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Virginia continues to see few contested primary elections
August 22, 2011
By Geoff Pallay and Tyler King
RICHMOND, Virginia: The 2011 Virginia state legislative primaries take place tomorrow with very few contested races. Overall, with 7.1% of possible primaries having multiple candidates, Virginia has the lowest percent of contested primaries of the three states that will have held primaries thus far in 2011 (New Jersey and Mississippi held primaries earlier this year).
There are a total of 140 districts (40 senate and 100 house) that are up for election in 2011, meaning there are possibility of 280 primaries. Of the 280 possible primary elections, only 16 (9 senate and 7 house) are contested. These numbers keep in line with the 2009 and 2007 elections.
Thomas Norment, a Republican from Senate District 3, and Algie Howell, a Democrat from House District 9, are the only two incumbents facing primary opposition.
Voters will have the opportunity to choose between multiple candidates tomorrow in the following districts.
State SenateThere are nine state senate districts with contested primaries tomorrow. Those districts and candidates are: District 3
District 13
District 21
District 22
District 30
District 31
District 36
District 37
District 39
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State HouseThere are seven state house districts with contested primaries tomorrow. Those districts and candidates are: District 10
District 18
District 49
District 87
District 90
District 98
District 99
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Other method of nomination
One reason for the lack of contested primary elections is the method of nomination in some districts. Many districts use primaries to chose which candidates move on to the general election while others use party nomination, caucuses, or meetings, thereby eliminating the need for a primary.
The following district/party combinations do not use a primary in the State Senate.
Democrats: Districts 7, 12, 13, 15, 21, 24, 25, 26, 27, 38, 39
Republicans: Districts 6, 17, 25, 29, 38, 40
The following district/party combinations do not use a primary in the House of Delegates.
Democrats: Districts 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 13, 15, 16, 18, 20, 21, 25, 31, 32, 33, 50, 51, 56, 57, 59, 67, 72, 73, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 98
Republicans: Districts 1, 3, 15, 26, 47, 59, 64, 75, 88
Thus, a total of 56 of the 280 possible primaries in Virginia do not use primaries.
Given that there are 56 district party's that do not use a primary to select the nominee, there are therefore 224 possible primaries where multiple candidates could have declared to seek election. Out of the 224 districts that use a primary to select the candidate, voters more than option in only 7.1% of those races.
In the other two states that held primary elections this year, there were more overall contested primaries. In New Jersey, 15% of the primaries were contested while in Mississippi, 22.1% of the primaries had multiple candidates.
See also
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- Virginia State Senate elections, 2011
- Virginia House of Delegates elections, 2011
- Virginia State Senate
- Virginia House of Delegates
External links
- 2011 Methods of Nomination, Virginia State Senate
- 2011 Methods of Nomination, Virginia House of Delegates
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