Monday, November 13, but the Stafford County Electoral Board voted 2-to-1 to delay the count until November 14 and continue to allow provisional ballots to be verified. The provisional ballots could potentially impact the results of the District 28 race, where Robert Thomas Jr. (R) leads Joshua Cole (D). Additionally, Democrats have argued that 55 absentee ballots they say were mailed in by active duty military members should be counted after the Stafford County registrar said the ballots in question arrived too late. Electoral Board Chairman Doug Filler said that the board has asked for a court ruling on whether they can count the 55 ballots.

November 14

• 11:00 AM ET: Delegate Tim Hugo (R) maintains lead in District 40 race after provisional ballots are counted. After provisional ballots in the District 40 race were counted on November 13, election officials determined that Hugo held a 106-vote lead over challenger Donte Tanner (D). Hugo's margin of victory is within the range for Tanner to ask for a recount.
• 11:15 AM ET: Delegate David Yancey (R) maintains lead in District 94 race after provisional ballots are counted. After provisional ballots in the District 94 race were counted on November 13, election officials determined that Yancey held a 10-vote lead over challenger Shelly Simonds (D). Simonds has stated that she will ask for a recount after the vote totals are officially certified by the State Board of Elections.
• 12:45 PM ET: Vote count in District 28 put on hold by Stafford County judge. The judge heard a lawsuit brought by two Stafford residents represented by the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. The residents claimed the information regarding provisional ballot verification was confusing and their suit asked the judge to delay the final vote counting until Friday, November 17. The judge put the case under advisement and asked for more evidence to be submitted. WTOP also reported that Doug Filler, chairman of the Stafford County Electoral Board, planned to move that the board accept 55 absentee ballots that were originally rejected by the Stafford County registrar for coming in too late. Prior to the provisional ballot counting, Robert Thomas Jr. (R) leads Joshua Cole (D) in the District 28 race by 84 votes.
• 3:00 PM ET: Rocky Holcomb (R) will not pursue a recount in District 85 race. Holcomb had earlier said that he wanted a recount in his race against Cheryl Turpin (D) after she narrowly defeated him on November 7 by about 1.7 points. The margin between Holcomb and Turpin was not significantly changed after provisional ballots were counted and did not reach the 1.0 point margin that state law requires for Holcomb to petition for a recount.
• 3:15 PM ET: Stafford County judge allows vote count to move forward for District 28; 55 absentee ballots disqualified by electoral board. WTOP reported that the Stafford County judge considering a lawsuit brought by the NAACP Legal Defense Fund would not delay the vote count for District 28 until Friday, as the plaintiffs had requested. Instead, the final vote count will occur on November 14 after the judge ruled that the plaintiffs represented by the NAACP, two Stafford County voters, did not have standing to sue. The plaintiffs had claimed that the information election officials released concerning provisional ballots was confusing. Moreover, in a 2-1 vote, the Stafford County Electoral Board rejected 55 absentee ballots that Democrats argued should have been counted in final vote totals. The absentee ballots were not received by election officials until the day after the election.
• 5:00 PM ET: Robert Thomas Jr. (R) maintains lead in District 28 race after provisional ballots are counted. After provisional ballots in the District 28 race were counted on November 14, election officials determined that Thomas held an 82-vote lead over challenger Joshua Cole (D). Thomas' margin of victory is within the range for Cole to ask for a recount.

November 15

• 8:00 PM ET: On November 14, the House Democratic Caucus filed a lawsuit seeking to have 55 disqualified absentee ballots from Stafford County counted. Some of the 55 absentee ballots may have been cast in the District 28 race where Robert Thomas Jr. (R) holds an 82-vote lead over Joshua Cole (D).The ballots were disqualified by the Stafford County Electoral Board after it was determined that they were not received by the Stafford County registrar until after the 7:00 PM deadline on Election Day. The House Democrats are claiming that the Postal Service mishandled the ballots and delivered them after the deadline.

