Voters in Fairfax County to select their nominees to replace late Rep. Gerry Connolly

Democrats and Republicans prepare to select their respective candidates on Saturday for a special balloting to replace the late Rep Gerry Connolly for Virginia s th Congressional District seat The seat which represents Fairfax City and much of Fairfax County in Congress has been vacant since Connolly s death on May Those nominated to represent their respective political party will face off Sep in a special electoral process This has been an incredibly fast process Erin Covey U S House of Representatives editor at The Cook Political Analysis communicated WTOP The winner of September s special voting will carry out the remaining year and three months of Connolly s unexpired term in the House How to cast your vote Democrats will hold an all-day caucus at locations from a m to p m Registered voters may vote at any of the locations Those who are not registered but eligible to vote can fill out a voter application form at a caucus site and cast a provisional ballot The party s process to select a congressional nominee began Tuesday as it held three days of voting prior to Saturday s caucus in a process known as a firehouse primary The district s Democratic committee reported on Friday that early votes were cast in those three days Voters have had opportunities to cast ballots early throughout this week but the bulk of the voting will take place Saturday which is obviously not a normal day to hold elections Covey declared But because it s a special polling we have special circumstances Republicans will nominate their candidate through a party canvass at Fairfax High School from a m to p m Registration will be available on-site Curbside voting will be available emerge as probable favorites for Democrats Since Connolly won the seat in Virginia s th Congressional District seat has remained entrenched with the Democratic Party With the growing demographics and politics of Northern Virginia Covey commented the winner of the Democratic primary contest will essentially decide control of the seat since it is safely blue In what began as a crowded field of nominees for the vacant seat three choices have emerged as favorites for Democratic voters James Walkinshaw a current Fairfax County supervisor and Connolly s former chief of staff began the process as the front-runner He received an endorsement from Connolly before his death along with promotion from Rep Don Beyer and former Rep Jennifer Wexton among other local elected functionaries However Walkinshaw has received criticism for the amount of advocacy he s received from the late congressman which a few of his opponents believe is unfair Covey explained She announced campaign funds from Connolly s old campaign were transferred into a super PAC that supports Walkinshaw Then Connolly s X account disclosed a post its first since his death linking to Walkinshaw s campaign site a move that received additional backlash on social media Candidates who have taken advantage of the negative attention Walkinshaw has received include state Sen Stella Pekarsky whose district includes part of Fairfax County and state Del Irene Shin Both have established bases and well-funded campaigns Covey declared While all three have already been in the political landscape for years Pekarsky and Shin are seen as the outsiders and anti-establishment Covey declared Both are not backed by large figures in the party and did not receive the aid of Connolly before his death If either one were to win it would continue a growing trend in the Democratic Party nationwide of lesser known candidates defeating more established previously elected leaders This will be the first test of whether that kind of broader mood indeed translates into votes because the late congressman was incredibly popular and is still well loved Covey disclosed So his endorsement of Walkinshaw goes a really long way which is why Walkinshaw started out this race as the clear front-runner thanks to his sponsorship from the late congressman The remaining Democratic candidates voters can choose are Candice Bennett a current member of the Fairfax County Planning Commission Ross William Branstetter IV businessman Dan Lee wellbeing care instrument entrepreneur Leopoldo Mart nez Nucete former senior counselor of the Minority Business Progress Agency and a former deputy to the National Assembly of Venezuela Amy Papanu former CIA operations officer and national precaution expert Priya Punnoose psychiatrist Amy Roma resource program lawyer Republicans look to take back congressional seat Prior to Connolly taking over the seat Republican Tom Davis served the district for years Now seven Republicans are looking to flip that seat back to red after a -year stranglehold Candidates have tried to get out in the citizens by hosting a candidate forum and being accessible to voters during Saturday s canvassing However since then the district has moved to be more blue Former Vice President Kamala Harris carried the district against President Donald Trump in the general poll by double digits Covey revealed She added that the anti-Trump sentiment could be brewing within its population which is filled with federal workers who may have been affected by fresh job cuts in the federal establishment The party s chances of flipping the seat in September are slim to none Covey mentioned It is a special referendum with a really low turnout so strange things can happen in special elections Covey revealed But what we have seen from special elections thus far this cycle is that Democrats tend to be the party that overperforms in these low turnout contests across the country The candidates seeking to be the Republican Party s nominee are Nathan Headrick resources banking executive Karina Lipsman nominee for Virginia s th Congressional District in Arthur Purves president of the Fairfax County Taxpayers Alliance Lucas Rand retired U S Army officer and combat veteran current hospital administrator in District Mike Van Meter behavioral therapist and nominee for Virginia s th Congressional District in Stewart Whitson U S Army combat veteran former FBI Special Agent and current director of federal affairs for a conservative think tank Sam Wong army veteran WTOP s Jessica Kronzer and Dan Ronan contributed to this story Source