As Council Member Robert Holden prepares to vacate the District 30 City Council seat he's held since 2017 due to term limits, the contentious race between two of his staff members finally came to a head on election night, Democratic candidate Phil Wong pulled out a victory over his co-worker, Alicia Vaichunas, by a margin of 10%, according to unofficial results form the city's Board of Elections.
The state's Democrats are not complacent this year, fielding candidates for all 100 House districts. Kimberly Pope Adams is one angling to grow the Democratic majority there. (Courtesy of Kimberly Pope Adams) -"Welcome to Cool Beanz!" Nikki Harris calls out to me on a crisp late October morning. The middle-aged Black entrepreneur greets every customer the same way, from the homeless man who frequents her brand-new café to Kimberly Pope Adams, local Democratic nominee for Virginia's House of Delegates.
"The people who hate this result the most are the Democratic establishment. We have seen poll after poll after poll showing Democratic voters fed up with their leaders in Washington."