(Reuters) – Democrat Jennifer McClellan won a special election for the U.S. House of Representatives yesterday, a victory that will make her Virginia’s first Black congresswoman, Edison Research projected.
The special election was held to fill a vacancy created by the November death of Representative Don McEachin, a Democrat who won re-election to what would have been a fourth term by a 65%-35% margin over Republican challenger Leon Benjamin.
McClellan is a former corporate lawyer for whom McEachin was a mentor.
Benjamin, a supporter of former President Donald Trump, lost his third attempt to capture the district, after refusing to concede in 2020 and 2022.
The district stretches from the capital of Richmond to the state’s southern border, and is considered safely Democratic by analysts. McClellan’s election reduces House Republicans’ majority to 222-213.
McEachin died after battling cancer on Nov. 28, less than three weeks after the Nov. 8 elections, before the new Congress was sworn in on Jan. 3.