FAIRFAX, Va. – Two close races for the U.S. Senate in Virginia and a question over revising the text of the Virginia Constitution are also on the list. election results across the country and at the DMV, which FOX 5 will be covering closely on election night.

VA 2nd Congressional District

One of the most competitive races in Virginia is between two Navy veterans in the area around Virginia Beach. Democratic candidate Missy Cotter Smasal is challenging Republican incumbent U.S. Rep. Jen Kiggans Virginia’s 2nd Congressional District.

The district, redrawn after the 2020 consensus, includes the Chesapeake, Suffolk, the Isle of Wight and the east coast of Virginia. largest naval base in the country. The voting population of the region consists mainly of active duty and retired soldiers.

Cotter Smasal and Kiggans say they want to cut costs for coastal Virginians and see immigration as a major issue, but they take a slightly different view on reproductive rights.

Access to abortion is one of the most important issues for Cotter Smasal. in question That’s the “number one thing” Virginians are worried about.

kiggans he said in a social media video He said abortion is “an issue that needs to be legislated at the state level.”

“I have always been an advocate for women choosing life, allowing exceptions in cases of rape, incest, and life of the mother,” Kiggans continued in the video.

According to the latest news, the two are in a very close race. survey was conducted The poll, conducted by the Watson Center at CNU in September, found Kiggans had a five-point lead over Cotter Smasal in October, within a margin of error of +/-3.9%.

VA 7th Congressional District

Republican Derrick Anderson and Democrat Eugene Vindman They are running to fill the seat vacated by moderate Democratic Rep. Abigail Spanberger, who declined re-election so she could run for governor.

Virginia’s 7th Congressional District has flipped parties over the past decade when Spanberger was first elected to represent it in 2018, defeating then-incumbent Republican David Brat by less than 2%.

Stephen Farnsworth, a political science professor at the University of Mary Washington, said this is Virginia’s most competitive race in 2024 and a bellwether for the balance of power in the U.S. House of Representatives.

“There’s a lot of national attention in the Virginia 7th, and it’s the kind of district where congressional majorities are won and lost,” he said. “If you can’t win the outer-ring suburban districts of major cities in America, then you won’t be in the House majority.”

Both candidates to represent Virginia’s battleground 7th Congressional District say democracy is in trouble.

Each candidate has argued that the government has failed voters in the region and across the country because leaders have embraced extreme policies. They say the future of the country is at stake in this year’s elections.

Vindman, 49, and Anderson, 40, have faced a voting crisis in their booming veterans districts for months. About 12% of the population. None of the Army veterans had ever been elected to public office before.

Vindman focused on abortion access throughout his campaign.

“It affects over 50% of our population. Frankly, this is an issue about liberty and privacy. It was a constitutional right a few years before the Dobbs decision. I spent 25 years in the military doing defense myself. I feel like Americans’ rights and freedoms are under attack,” Vindman told FOX 5 to Jim Lokay. “I am taking the position we need to ensure that Roe v Wade becomes the law of the land. I will support it in Congress and veto any attempt to impose a national abortion ban.

Also important to Vindman: the economy.

“I’m a father. I raised my family in Prince William County, so I’m very sensitive about gas prices and food prices,” Vindman said. “I mean, I was at the grocery store. A Coke is nine dollars now, right? It used to be $2.50. Frankly, I think that’s a little outrageous.”

Anderson, a U.S. Army veteran and attorney, previously sought his party’s nomination in the 2022 primary election and fell nearly 5 percentage points behind the winner. Green Vega. Vega continued Losing to Spanberger.

Anderson has made the economy and border issues part of his regular talking points in his campaign.

“The economy is at the top of the problem. Right now, about a third of people in Virginia can’t afford their weekly expenses. That’s food. That’s gas. That’s rent and that’s clothes,” Anderson told FOX 5’s Jim Lokay in September. “I support a balanced budget and making sure we cut spending, keep taxes low, support our small businesses, and get energy and U.S. energy up and moving again.”

Security issues at the southern border impact Virginians “from a public safety and public health standpoint,” Anderson said.

“We’re looking at what specifically impacts us regarding the southern border. Five Virginians a day overdose and die from fentanyl poisoning. So we really need to get the border under control,” Anderson said.

Virginia Senate: Kaine vs. Cao

Republican candidate Hung Cao aims to unseat Democratic incumbent Senator Tim Kaine in the Virginia Senate.

The two faced off in a single debate in October and argued over their issues. illegal immigration with tariffs on foreign goods.

Kaine is a two-time senator from the state and is running for a third term. He focused heavily on the economy as the main issue throughout his campaign.

“I have been defending Virginia for 30 years, and I will continue to do so with vigor,” he said in an interview about the Final 5 last month.

Kaine is an advocate for expanding infrastructure and manufacturing in Virginia. Kaine also supports tax cuts for low- and middle-income families and veteran and military families.

Cao, a 25-year Navy veteran, has focused his campaign on protecting jobs against foreign “unfair trade practices,” medicine shortages and tighter border security.

“If you came here illegally, you’ve basically messed up the whole system,” Cao said during the debate stage in October. “You can’t jump the line. So what do you think will happen if you go to Costco and jump the line? You can’t come here and expect the American dream if you’re not willing to follow the rules. Embrace American laws and American culture.”

Kaine, who has the advantage of being a household name thanks to his time as governor, two terms in the Senate and his placement on the national list in 2016, has been consistently ahead of Cao in the polls for the past few months.

Cao trails Kaine by 14 points in October questionnaire from the Schar School of George Mason University.

Kaine’s lead is bolstered by a 24-point lead among female voters, while male voters in Virginia are “nearly split” between Kaine and Cao, according to pollsters.

Virginia Ballot Question

The question will arise on all Virginians’ ballots about whether to restate part of the state’s constitutional amendment.

If the ballot question is accepted, Section 6-A of Article X. Taxation and Finance will be restated as follows:

“Estate tax exemption; certain veterans and their surviving spouses; surviving spouses of soldiers killed in the line of duty.”

Elections.virginia.gov describes the proposed change as follows:

A ‘yes’ vote would allow the surviving spouse of a service member killed in the line of duty to claim the same estate tax exemption on their primary residence that is currently only available to surviving spouses of service members killed in the United States. action.

A ‘No’ vote will not allow such additional surviving spouses to benefit from the estate tax exemption.’

Read the full text of the current and proposed amendment at elections.virginia.gov. Here.

Follow and post live, updated 2024 election results or on Election Day for the presidential election, the balance of power in the House and Senate, and local races in Virginia, Maryland and D.C. on the free FOX LOCAL app for smartphones and TVs. fox5dc.com/election