Yesterday, freshman GOP Rep. Tom Garrett (VA-05) announced he wouldn't seek a second term because of his struggle with alcoholism, following a Politico report alleging he and his wife had ordered his official staff to run personal errands. The reality is that Garrett, a Freedom Caucus member who had just $133,000 in his campaign account on April 8, was not an especially formidable incumbent. As such, the race remains in the Lean Republican column.
Virginia's 5th CD runs from Southside Virginia on the North Carolina border to the outskirts of Northern Virginia, taking in the liberal city of Charlottesville along the way. In 2016, it voted for President Trump 53 percent to 42 percent, and in 2017 it voted for GOP gubernatorial nominee Ed Gillespie 54 percent to 45 percent. But now Democratic nominee Leslie Cockburn will have a head start on a yet-to-be-named GOP replacement.
The 5th CD GOP committee will have just two weeks to pick a replacement on the ballot, as the deadline for parties to certify a nominee to the State Board of Elections is 7
Subscribe Today
Our subscribers have first access to individual race pages for each House, Senate and Governors race, which will include race ratings (each race is rated on a seven-point scale) and a narrative analysis pertaining to that race.