November 17

• 1:00 PM ET: On November 15, Marc Elias, an attorney representing Joshua Cole's (D) campaign, wrote a letter to the State Board of Elections saying that errors at voting precincts led to 668 votes being mistakenly cast in District 88 instead of District 28, where Cole trails Robert Thomas Jr. (R) by 82 votes. Elias asked the state board to not certify the results of the District 28 race until the issues are resolved. On November 16, Majority Leader designee Todd Gilbert (R) issued a press release saying that Elias was incorrect about the voting precincts.
• 4:00 PM ET: Federal judge declines to force recount of 55 absentee ballots from District 28 race. Judge Claude Hilton ruled that there was no evidence of improprieties and that late ballots did not have to be counted.

November 20

• 11:00 AM ET: Virginia State Board of Elections set to meet on November 20 to certify results from November 7 elections. The state board is scheduled to meet on Monday and certify the general election results. Once the results are certified, the Democratic losers in Districts 28, 40, and 94 may file petitions for recounts with circuit court judges from their districts. A three-judge panel, including the chief judge of the circuit court, will govern the recount process.
• 11:45 AM ET: Virginia State Board of Elections declines to certify results of District 28 race. Commissioner Edgardo Cortes said at least 83 District 28 voters were given the ballot for District 88 by mistake. According to Democratic attorney Marc Elias, the mistake was caused by errors in the voting precinct lines in Stafford County. WTOP reported that the certification would be delayed until Democrats had time to file a lawsuit. Robert Thomas Jr. (R) currently has an 82-vote lead over Joshua Cole (D) in the race. Virginia GOP Chairman John Findlay criticized the decision and said the board was attempting to overturn the election's result. The board also declined to certify the results for District 88, where Mark Cole (R) won by over 4,000 votes, due to the error.
• 3:00 PM ET: What is happening in Virginia’s 28th House District? The Virginia State Board of Elections declined to certify the results of the race for Virginia House District 28 on November 20 due to concerns that some District 28 voters may have mistakenly cast votes in District 88. State Elections Commissioner Edgardo Cortés announced that at least 83 District 28 voters had been incorrectly assigned to District 88 by the Stafford County registrar in April 2016. Republican Robert Thomas Jr. currently holds an 82-vote lead over Democrat Joshua Cole in the race.
  • In a letter to the state board sent November 15, Democratic attorney Marc Elias said that two District 28 precincts were incorrectly split between Districts 28 and 88 when all voters should have been assigned to District 28. After Cortés said on November 20 that the precincts are supposed to be split, Elias said that some District 28 voters in these precincts received the wrong ballot because election records assigned them to District 88. There were complaints on Election Day from voters who said they received the incorrect ballot.
  • Virginia GOP Executive Director John Findlay and House Speaker designee Kirk Cox (R) criticized the state board’s decision to delay the certification, saying the board's actions were inappropriate. Findlay said that Elections Board Chairman James Alcorn’s affiliation with the Democratic Party may have influenced the decision. According to Virginia law, two of the three members of the State Board of Elections are chosen from the party of the governor. Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) appointed Alcorn and Singleton McAllister as the Democratic members. The Virginia GOP selected Clara Belle Wheeler as the Republican member. All three members agreed to delay the certification.

