The results are in, and there were no surprises.
John McGuire and Tom Perriello scored decisive victories in their respective primaries on Tuesday and will face off in the November general election for control of the 5th Congressional District.
McGuire, the incumbent, defeated Republican challenger Melanie Lucero with 84% of the vote, according to the unofficial results. His margin of victory was slightly lower in Fluvanna, where he received 77.9% to Lucero’s 22%.
Perriello easily emerged from a three-way race for the Democratic nomination, with 79.8% of the district-wide vote. Suzanne Krzyzanowski and Rob Tracinski split the remainder. In Fluvanna, Perriello received 86.8%.
Both races were called by the Associated Press less than an hour after the polls closed.
The margins of victory were high, but the turnout was low. According to the Virginia Public Access Project (VPAP), about 7% of registered voters in Fluvanna cast a ballot. Louisa came in at about 4% and Albemarle at 10%.
That may have less to do with voter enthusiasm than the calendar, with political analyst Bob Holsworth telling WTOP News that August is the worst time of year for a primary.
“People are finishing up their vacations,” he said. “Parents are waiting for the school year. Very few people are talking about politics at the end of July, the beginning of August.”
Virginia normally holds its congressional primaries in June, but this year’s contests were delayed while the courts considered a new Democratic-leaning congressional map approved by voters in an April referendum. The Virginia Supreme Court struck down the map in early May, leaving the existing districts in place.
Under this compressed calendar, McGuire and Perriello now have just 44 days before early voting begins on September 18.
Both campaigns came out swinging as soon as the races were called.
“My top priority will be to cut costs and bills by getting rid of the trade war, the Iran war, and the war on common sense,” Perriello said in a statement released Tuesday night.
“Tom Perriello is a communist,” McGuire said in his own statement, adding that his opponent “wants to hike your taxes, explode federal spending, and wage war on affordable American energy to chase a radical climate agenda that kills your job and drives up your bills.”
Neither nominee is new to a 5th District campaign. McGuire, a Goochland County businessman and staunch ally of President Donald Trump, won the seat in 2024. Perriello, an attorney and diplomat, previously represented the district after defeating six-term Republican incumbent Virgil Goode in 2008. He was unseated by Republican Robert Hurt in 2010.
The only statewide contest on Tuesday’s primary ballot was the Republican race for U.S. Senate. Bert Mizusawa won the nomination with 51% of the vote, defeating David Williams and Kim Farington. Mizusawa received about 42.5% of the Republican vote in Fluvanna.
Three-term Democratic Sen. Mark Warner was unopposed and therefore did not face a primary.
This is a developing story. We will have full coverage in the Aug. 13 issue of the Fluvanna Review.
