(Trends Wide) — Virginia State Senator Jennifer McClellan will win the special election for Virginia’s 4th Congressional District and become the first black woman to represent the state in Congress in Washington, Trends Wide reported Tuesday.
McClellan will defeat Republican Leon Benjamin, a pastor and Navy veteran, to succeed the late Democratic Rep. Donald McEachin, who died in November.
McClellan, who was introduced at her victory party Tuesday night by Virginia Rep. Bobby Scott and left to the beat of Alicia Keys’ “Girl on Fire,” praised pioneering figures, including McEachin, who paved the way for the path to his historic rise and vowed to carry his spirit to the Capitol.
“When we come together and care more about getting the job done and solving the problems than the sound bites and the show,” McClellan said, “we can help people. We will make this community and this country a better place for everyone.”
The heavily Democratic district, which comprises the city of Richmond, parts of Henrico County, Petersburg and south toward the state line, has been held by McEachin since 2017. McClellan overwhelmingly defeated Benjamin in 2022 with 69.4% of the vote. votes.
The now-congresswoman out-funded and out-spended Benjamin in the run-up to Tuesday’s special election, according to pre-special election reports from their respective campaigns filed Feb. 9.
His election to the US House of Representatives is a milestone for Virginia, a state that was once home to the capital of the Confederacy and is a former center of the slave trade. McClellan’s victory will add to what is already a record number of women and women of color in Congress, and will also set a new record for the number of black women, according to data from the Center for American Women and Politics at the Rutgers University.
On a busy Saturday before the election, she greeted voters alongside Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine, a close ally who officiated her wedding, and state and local lawmakers. She also gathered a few dozen campaign volunteers before they knocked on potential voters’ doors and cast her ballot along with her husband, David Mills, and her two children, Jackson and Samantha.
Jennifer McClellan votes on Tuesday, February 21. (Credit: Chandelis Duster/Trends Wide)
“It’s a great honor, but it’s also a great responsibility because I need to make sure I’m not last,” McClellan said after casting her ballot. “And I have a responsibility to be a mentor and help pave the way for other black women, whether it’s, whether it’s running for federal office or running locally or statewide, and just helping as many as I can to succeed. ”.
Who is Jennifer McClellan?
Raised in Petersburg, Virginia, McClellan was elected to the House of Delegates in 2005 and won a special election to the state Senate in 2017 after McEachin was elected to Congress in 2016.
In 2020, she launched a run for governor, ultimately coming in third in the 2021 Democratic primary. Her US House bid was a “top tier” of her delegate and gubernatorial campaigns, helping her to prepare for this campaign, he told Trends Wide.
“He had that team ready by the time the special election came around and that made it very easy to build a very quick campaign. And that the importance of having not only a message that resonates with voters, but also the resources to communicate it. Both are equally important and have the importance of a field organization, you really need all three, and I was able to bring all three together in a very short time,” he said.
McClellan won the Democratic nomination for the 4th Congressional District in December, defeating fellow state Sen. Joe Morrissey and two other candidates in a “firehouse primary,” which was conducted by party officials at a handful of town halls. emerging voting. He got 85% of the vote to Morrissey’s 14%, according to the Virginia Democratic Party. McClellan was endorsed by party leaders and groups, including House Democratic Leader Katherine Clark and the moderate-backed Democratic majority for the Israel PAC.
During her time in the General Assembly, McClellan has pushed legislation on various issues, including climate, gun reform, and education. In 2020, the then-governor signed into law a bill reversing restrictions on abortion rights that she sponsored in the state Senate. Ralph Northam, Democrat.
Jennifer McClellan speaks to a crowd on Tuesday, February 21. (Credit: Chandelis Duster/Trends Wide)
He spearheaded the Virginia Voting Rights Act, which was signed into law in 2021 and aimed to eliminate voter suppression and intimidation in the Commonwealth. McClellan also sponsored her House resolution that helped Virginia become the 38th state to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex and guarantees women’s equality under the Constitution. (In 2022, State Attorney General Jason Miyares, a Republican, withdrew Virginia from a legal effort to have the Equal Rights Amendment recognized as the 28th Amendment to the Constitution.)
McClellan told Trends Wide that he plans to continue his work on issues including voting rights, education and access to health care, but may face challenges in the US House. Majority of Republicans in the House reduce the chance of approving the priorities supported by the Democrats. And Republicans in the Senate, though still in the minority, have already blocked advancement on previous voting rights measures.
“I was in the minority party for 14 years here,” McClellan said of his time in Richmond. “I learned two things. First, you really need to listen and understand why people believe what they believe, where they come from. And when you do that, sometimes you’ll find common ground,” he said. “So, start with that and then see how far you can go. If you can’t find common ground, then stick with it until you succeed, and I’ve been successful at both at the state level.”
McClellan said she’s interested in joining the Armed Services, Agriculture and Foreign Affairs Committees, though she said she’d be “happy with whatever I get.” She said that she, too, is excited to join the Congressional Black Caucus.
— Trends Wide’s Gregory Krieg, Ethan Cohen and Melissa Holzberg DePalo contributed to this report.
