U.S. Rep. Elaine Luria has won a second term as 2nd Congressional District representative to the U.S. House, beating Republican challenger Scott Taylor, according to unofficial results from the Virginia Department of Election.
With all 183 precincts reporting Wednesday, Luria appears to have garnered Luria has 174,873 votes (50.94%) compared to Taylor’s 159,568 votes (46.49%), according unofficial numbers from the Virginia Department of Elections.
Taylor was leading Luria until about midnight Tuesday when the tide started to turn.
RELATED STORY: And the winner of the 2nd Congressional District is…to be determined
The Virginia Public Access Project, estimates about 6,461 votes still outstanding.
In addition, because of the coronavirus pandemic, absentee ballots ––mail-in ballots postmarked by Election Day––can be accepted until noon on Friday and the official elections results will be certified on Nov. 16.
A representative from the Taylor camp was not immediately available for comment.
The 2nd Congressional District includes Accomack and Northampton counties, portions of York County, and the cities of Virginia Beach and Williamsburg and parts of the cities of Norfolk and Hampton, according to WYDaily archives.
Taylor, a former Navy seal, previously served in the 2nd Congressional District seat for one term and lost to Luria, a 20-year Navy veteran and a former Navy commander, in the November 2018 election.
During the 2018 election, some members of Taylor’s campaign staff allegedly forged signatures of deceased voters to put down Democrat Shaun Brown on the ballot as an independent in an effort to split the vote.
— Scott Taylor (@Scotttaylorva) November 4, 2020
Three people in Taylor’s campaign ––two former staffers and a consultant ––were charged with election fraud. Taylor has not been charged and claims he is innocent.
Luria hosted a news conference at 1 p.m. following Taylor’s statement.
“I wanted to say that it is truly my honor and my privilege to stand here again as your representative for my second term for the second congressional district,” Luria said.
She went on and thanked voters, volunteers, her campaign staff and her family.
“Thank you for going out, thank you for having your voice heard and it’s a very important time for our country and I’m honored to continue to serve our district in Hampton Roads on your behalf in Washington,” Luria said.
Here are the unofficial results by locality in the Historic Triangle:
York County
2nd Congressional District: (14 out of 14 precincts reporting)
- Elaine G. Luria, Democrat (Incumbent): 17,371 votes, 45.63 percent
- Scott W. Taylor, Republican: 19,677 votes, 51.68 percent
- David Bruce Foster, Independent: 999 votes, 2.62 percent
- Write-in: 26 votes, 0.07 percent
James City County
1st Congressional District: (15 out of 15 precincts reporting)
- Qasim Rashid, Democrat: 15,378 votes, 44.69 percent
- Robert J. Wittman, Republican (Incumbent): 19,001 votes, 55.21 percent
- Write-in: 35 votes, 0.10 percent
2nd Congressional District: (8 out of 8 precincts reporting)
- Elaine G. Luria, Democrat (Incumbent): 5,177 votes, 55.16 percent
- Scott W. Taylor, Republican: 3,958 votes, 42.17 percent
- David Bruce Foster, Independent: 243 votes, 2.59 percent
- Write-in: 8 votes, 0.09 percent
Williamsburg (3 out of 3 precincts reporting)
2nd Congressional District:
- Elaine G. Luria, Democrat (Incumbent): 4,677 votes, 68.71 percent
- Scott W. Taylor, Republican: 1,958 votes, 28.76 percent
- David Bruce Foster, Independent: 166 votes, 2.44 percent
- Write-in: 6 votes, 0.09 percent
