VIRGINIA BEACH
Democratic challenger Elaine Luria ousted U.S. Rep. Scott Taylor on Tuesday, turning the 2nd Congressional District blue on a night that was shaping up to be a big one for Democrats across the country.
With 98 percent of precincts reporting, Luria led by more than 4,000 votes out of more than 254,000 counted. Her lead was just over 1.5 percent when she came out to claim victory during her party at the Holiday Inn on Greenwich Road in Virginia Beach.
“For a while now, we’ve had leaders in Washington who don’t share the values of Coastal Virginia, values of decency, community and service the country over all else,” Luria told the crowd.
“We’ve spent two years waiting for someone to stand up to the partisan and the division in Washington. We’ve been waiting for someone to stand up and say, ‘Enough is enough.’ “
Taylor, a Virginia Beach Republican, did not concede at his party and decided not to speak to campaign supporters in person Tuesday. Shortly before 11 p.m. a spokesman for Taylor told the crowd at the Westin Virginia Beach Town Center that the congressman would wait until Wednesday to look at provisional and absentee ballots.
“Things are just too close to call right now,” Allen Fabian told supporters. “It’s going to be a very long night.”
But in a statement his campaign emailed to a reporter about 20 minutes later, Taylor appeared to concede, saying, “Representing this community, commonwealth, and country is and has always been the honor of my life. I am truly thankful and humbled for my supporters, friends, and most importantly … my family. I’m very proud of all the work my team has accomplished over the past two years for working people, veterans, and the military. Congrats to Elaine Luria, her family, and her supporters. We wish her all the best, as her success is our success.”
Energy at Luria’s party was high all night, with attendees largely expressing disappointment over the past two years after the election of President Donald Trump.
They weren’t just hoping for a Luria win; they were watching the entire country, cheering each time a Democrat won a House district.
Calls of a blue wave echoed throughout the hotel ballroom all night, and Democrats said the high voter turnout seen at precincts around the state was a good sign for their party.
Del. Jay Jones, D-Norfolk, said Luria winning “says a lot” about the way Virginia and Hampton Roads is going. Last year, Democrats flipped 15 seats in the state House of Delegates.
“I think it’s a sign that the wave that started last year is growing, and hopefully we can build on this momentum that we started last year,” he said.
“When Democrats come out, we win,” Virginia Beach resident Yvonne Leonard said.
A video played before Luria gave her victory speech mocked Trump and showcased Luria in the media, shaking hands with U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, a fellow Democrat who won his bid for re-election Tuesday, and Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam.
Luria’s win came as the party was widely projected to reclaim the U.S. House after eight years of Republican control, which would deal a blow to Trump’s legislative agenda.
“If we want to change the conversation in Washington, we need to change the people we send to Washington,” Luria said in closing her speech Tuesday night. “This is your night, your democracy, and let’s get to work.”
The race between Luria and Taylor was a bruising one that leaned on her Navy experience and saw national Democrats spend millions to attack Taylor’s votes on health care and link him to a political scandal.
While Luria did not aggressively attack Trump – as many Democratic contenders for Congress did this year – she sought to tie Taylor to the president and the GOP congressional majority by repeatedly pointing out he voted almost exclusively along party lines.
With voter turnout so strong it was second only to a presidential election year, Luria won with a message that she wants to keep intact and expand the Affordable Care Act – known as Obamacare – as well as tighten gun laws, raise the minimum wage and repeal last year’s corporate income tax cuts.
The 2018 2nd District election was one of the more expensive in Hampton Roads in recent memory. Its most visible markers were the blizzard of yard signs and mailed brochures and a nonstop parade of television commercials.
Luria was helped by Taylor’s own missteps, including his delinquency on property taxes and his campaign staff’s involvement in collecting false signatures on petitions for independent congressional candidate Shaun Brown. A judge removed Brown from the ballot, and a criminal investigation is underway.
Political groups supporting Luria have hammered Taylor in TV commercials that imply he did something illegal, even though Democratic attorneys said there’s no evidence he did.
The Norfolk resident’s election in her first try for any office came just over a year after she retired as a Navy commander after a 20-year career. A native of Birmingham, Ala., she is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy.
She and her husband, Robert Blondin, own The Mermaid Factory, where patrons can decorate mermaids and other figurines in two storefront locations in Norfolk and Virginia Beach.
Taylor’s loss brings a halt to his steady rise in politics. He had been two-term member of the Virginia House of Delegates when he decided to run for Congress after then-Rep. Scott Rigell announced he would not seek a fourth term.
A former Navy SEAL and native of Maryland’s Eastern Shore, Taylor sought a higher profile almost immediately after coming to Capitol Hill. He successfully lobbied to be assigned to the powerful House Appropriations Committee, which controls discretionary spending.
In a Congress with few military veterans, Taylor regularly participated in live interviews with national cable news shows to talk about defense and overseas conflicts.
The 2nd District includes all of Virginia Beach and the state’s Eastern Shore as well as Norfolk’s north side and several localities on the Peninsula, including Williamsburg and York County.
Bill Bartel, 757-446-2398, bill.bartel@pilotonline.com?