GOP primary winner emerges in battle including Navy Seal, Green Beret, Marine and Trump official
Derrick Anderson won the Republican primary in the race to flip Democrat Virginia Rep. Abigail Spanberger's 7th Congressional District seat red.
Anderson was leading his closest opponent by about 10% when the Associated Press called the race on Tuesday.
The Republican primary was stacked with six candidates, including: Navy SEAL combat veteran Cameron Hamilton; U.S. Army Special Forces Green Beret and combat veteran Derrick Anderson; author and artist Maria Martin; Marine Corps veteran Jon Myers; entrepreneur John Prabhudoss; Trump administration appointee to serve as Executive Director of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans, Terris Todd.
Spanberger currently represents the district, but announced last year she would not seek re-election in favor of running for governor of the Old Dominion state in 2025. The Democratic primary for the state's 7th Congressional District was also held Tuesday, with seven Democrats vying for the nomination.
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The 7th Congressional District stretches from central Virginia into Northern Virginia, encompassing counties such as Orange, Culpeper, Spotsylvania, and parts of Prince William County outside of Washington, D.C. The district is currently considered one that leans or tilts towards the Democratic Party, according to various election ratings.
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Anderson pulled in the most donations during the primary cycle, with a haul of over $1.1 million, data from the Virginia Public Access Project shows. Anderson was followed by Hamilton, who raised over $720,000. Anderson and Hamilton were also the front-runners heading into election day, various polls showed.
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Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., who currently serves as the House majority whip, endorsed Anderson, calling him a "conservative leader who will deliver for Virginia’s 7th Congressional District."
"Derrick has earned support from military veterans, local sheriffs, and some of the strongest voices in the conservative movement because he will fight back against Joe Biden’s failed agenda," Emmer said back in March.
Neither Anderson and Hamilton have served in public office. Both candidates have issued support for former President Donald Trump's 2024 race to retake the White House.
"I respect everyone in this race. But my opponent is supported by some people that are not supporting President Trump right now. He’s our presumptive nominee; he’s the guy. Meanwhile, I’ve got a large tent of people from Speaker Mike Johnson, down through House leadership to Elise Stefanik, to Ronnie Jackson, who was Trump’s doctor in the White House. We’ve got a big, big tent of people," Anderson said in comments to The Daily Progress this month.
Hamilton meanwhile called himself the "most conservative candidate" in the race.
"I’m the most conservative candidate in my race because of my defense of civil liberties, my defense of principled conservatism, even at times where I oppose my own party," Hamilton told The Daily Progress last week.
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Virginia's primary election comes on the heels of Trump meeting with Virginia Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin last week, where they discussed efforts to flip Virginia red in the 2024 presidential election. Virginia has voted for Democrats in each presidential election since President Barack Obama’s first campaign for the White House in 2008.
"I think Virginia is in play. Let's just remind ourselves - Joe Biden won Virginia by 10 points in 2020. I ended up winning by two the next year. What we've demonstrated is commonsense conservative policies work, and Virginians appreciate that," Youngkin said in an interview last month with radio host and Fox News contributor Guy Benson.