November 22

• 10:00 AM ET: Democrats file lawsuit to block State Board of Elections from certifying District 28 race. On November 21, Virginia House Democrats filed their third lawsuit related to the race for state House District 28, where Republican Robert Thomas Jr. holds an 82-vote lead over Democrat Joshua Cole. In the suit filed in the U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Democrats alleged that some District 28 voters were disenfranchised when they were given incorrect ballots for District 88 by mistake. They asked for a temporary restraining order to prevent the state board from certifying the results until voters had the opportunity to cast a ballot in the correct district. The state board announced on November 21 that they were delaying a November 22 meeting where they were set to certify the District 28 results until Monday, November 27. House Republicans had earlier said they would file a lawsuit if the results of the election were not certified on November 22. In a letter to the state board, House Republican lawyer Trevor M. Stanley said that the state board has little discretion over whether to certify election results and that voting irregularities should be addressed after the certification. Virginia law gives the state board three days from the official certification date, November 20 in this case, to complete certification. According to the Washington Post, Elections Board Chairman James Alcorn said that Monday, November 27 complies with that deadline because Thursday, November 23 and Friday, November 24 are state holidays.
• 2:30 PM ET: Democrats and Republicans at odds over District 28 certification delay. On Wednesday, November 22, House Speaker Designee Kirk Cox (R) issued a statement saying the State Electoral Board's decision to delay the certification of the District 28 election results displayed a bias toward the Democratic Party. Cox said the House Republicans will file a lawsuit if the results are not certified by Monday, November 27. Elections Board Chairman James Alcorn, an appointee of Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D), said that the delay was necessary to sort out irregularities in voting. On November 21, Democrats filed a federal lawsuit seeking to block the state board from certifying results until District 28 voters who received a ballot for District 88 by mistake had the opportunity to cast the correct ballot. Republicans responded to the lawsuit on Wednesday, arguing that administrative errors in an election fall under state, not federal, jurisdiction. Democrats have argued that since state law only allows candidates, not voters, to request a recount, the federal suit was appropriate. According to WTOP, a federal court telephone hearing was set for Wednesday afternoon.
• 9:30 PM ET: Federal judge denies restraining order to stop certification of District 28 election results, but allows Democratic lawsuit to move forward. On November 22, Judge T.S. Ellis declined to grant House Democrats' request for a restraining order that would block the certification of the election results for the District 28 race, where Republican Robert Thomas Jr. leads Democrat Joshua Cole by 82 votes. This means that the results will likely be certified at a State Board of Elections meeting on Monday, November 27. Judge Ellis, however, did allow the Democrats' lawsuit, which alleges that some District 28 voters were given ballots for District 88 by mistake, to move forward. This could allow Democrats to challenge the results later on and ask for a new election. At the court hearing on November 22, lawyers for the state of Virginia said that at least 384 voters in Districts 28 and 88 were affected by irregularities, which is more than the 83 voters originally reported.

November 27

• 10:30 AM ET: On November 24, WTOP reported that a Department of Elections investigation found at least 147 Stafford County and Fredericksburg residents voted in the wrong election on November 7. The investigation found that 125 voters wrongly cast ballots in the District 28 race and 22 voters wrongly cast ballots in the District 88 race. The Department of Elections identified these voters after finding that at least 384 voters were assigned to the wrong state House district and compared them to the November 7 voting rolls.
• 3:00 PM ET: Virginia State Board of Elections certifies election results for Districts 28 and 88. The certification of the results came after the Virginia Attorney General's office told board members they were legally obligated to certify the results. The Department of Elections updated the analysis of the 147 votes that were cast in the wrong elections, finding at least 25 voters wrongly cast a ballot in District 2, at least 61 voters wrongly cast a ballot in District 28, and at least 61 voters wrongly cast a ballot in District 88. All of the November 7 elections are now certified.

November 29

• 5:00 PM ET: Recounts requested in Districts 40 and 94. The Democratic candidates filed for recounts in both elections. In District 40, Tim Hugo (R) leads Donte Tanner (D) by 106 votes. In District 94, David Yancey (R) leads Shelly Simonds (D) by 10 votes. According to WRAL, the recounts are expected to be completed sometime in December. They will be administered by a panel of three judges. The state of Virginia pays for recounts when the margin between the top-two candidates is less than 0.5 percent. Democrats have not yet asked for a recount in District 28, where they have filed a lawsuit over voting irregularities and could contest the election's result. The 10-day timeline for Democrat Joshua Cole to request a recount in District 28 began on Monday, November 27, when the election results were certified.

November 30

• 12:00 PM ET: How will the District 28 race be decided? In the District 28 race where Robert Thomas Jr. (R) leads Joshua Cole (D) by 82 votes, House Democrats have filed a federal lawsuit due to concerns that at least 147 voters in Stafford County and Fredericksburg did not vote in the correct election. According to the Washington Post, there are a few different ways that the results could be challenged. One possibility is that Democrats prevail in their lawsuit and a federal judge orders a special election to fill the seat. Another is that the loser contests the results in the House of Delegates. The House could either overturn the results of the election or order a special election.

December 2017

December 1

• 5:00 PM ET: Delegate Manoli Loupassi (R) asks for a recount in District 68 race after previously conceding to Dawn Adams (D). On November 30, Loupassi requested a recount in Richmond Circuit Court. He had conceded the race to Adams on November 8. The official election returns had Loupassi down by 336 votes. There are now three races in Virginia House elections where recounts have been requested. The other two races are in Districts 40 and 94 and involve Democrats challenging the results of elections that Republicans won.

