The Congressional race in District 10 Virginia between Delegate Barbara Comstock (R) and County Supervisor John Foust (D) was a landslide defeat for John Foust. The current incumbent, Frank Wolf (R), was not seeking reelection. District 10 has a reputation for voting Republican, but recently, it has voted for some Democratic candidates, which led to a number of people predicting that the race would be closer than it was. Barbara Comstock is a state delegate and a former Wolf staffer, while John Foust is a Fairfax County supervisor.
Foust and Comstock have clashed heads on a variety of issues. For example, Comstock does not support abortion. She does not believe that women should be allowed to terminate their pregnancy, making her pro-life. John Foust has attacked Barbara Comstock over her position, writing, “Comstock has spent decades working to limit women’s reproductive freedom,” (quote taken from Politico). Foust has also called her position “extreme” (quote taken from Politico). Abortion was an important topic in this race, and it was deciding factor for some voters. Like other Democratic races, the “war on women” was a key message.
Comstock has also been attacking Foust in response to his statement about her never “even hav[ing] a real job” (quote taken from Politico). An ad said, “Foust wages a desperate, dishonest and negative campaign against Barbara Comstock” (quote taken from Politico).
Langley students have mixed views about the race. Ninth grader John Schindler stated, “I met [Barbara Comstock] last year campaigning, and I support her views.” However ninth grader Sneha Kripanandan (9) said, “I support John Foust because I think abortion is a right that women should have.”
The Senate race between Ed Gillespie (R) and Mark Warner (D) was not expected to be close; Warner was supposed to win in a landslide. However, the race was too close to call- Warner was in the lead, but Gillespie was not far behind. It was a close race, but Warner ultimately won the seat.
The Republicans gained at least nine seats in the House to keep the majority, while they gained at least seven in the Senate, becoming the majority. Many voters were tired of the inaction of Congress, which may explain this surge of Republicans. Even congressmen are frustrated by their inability to act. This best demonstrated when Congressman Mark Warren said, “…I don’t know that there is a House psychiatrist [,] [b]ut there should be one” (quote taken from The Washington Post).
UPDATE: Mark Warner beat Ed Gillespie in the Senate race. Barbara Comstock also beat John Foust. The GOP has 52 seats in the Senate. The GOP also gained at least 12 seats in the House.