Virginia state Sen. Jennifer McClellan overwhelmingly won the Democratic nomination for a February special election in the 4th District, setting herself up to be the state’s first Black woman elected to Congress.
The state Democratic party said on Twitter Thursday that McClellan won 85 percent of the vote in Tuesday’s party-run election, which broke turnout records and led to a delay in announcing a winner until 4:05 a.m. because volunteers had to count all the ballots. Fellow state Sen. Joe Morrissey had 14 percent, and two other candidates split the rest.
McClellan will face Leon Benjamin Sr., who won a Republican party canvas over the weekend, on Feb. 21. The district is heavily Democratic, so the nomination is likely to decide the winner of the seat.
