Ghazala Hashmi is right now the Democratic nominee for Virginia Lieutenant Governor this November after a nail-biter night of vote counting Tuesday that saw margins at some points of less then 50 votes.
Less than a percentage point separates Hashmi from the second place candidate, Levar Stoney, who is only three tenths of a percentage point ahead of the third place candidate, Aaron Rouse, according to AP vote estimates and the Virginia Public Access Project based on unofficial results. That narrow margin puts Tuesday’s results within recount territory.
While Virginia does not conduct automatic recounts, candidates can call for one if vote margins are within one percentage point, and if they are within a half percentage point, the requester isn’t on the hook for the cost, according to state statute.
Hashmi led most of the night, landing at 27.4% of the total vote share with some limited pockets of votes left to count, followed by Stoney with 26.6% and Rouse with 26.3%.
While the race wasn’t called until Wednesday morning, Hashmi declared victory late Tuesday night.
“Tonight Virginians made history. We didn’t just win a primary, we sent a clear message that we won’t be bullied, broken, or dragged backward by the chaos in Washington,” she wrote in a victory statement, adding that she’s honored to be sharing a ticket with gubernatorial nominee Abigail Spanberger, Attorney General nominee Jay Jones, and the rest of the Democratic ticket.
Jones was also on the ballot Tuesday, winning by 2 percentage points over Shannon Taylor. Spanberger did not face Primary opposition.
Hashmi further added that her campaign is about “working parents worried about affording childcare, the families struggling to find an affordable place to live, and the Virginians wondering who is fighting for them.” She emphasized the need for fully-funded public schools, reproductive rights, ongoing access to Medicaid and “to protect Virginia from extremism.”
“I will lead the charge to build something better,” she added.
Assuming the vote count holds, Hashmi will next take on WRVA radio host and Republican candidate John Reid in the November General Election to replace incumbent Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, who is running for Virginia Governor.
Stoney has not conceded the race, but Rouse appeared resolved in his own loss in a post to the social media platform X late Tuesday, and congratulated Hashmi.
“While the results aren’t what we hoped for, it’s clear our message resonated across Virginia. I’m grateful to every person who supported our campaign. Your energy and efforts are what make this Commonwealth great, and I’m proud to have you on my team,” he wrote, adding that he stands “ready to work alongside the entire statewide ticket and our House of Delegates candidates to win in November, defend Virginians from (Donald) Trump’s attacks, and deliver on real progress for every corner of the Commonwealth.”
The other three candidates in the race Alex Bastani, Barbur Lateef and Victor Salgado, were all far behind the trio of leaders, none even reaching double-digits.
Virginia is one of just two states nationwide that hosts statewide elections in the year following presidential elections, and ahead of the Midterms. As such, it’s a key bellwether to hypothesize how each political party might fare the following year.
And it’s particularly salient in Virginia where Democrats have lost momentum in recent years, with a Republican Governor and smaller margins for Democratic Presidential nominee Kamala Harris last year than for Democrats in previous presidential contests.
Outcomes in November could serve as indicators for Democrats looking to earn back majorities in Congress.
Hashmi, a state Senator, was elected to her current office last January, to represent District 15.
Hashmi earned her bachelor’s degree from Georgia Southern University and a Ph.D. from Emory University. Her background is in education. She ran with support from the Virginia Education Association, as well as abortion rights groups Vote Pro Choice and the Repro Rising Virginia PAC, the Sierra Club, EMILY’s List, Progressive Democrats of America, the National Association of Social Workers, National Organization for Women, Moms Demand Action, and more. She also had support from Senate colleagues Saddam Salim, Jeremy McDike and Kannan Srinivasan, U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna, Virginia House Democratic Caucus Chair Kathy Tran, and others.
Stoney, meanwhile, is the former Mayor of Richmond. He began his career in public service after graduating college, working for former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner.
Stoney led the fied in fundraising, bringing in $2.1 million since last April. Hashmi wasn’t far behind, and entered the home stretch with the most cash 12 days out from the election, with nearly $462,000 left to spend, according to the Associated Press.
Stoney became the first African American Secretary of the Commonwealth of Virginia where he played a role in restoring the voting rights of more than 200,000 disenfranchised Virginians, according to Stoney’s campaign website.
A first-generation high school and college graduate, Stoney used his time as Richmond Mayor to focus on improving Richmond Public Schools, increasing funding by nearly 60%. Stoney also put focused on growing businesses by removing red tape and expanding after-school programs for all elementary and middle school students.
Stoney received several notable endorsements from former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, and former Farmville town councilor Carl Eggleston, which came after Eggleston withdrew from the race.
Rouse was first elected to the state Senate in 2023, representing District 22, which includes parts of Virginia Beach City.
Prior to becoming a state Senator, Rouse played in the NFL for the Green Bay Packers, New York Giants, and the Arizona Cardinals. After his retirement, Rouse founded a non-profit organization and was elected to the Virginia Beach City Council in 2018.
The General Election is November 4.
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Southeast Politics Publisher Janelle Irwin Taylor contributed to this post.
