Henrico, VA – On Tuesday, Abigail Spanberger and Democrats running across Virginia’s 1st Congressional District delivered decisive victories — a clear indication that the district continues to trend Democratic, a promising development for Shannon Taylor, candidate for Congress in the 1st District.
“Governor-elect Spanberger’s win within Virginia’s 1st Congressional District confirms what we’ve known all along: Congressman Rob Wittman has never been more vulnerable, and we are going to flip this seat in 2026 by prosecuting the case and offering a new kind of leadership,” said Taylor’s Campaign Manager, Sam Knapp. “Governor-elect Spanberger won with a relentless focus on affordability and public safety, and those are exactly the kind of commonsense issues that are at the core of this campaign. As Henrico’s top prosecutor, Shannon has made it her mission to protect and defend Virginia families – and that’s exactly what she’ll do in Congress.”
Here’s what you need to know:
- Spanberger won the boundaries of Virginia’s 1st Congressional District. Outperforming Harris in 2024 and McAuliffe in 2021 is just the latest sign that the district continues to shift in Democrats’ direction.
- Spanberger won Chesterfield handily. While Governor Glenn Youngkin won the Chesterfield vote in 2021; unofficial results Tuesday night showed Spanberger winning the county by a whopping 17 percentage points.
- Spanberger dominated in Henrico – Shannon Taylor’s home base. Results show Spanberger carried the county by a staggering 38 percentage points.
- Democrats made gains with rural voters in the Northern Neck. Results show Westmoreland, King and Queen, Richmond County, and Essex all trended in Democrats direction compared to 2024.
- Democratic challengers across the district flipped seats, specifically HD 73 (Leslie Mehta), HD 71 (Jessica Anderson), HD 57 (May Nivar), HD 69 (Mark Downey) and HD 86 (Virgil Thornton Sr.)
ABOUT SHANNON:
Shannon Taylor is a battle-tested prosecutor with 25 years of experience taking on the toughest threats to Virginia families and delivering justice. A native of Charlottesville and graduate of the University of Virginia and the University of Richmond Law School, she began her career as a prosecutor in Richmond before serving as a Special Assistant in the U.S. Attorney’s office. In 2011, she flipped the Henrico Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office from Republican to Democrat, becoming the first woman elected to the role. She has since been re-elected three times, proving she knows how to win tough races.
As Commonwealth’s Attorney, Taylor has pioneered programs to support victims of human trafficking, created a task force to tackle the opioid epidemic, and led prosecutors statewide in pledging not to criminalize women or doctors for abortion care. She has worked alongside law enforcement to keep families safe, fought fraud that harms working people, and partnered with gun safety advocates to take illegal guns off the streets.
Shannon Taylor has built her career on protecting Virginians and delivering justice for families regardless of their politics.
For more on Shannon Taylor’s campaign, visit ShannonTaylorVA.com.