VA: Primaries & Conventions

Old Dominion Democratic Party members have decided how they will nominate 2018 candidates in two congressional districts.  In the hotly contested 10th District (Rep. Barbara Comstock, R-McLean), the eleven announced Democratic candidates will do battle in a regular primary election.  A convention, or “firehouse primary” had been discussed as nomination options, particularly by state Sen. Jennifer Wexton’s (D-Loudoun County) supporters, but the voters will now decide as opposed to a small group of party insiders.  The “firehouse primary” is a hybrid that allows the public to vote, but in only a few locations around the district.  This is another option designed to limit voter participation and effectively allow the party leaders to determine who will represent the party in the general election.
 
On the other hand, there will be no primary in more strongly Republican District 5, the southern Virginia seat that freshman Rep. Tom Garrett (R-Scottsville/ Charlottesville) represents.  Therefore, the five announced Democratic candidates in this contest will now be forced to participate in a district-wide convention in order to win the party nomination.

--Jim Ellis