December 4

• 9:00 AM ET: Joshua Cole (D) requests a recount in the District 28 race. Cole requested the recount on December 3. Robert Thomas Jr. (R) currently has an 82-vote lead over Cole. The House Democrats filed a lawsuit on November 22 after it was discovered that some District 28 voters were given the wrong ballot on November 7. As of November 30, the Department of Elections had determined that at least 147 voters in Districts 2, 28, and 88 cast ballots in the wrong elections. House Democrats said they are considering future legal action related to the District 28 results.

December 6

• 11:00 AM ET: Three recount preliminary hearings scheduled for week of December 4-8. WTOP reported that three of four preliminary hearings for the Virginia House elections that are too close to call were scheduled, with the District 68 hearing on December 5 and the Districts 40 and 94 hearings on December 6. As of December 6, a hearing for District 28 had not been scheduled. Recounts are overseen by the chief judge of the circuit court that covers the jurisdiction where the race took place. The judge puts together a three-judge panel with two judges from other localities. After holding a preliminary hearing to determine if the race qualifies for a recount, the judges will hold a final hearing where they will order the localities to recount the ballots. The actual ballot counting usually takes one day, and the judges are present to rule on questionable ballots.

December 7

• 11:00 AM ET: Recount dates set for three races. On December 6, the Washington Post reported that three of the four races that were too close to call had their recount dates scheduled. The recount for District 40, where Delegate Tim Hugo (R) leads Donte Tanner (D) by 106 votes, was set for December 13 and 14. The recount for District 94, where Delegate David Yancey (R) leads Shelly Simonds (D) by 10 votes, was set for December 19. The recount for District District 68, where Dawn Adams (D) leads Delegate Manoli Loupassi (R) by 336 votes, was set for December 20. Although no hearing had been set for the District 28 race, where Robert Thomas Jr. (R) leads Joshua Cole (D) by 82 votes, the Post reported that Democrats and Republicans expected its recount to be held on December 21.

December 8

• 11:00 AM ET: Democrats ask for new election in District 28 race. On December 7, the Washington Post reported that Democrats had filed an amended complaint in their lawsuit challenging the election results of the District 28 race. Robert Thomas Jr. (R) currently holds an 82-vote lead over Joshua Cole (D), who requested a recount on December 4. The amended complaint requested that a federal judge decertify the election results, block Thomas from being seated in the House of Delegates, and order a new election. The Virginia Department of Elections found on November 27 that 147 votes from precincts in Fredericksburg and Stafford County were cast in the wrong elections, possibly impacting the result of the District 28 race. Democrats originally filed suit seeking to block the certification of the District 28 results on November 21. A judge denied their request to block the certification, but he did allow the lawsuit to move forward.

December 13

• 2:00 PM ET: January 5 court date set for hearing on District 28 race. On December 12, Fredericksburg.com reported that U.S. District Court Judge T.S. Ellis, an appointee of Ronald Reagan (R), had set a January 5 court date for a hearing on the House Democrats' lawsuit challenging the results of the District 28 race. In that race, Robert Thomas Jr. (R) currently holds an 82-vote lead over Joshua Cole (D). The lawsuit was filed due to voting irregularities in Stafford County, where at least 147 voters cast their ballots in the wrong race. A recount of the District 28 results is expected to be held on December 21, 2017. Elections Commissioner Edgardo Cortés, an appointee of Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) said in a federal court filing that "The errors currently identified … are of great concern to the Department of Elections. As the Department has no mechanism to provide a remedy to these voters, the Department supports the court providing an appropriate remedy." The remedy could be a special election to fill the seat. House Republicans have said that the lawsuit is unnecessary.

December 14

• 2:30 PM ET: Republicans retain District 40 seat after recount concludes. A recount for District 40 was held from December 13-14. The court conducting the recount found that Delegate Tim Hugo (R) remained the race's winner, with a margin of 99 votes over Donte Tanner (D). Heading into the recount, Hugo had held a 106-vote lead over Tanner. Three recounts for uncalled Virginia House races remain in Districts 28, 68, and 94. Republicans have leads in Districts 28 and 94 and Democrats lead in District 68. All three recounts will be held next week. If no results change as a result of the recounts, Republicans will hold a 51-49 majority in the Virginia House in January.

