ROANOKE, Va. – Election day looked very different in the Commonwealth for this Primary with redistricting across the state flipping many districts on their head.
With all 140 seats up for grabs in November, just a few key swing districts could make the difference in who controls the General Assembly.
Primary elections have come to an end in the Commonwealth - with extremely low amounts of voters showing up to the polls.
The Roanoke City registrar reported less than 1,200 voters by 3 p.m. city-wide.
But 10 News political analyst Dr. Ed Lynch says this election is crucial, especially when it comes to the Star City.
[View Virginia Primary Election results here]
“That race right here in Roanoke could very well determine what party has the majority in the state senate,” Lynch said.
Redistricting has affected races all across the state.
The maps were redrawn with supervision from the Virginia Supreme Court after a bipartisan panel appointed by the legislature failed to come to an agreement on redistricting lines.
“Northern Virginia really got the benefits of that. So what the impact will be on people here in Southwest Virginia is they’ll be seeing some unfamiliar names, they’ll be grouped with parts of the valley that they haven’t been before,” Lynch said.
The newly redrawn fourth district senate race became one to watch as the day went on.
Roanoke Democrats Luke Priddy, Trish White-Boyd, and D.A. Pierce were all vying for a chance to run against Republican incumbent David Sutterlein in November.
Trish White-Boyd is now projected to beat Luke Priddy and D.A. Pierce for the Democratic nomination in the Virginia House of Delegates District 4 seat. She’s already prepping for that next election.
“This seat leans Republican, so it’s not going to be a cakewalk,” White-Boyd said.
Lynch says Governor Youngkin needs to flip the state senate red if he wants what is considered a successful term.
“They passed a lot of his initiatives this past time, but they stalled in the state senate. He’s hoping to break that log jam by controlling both houses and be able to go forward with his agenda starting next year,” Lynch said.
But redistricting may prove that difficult for the Republican Governor.
“Redistricting is definitely not helping that effort. But it may not depend on that. It may depend more on national issues, the popularity of President Biden, or the lack of popularity of President Biden as people look forward to 2024,” he said.
The next election is coming up in November, and we’ll have all of your coverage leading up to it on air and online.
To see results from Virginia’s Primary Election on June 20, 2023, click here.