Virginia Democrats are about to elect a new party chair for the first time in a decade, and — much like the broader national party — many of them are looking forward to a shakeup in leadership.
Chair Susan Swecker announced an early retirement earlier this month, leaving a vacuum in party leadership at a critical moment as Democrats try to win back the governor’s mansion. Many Democrats have quickly lined up behind a candidate to finish out Swecker’s term, and they’re eager to see what a new chair might do for the party.
Democrats praised Swecker, but they acknowledged how crucial it is to have solid leadership in place at this moment, given the key role the state party plays in helping Democrats win elections.
“This is going to be an all-hands-on-deck moment in this new Trump era, to have state leadership that can both respond to sort of an unprecedented moment in national politics while trying to elect the next governor,” House Rep. Jennifer McClellan told NOTUS.
Lowell Fulk, chair of the Rockingham County Democrats, said he wouldn’t mind a fresh face to replace Swecker.
“I would like to see someone with a vision for how we can move forward,” Fulk told NOTUS. “[Someone who has] a sense of vision and sense of purposefulness to keep Virginia blue, or at least purple.”
Fulk was nodding to a grim reality for Democrats in the state: President Donald Trump lost Virginia in 2024 but made gains over his 2020 results. And Gov. Glenn Youngkin showed in 2021 that winning statewide is still possible for Republicans statewide.
State Sen. Lamont Bagby, who did not respond to an interview request, is the only candidate who has publicly announced he is running to replace Swecker. Bagby, a 10-year member of the state legislature, announced his run days after Swecker announced her departure. High-profile figures have endorsed him, including Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, and Reps. Suhas Subramanyam and Bobby Scott.
A spokesperson for the state party told NOTUS that there is at least one other candidate who has qualified before the March 8 deadline but would not say who it was. The Democrats NOTUS spoke to were unaware of another candidate.
Subramanyam, who has endorsed Bagby, said he looks forward to having leadership that can pick up on Swecker’s trajectory to “not only keep our party running, but actually elevate our party.”
“I like the idea of Lamont coming in with a fresh perspective… being a sitting legislator, and someone who knows how to win elections as a candidate himself, in the position of chair,” Subramanyam told NOTUS.
On Nov. 4, Virginia voters will decide if a Democrat or Republican should be governor in the state’s bellwether gubernatorial race, a high-profile indicator of voter sentiment following presidential election years.
The only Democrat running in that race, former Rep. Abigail Spanberger, did not comment on what the change up at the state party would mean for her campaign but said she is confident in Bagby’s ability to lead the party.
“This leadership will serve our Party as we fight to take back our statewide offices and maintain control of the House of Delegates this November,” Spanberger said in a statement to NOTUS. “I look forward to working with Senator Bagby to elect Democrats in every corner of the Commonwealth.”
Swecker was last reelected for a four-year term in 2022, and the election for a replacement will be held on March 22 in Richmond, with a virtual option to cast ballots. Only state central committee members will vote in the special election, and the threshold to qualify as a candidate is higher than in the past.
Not everyone is thrilled about that.
“I don’t think that’s a good look to kind of do it like this, and if no one runs against Sen. Bagby, I don’t know what that even says,” said Josh Stanfield, a member of the state party central committee who ran against Swecker for chair in 2022.
Also worrying Democrats in the state is what is happening next door in Washington, where Republicans have a trifecta.
“With everything that is happening in D.C., we need folks who are trying to make sure we’re not getting too bogged down in the kind of fringe debates and arguments and infighting, and someone instead who’s going to step up to the plate and get back to focusing on winning and making sure that Democrats are representing Virginia as well as we can,” said Matt Royer, president of the Virginia Young Democrats and also a member of the state party central committee.
Swecker declined interview requests on the future of the Democratic Party after she steps down, but in her video announcement, she promised to be a resource for her replacement.
“The work we’ve done together has laid a foundation that will continue to keep Virginia blue for generations to come,” Swecker said. “I step down knowing this party is in good hands.”
Bruce Kirtley, chair of the Albemarle County Democrats, said with Trump in the White House the next chair needs to “break the mold.”
“A fresh set of eyes might cause you to do things a little bit differently. A younger generation might be necessary,” Kirtley told NOTUS. “I think stepping outside the box with a qualified person would probably not be a bad idea, in my personal opinion.”
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Amelia Benavides-Colón is a NOTUS reporter and an Allbritton Journalism Institute fellow.