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(Trends Wide) — Virginia State Senator Jennifer McClellan will win the special election for Virginia’s 4th Congressional District and become the first black woman to represent the state in Congress in Washington, Trends Wide reported Tuesday.
McClellan will defeat Republican Leon Benjamin, a pastor and Navy veteran, to succeed the late Democratic Rep. Donald McEachin, who died in November.
McClellan, who was introduced at her victory party Tuesday night by Virginia Rep. Bobby Scott and left to the beat of Alicia Keys’ “Girl on Fire,” praised pioneering figures, including McEachin, who paved the way for the path to his historic rise and vowed to carry his spirit to the Capitol.
“When we come together and care more about getting the job done and solving the problems than the sound bites and the show,” McClellan said, “we can help people. We will make this community and this country a better place for everyone.”
The heavily Democratic district, which comprises the city of Richmond, parts of Henrico County, Petersburg and south toward the state line, has been held by McEachin since 2017. McClellan overwhelmingly defeated Benjamin in 2022 with 69.4% of the vote. votes.
The now-congresswoman out-funded and out-spended Benjamin in the run-up to Tuesday’s special election, according to pre-special election reports from their respective campaigns filed Feb. 9.
His election to the US House of Representatives is a milestone for Virginia, a state that was once home to the capital of the Confederacy and is a former center of the slave trade. McClellan’s victory will add to what is already a record number of women and women of color in Congress, and will also set a new record for the number of black women, according to data from the Center for American Women and Politics at the Rutgers University.
On a busy Saturday before the election, she greeted voters alongside Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine, a close ally who officiated her wedding, and state and local lawmakers. She also gathered a few dozen campaign volunteers before they knocked on potential voters’ doors and cast her ballot along with her husband, David Mills, and her two children, Jackson and Samantha.
Jennifer McClellan votes on Tuesday, February 21. (Credit: Chandelis Duster/Trends Wide)
“It’s a great honor, but it’s also a great responsibility because I need to make sure I’m not last,” McClellan said after casting her ballot. “And I have a responsibility to be a mentor and help pave the way for other black women, whether it’s, whether it’s running for federal office or running locally or statewide, and just helping as many as I can to succeed. ”.
Who is Jennifer McClellan?
Raised in Petersburg, Virginia, McClellan was elected to the House of Delegates in 2005 and won a special election to the state Senate in 2017 after McEachin was elected to Congress in 2016.
In 2020, she launched a run for governor, ultimately coming in third in the 2021 Democratic primary. Her US House bid was a “top tier” of her delegate and gubernatorial campaigns, helping her to prepare for this campaign, he told Trends Wide.
“He had that team ready by the time the special election came around and that made it very easy to build a very quick campaign. And that the importance of having not only a message that resonates with voters, but also the resources to communicate it. Both are equally important and have the importance of a field organization, you really need all three, and I was able to bring all three together in a very short time,” he said.
McClellan won the Democratic nomination for the 4th Congressional District in December, defeating fellow state Sen. Joe Morrissey and two other candidates in a “firehouse primary,” which was conducted by party officials at a handful of town halls. emerging voting. He got 85% of the vote to Morrissey’s 14%, according to the Virginia Democratic Party. McClellan was endorsed by party leaders and groups, including House Democratic Leader Katherine Clark and the moderate-backed Democratic majority for the Israel PAC.
During her time in the General Assembly, McClellan has pushed legislation on various issues, including climate, gun reform, and education. In 2020, the then-governor signed into law a bill reversing restrictions on abortion rights that she sponsored in the state Senate. Ralph Northam, Democrat.
Jennifer McClellan speaks to a crowd on Tuesday, February 21. (Credit: Chandelis Duster/Trends Wide)
He spearheaded the Virginia Voting Rights Act, which was signed into law in 2021 and aimed to eliminate voter suppression and intimidation in the Commonwealth. McClellan also sponsored her House resolution that helped Virginia become the 38th state to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex and guarantees women’s equality under the Constitution. (In 2022, State Attorney General Jason Miyares, a Republican, withdrew Virginia from a legal effort to have the Equal Rights Amendment recognized as the 28th Amendment to the Constitution.)
McClellan told Trends Wide that he plans to continue his work on issues including voting rights, education and access to health care, but may face challenges in the US House. Majority of Republicans in the House reduce the chance of approving the priorities supported by the Democrats. And Republicans in the Senate, though still in the minority, have already blocked advancement on previous voting rights measures.
“I was in the minority party for 14 years here,” McClellan said of his time in Richmond. “I learned two things. First, you really need to listen and understand why people believe what they believe, where they come from. And when you do that, sometimes you’ll find common ground,” he said. “So, start with that and then see how far you can go. If you can’t find common ground, then stick with it until you succeed, and I’ve been successful at both at the state level.”
McClellan said she’s interested in joining the Armed Services, Agriculture and Foreign Affairs Committees, though she said she’d be “happy with whatever I get.” She said that she, too, is excited to join the Congressional Black Caucus.
— Trends Wide’s Gregory Krieg, Ethan Cohen and Melissa Holzberg DePalo contributed to this report.