December 19

• 9:45 AM ET: Recount for District 94 scheduled for today. Just 10 votes separate the candidates. The District 94 recount will be held in Newport News. Because Delegate David Yancey (R) leads Shelly Simonds (D) by just 10 votes, the recount could potentially change the result of the race and put Democrats on pace to control at least 50 of the chamber's 100 seats in 2018.
• 3:45 PM ET: Unofficial recount results show Democrats winning District 94 by one vote, potentially giving them 50 seats in the Virginia House and ending the GOP majority. For the first time in 30 years, a recount has changed the result of a Virginia election, according to unofficial results. A recount held in the House District 94 race changed the November 7 election’s result from a 10-vote victory for Delegate David Yancey (R) to a one-vote victory for Shelly Simonds (D). If Simonds’ one-vote victory result is certified by the panel of judges overseeing the recount, Democrats will have won their 15th Republican-held seat and will be on track to control at least 50 seats in the House of Delegates in January 2018. On December 20, a recount is being held for District 68, where Dawn Adams (D) leads Delegate Manoli Loupassi (R) by over 300 votes. If the result of that election holds, Democrats will control 50 of 100 seats in the Virginia House in 2018. They will have an opportunity to pick up their 51st seat when a recount is held for the District 28 race on December 21. In that contest, Robert Thomas Jr. (R) leads Joshua Cole (D) by 82 votes. Democrats have also filed a lawsuit in the District 28 race due to a finding by the Department of Elections that 147 voters cast a ballot in the incorrect election, potentially impacting the results of the District 28 race. If their lawsuit moves forward, Democrats could potentially ask for a new election to be held for the seat.
  • Historic recounts in Virginia: According to the Virginian-Pilot, a recount had not changed an election in nearly 30 years before 2017. According to the Virginia Public Access Project, there were six recounts for state House seats held between 1997 and 2016. None of the recounts changed the outcome of a race. Simonds' 11-vote gain was the second largest since 1997. The largest gain was 22 votes in a 2013 recount for the District 86 seat. This recount brought Delegate Tom Rust's (R) margin down from 54 votes to 32 votes.
• 4:40 PM ET: Virginia House Republican leaders issue statement on District 94 race. Following Shelly Simonds' (D) apparent one-vote victory in the recount of the District 94 race, House Republican leaders, including Kirk Cox, Todd Gilbert, Tim Hugo, and Nick Rush, released the following statement: "After a close recount it appears the citizens of the 94th District have elected Shelly Simonds to the Virginia House of Delegates, pending confirmation by a three-judge panel. We congratulate Delegate-elect Simonds and welcome her to this historic body. We also thank Delegate David Yancey for his distinguished service." The statement also indicated that Republican leaders were preparing for a power-sharing agreement with Democrats, assuming the Virginia House is split 50-50 after the recount results come in. It said, "We stand ready to establish a bipartisan framework under which the House can operate efficiently and effectively over the next two years."
• 6:45 PM ET: What happened in District 94? With unofficial recount results showing that Democrat Shelly Simonds has won her race against Delegate David Yancey (R) by one vote, here are some key facts about the race:
  • Libertarian Michael Bartley received 675 votes in the election.
  • This was not the first time Simonds had challenged Yancey for the seat. They faced off in the 2015 elections, where Yancey won by 15.1 points (2,138 votes).
  • Hillary Clinton (D) beat Donald Trump (R) by 5.6 points in the district in the 2016 presidential election.

