Virginia’s Democratic Congressional Hopefuls Saw a Surge in Donations Last Quarter

Democratic candidates in a pair of Virginia’s most competitive congressional districts saw a surge in contributions last quarter, with one raising more than the Republican incumbent she is challenging. The influx comes as poll numbers for President Donald Trump and his party have dropped following a series of controversies over the administration’s aggressive mass deportation campaign.

Both Republicans, Reps. Jen Kiggans and Rob Wittman, however, still have larger war chests at their disposal.

In the 2nd Congressional District, former Rep. Elaine Luria is currently seeking a second chance to go up against Kiggans, to whom she narrowly lost in the 2022 congressional race.

Luria hit the ground running with her reelection campaign, reporting more than $1.1 million in contributions between Nov. 12 and Dec. 31, 2025. Major contributions include more than $880,000 from small-dollar donors and $10,000 each from the PACs of the state’s U.S. senators, Tim Kaine and Mark Warner.

Kiggans, by comparison, brought in roughly $730,000 between October and December, though the sitting congresswoman has a much bigger war chest, with $2.3 million in cash on hand.

In a statement to NOTUS, a spokesperson for Kiggans’ campaign said she is confident that voters will see past Luria’s high fundraising numbers from out-of-state donors.

“Jen Kiggans has already beaten Elaine once, and the voters who fired her aren’t exactly lining up for an encore,” Danny Laub said in a statement. “No amount of money from Elaine’s donors in California and New York will change that. Rep. Kiggans is laser-focused on delivering for Hampton Roads.”

Luria, on the other hand, argued in a statement to NOTUS that her fundraising numbers are a sign of changing voter sentiment across the district.

“Coastal Virginians deserve better than Jen Kiggans who continues to put her political interests above the issues that matter most to them,” Luria said in a statement. “I look forward to continuing our momentum and working every day to make life more affordable, cut health care costs, and grow our economy.”

Of the eight other candidates running in the primary against Luria, only five filed reports for campaign contributions in the last quarter of 2025 — with none of them coming close to the frontrunners’ totals. Also vying for the seat are retired Marine Corps Lt. Col. Michael Williamson, former natural resources secretary under Gov. Ralph Northam, Matt Strickler, and physician Nila Devanath.

Wittman, who has held his seat in Virginia’s 1st Congressional District for the last 18 years, is facing nearly a dozen Democratic primary challengers. One in particular, Henrico County’s top prosecutor, Shannon Taylor, is standing ahead of the pack after raising more than $403,000 last quarter.

Taylor’s fundraising total is set to be on track with that of Wittman, who raised nearly $615,000 last quarter.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, in a statement to NOTUS, said Luria’s and Taylor’s final quarter fundraising set them up to be the ideal candidates to take on the state’s Republicans in November.

“Democrats are on offense in Virginia, and Republicans Jen Kiggans and Rob Wittman have never been more vulnerable,” DCCC spokesperson Eli Cousin said in a statement to NOTUS. “Both of them will be fired in November.”

Wittman, however, who has held his congressional seat since 2007, has built up a hefty war chest of nearly $3.1 million backed by top contributions the most recent quarter — including more than $10,000 from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, more than $631,000 from small-dollar donors and $10,000 from the Boeing Company PAC.

Wittman’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

Virginia Democrats are entering this year’s midseason on a high note following November’s Democratic sweep, when voters elected former Rep. Abigail Spanberger to the governor’s mansion and maintained the state’s majority within the state Legislature.

Spanberger has endorsed both Taylor and Luria in their congressional races.

While last quarter’s numbers provided a clear frontrunner in both races, the congressional lines may change before Election Day as state Democrats continue their redistricting push. At the end of last year, Virginia Democrats voted in support of a constitutional amendment to allow for a statewide referendum to vote on freshly drawn, partisan congressional maps. Leaders of the state party are pushing for a 10-1 Democratic majority in the state, though final maps have not yet been released.

Last week, a state judge ruled the recently passed constitutional amendment was invalid because a constitutional process was not followed. State Democratic Party Chair L. Louise Lucas said right after the ruling that the party would be challenging it.

“Nothing that happened today will dissuade us from continuing to move forward and put this matter directly to the voters,” Lucas said in a statement on Tuesday.

“We will be appealing this ruling immediately and we expect to prevail. This was court-shopping, plain and simple,” Lucas’ statement continued. “We’re prepared for the next step, and voters – not politicians – will have the final say.”