December 20

• 11:30 AM ET: Delegate David Yancey (R) says he will challenge one vote from District 94 recount when a three-judge panel meets on December 20. On December 20, a three-judge panel is meeting to certify the results of a recount that found Shelly Simonds (D) defeating Delegate David Yancey (R) by an 11,608 to 11,607 vote margin in the District 94 state House race. According to the Virginian-Pilot, a vote observer during the recount wrote a letter on December 19 saying that a disqualified ballot should have actually been counted for Yancey. If the election ends up tied, the State Board of Elections will select the winner "by lot," according to Virginia law. According to Dictionary.com, lot means, "one of a set of objects, as straws or pebbles, drawn or thrown from a container to decide a question or choice by chance."
• 2:30 PM ET: Three-judge panel finds that disqualified ballot should have counted for Yancey, resulting in tied race. According to Virginia law, the winner of a tied race is determined by lot, which means a random chance event like tossing a coin or drawing straws.
• 5:15 PM ET: House Democrats issue statement on judges' decision in District 94 recount. On behalf of the Virginia House Democrats, attorney Marc Elias issued the following statement about the judges' acceptance of the previously disqualified vote for Yancey: "Today's decision by the court was wrong, and Delegate-elect Shelly Simonds should have been certified the winner. We are currently assessing the legal options before us as we fight for a just result."
• 9:00 PM ET: A recount of the District 68 race found that Dawn Adams (D) defeated Delegate Manoli Loupassi (R) by 347 votes. Heading into the recount, Adams had a 336 vote lead. Because the initial margin was greater than 0.5 points, Loupassi, who requested the recount, has to cover the $20,000 estimated cost of the recount. If the margin had been under 0.5 points, the state of Virginia would have paid for the recount. With the results of the recount in, only two races—Districts 28 and 94—remain uncalled.

December 21

• 11:30 AM ET: Virginia State Board of Elections Chairman James Alcorn announced that the drawing for District 94 would take place on December 27. As reported by the Virginian-Pilot, the result will be determined in the following manner: "both names will be placed in old film canisters and put into a clear bowl. The canisters will be shuffled and a name picked as the winner."
• 5:00 PM ET: Robert Thomas Jr. (R) maintains lead over Joshua Cole (D) in District 28 following recount; court hearing on House Democrats' contest of election results set for January 5, 2018. WTOP reported that Cole gained 9 votes on Thomas in the recount, shrinking his margin from 82 votes to 73 votes. House Democrats filed a lawsuit in November 2017 after it was discovered that 147 voters cast their ballots in the wrong election, possibly influencing the result of the race. A hearing in the suit is set for January 5, 2018. If Democrats prevail in the suit, a special election might be held to fill the seat. Thomas and the other candidates who were certified as winners by the Virginia State Board of Elections are set to be sworn in as delegates on January 10, 2018.

December 26

• 2:30 PM ET: Shelly Simonds (D) prepares to file a lawsuit asking the Newport News Circuit Court to reverse decision that counted a ballot for David Yancey (R) and tied the District 94 race. Simonds' lawyers are preparing to file the lawsuit when the court opens on December 27, which is the same day that the Virginia State Board of Elections planned to randomly select the winner of the District 94 race.
• 9:30 PM ET: The State Board of Elections announces that tie-breaking drawing in District 94 will be delayed. The decision came after Shelly Simonds' (D) lawyers asked for the three-judge panel to reverse its decision to allow a previously disqualified ballot to count for Delegate David Yancey (R), resulting in a tied race. Simonds' lawyers said, "no parties will be prejudiced by a brief delay, provided that the process is completed before the legislative session begins on Jan. 10, 2018."

January 2018

January 2

• 9:30 AM ET: On December 29, 2017, State Board of Elections Chairman James Alcorn announced that the drawing to decide control of the District 94 seat would be held on January 4, 2018, at 11:00 AM ET unless a court intervened before then. The drawing will randomly decide whether Shelly Simonds (D) or Delegate David Yancey (R) won the District 94 election, where both candidates received 11,608 votes. Simonds filed a lawsuit over a previously disqualified ballot that a panel of judges ruled should have counted for Yancey.

January 3

• 4:30 PM ET: Newport News circuit court rules against Simonds in lawsuit; Simonds says she will not challenge the result following the random drawing. The court denied Simonds' motion to reconsider a series of decisions made by the court that handled the recount, paving the way for a random drawing on January 4 at 11:00 AM ET. Following the court's ruling, Simonds released a statement saying that she would not contest the results of the random drawing, and she sent a letter asking Yancey to make the same pledge. According to her letter, if either candidate requested a recount or further extended the process through legal challenges, it could create a situation where the seat would be vacant when the chamber convened on January 10. This could allow Republicans to elect the House speaker with a 50-49 majority.
• 5:00 PM ET: Yancey says he will not commit to Simonds' proposal to accept result of random drawing. Jordan Pascale of the Virginian-Pilot reported that Yancey's camp released the following statement, "I am not going to deny myself or the people of the 94th district due process simply b/c of the unnecessary delays that have got us to this point." According to Pascale, a Yancey legal challenge following a Simonds' win in the random drawing could result in Republicans electing the speaker of the House because House Republicans could refuse to seat Simonds on January 10 and elect the speaker with a 50-49 majority. Following Yancey's statement, Simonds announced that her team would now consider all available options following the random drawing.

January 4

• 11:15 AM ET: Delegate David Yancey (R) wins random drawing for House District 94. On January 3, Shelly Simonds (D) indicated that she would ask for a second recount if she lost the random drawing. If the wins by Yancey and Robert Thomas Jr. (R) in House District 28 are not overturned by legal challenges, Republicans will hold a 51-49 majority in the Virginia House in 2018. The House District 28 result was challenged by House Democrats after it was determined that there were voting irregularities. A federal court is set to hold a hearing on the District 28 challenge on January 5. The Virginia House is set to convene on January 10.
• 11:30 AM ET: Simonds: "At this moment, I am not conceding." In a press conference after the drawing, Simonds indicated that she may not concede the race and would possibly ask for another recount or pursue further legal challenges.

January 5

• 9:00 PM ET: Federal judge declines to order immediate special election in House District 28, likely allowing Robert Thomas Jr. (R) to be seated on January 10. The ruling by Judge T.S. Ellis allowed the lawsuit Democrats filed in House District 28 to move forward, but said that it did not meet the bar for immediate federal intervention. The lawsuit was filed by Democrats after the Virginia Department of Elections found that 147 voters cast ballots in the wrong election on November 7, possibly influencing the result of the District 28 race. Thomas defeated Democrat Joshua Cole by 73 votes in the race. Although the court may order a new election at a later date, the immediate effect of the ruling will likely be that Thomas is seated when the chamber convenes on January 10, giving Republicans at least a 50-49 majority with which they can elect Kirk Cox (R) as House speaker and allow for the selection of Republicans as committee chairs for the 2018-2019 legislative session.

January 8

• 9:00 AM ET: Democrats file emergency motion asking federal appellate court to prevent Robert Thomas Jr. (R) from being seated. On January 7, House Democratic lawyer Marc Elias filed an emergency motion in the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals seeking to overturn District Court Judge T.S. Ellis' January 5 decision that would have allowed Thomas to be seated in the Virginia House District 28 seat when the chamber convenes on January 10. Ellis had allowed a lawsuit by House Democrats challenging the election results to proceed, but he declined to order to an immediate special election, likely allowing Thomas to take the seat on January 10 and for Republicans to elect the House's leadership for the 2018-2019 legislative session. The lawsuit was filed after 147 voters near District 28 were found to have voted in the wrong district. Thomas beat Democrat Joshua Cole (D) in the race by 73 votes.

January 10

• 1:00 PM ET: Shelly Simonds (D) concedes District 94 race to Delegate David Yancey (R).
• 1:00 PM ET: Federal appeals court denies Democrat request to block Robert Thomas Jr. (R) from being seated.
• 1:00 PM ET: Virginia House elects Republican Kirk Cox as 2018-2019 House speaker by a 98-0 vote. Cox's ascension to the speakership came after Shelly Simonds (D) conceded the District 94 election to Delegate David Yancey (R) and a federal appeals court denied a Democratic request to prevent Robert Thomas Jr. (R) from being seated in the District 28 seat.

February 2018

February 26

• WTOP reported that the District 28 voters who had challenged the results of their election based on voting irregularities dropped their suit earlier in the month and that the case was dismissed from federal court.

May 2018

May 13

• The Washington Post reported that 26 District 94 voters had been assigned to the wrong district. The Post wrote, "The misassigned voters lived in a predominantly African American precinct that heavily favored Democrats in the fall, raising the possibility that they would have delivered the district to Simonds had they voted in the proper race."

See also

• Virginia House of Delegates elections, 2017