Two primaries were held on June 13 to select the Republican candidates to run for the House of Representatives seats now held by retiring Congressmen Herb Bateman (R-1) and Tom Bliley (R-7). Republican voters have selected two candidates with solid pro-life voting records in the Virginia General Assembly.

In the first district, current Delegate Jo Ann Davis received 35% of the vote in a five-way race for the nomination, outdistancing her closest rival, Paul Jost, who received about 30% of the vote. Mr. Jost outspent her by hundreds of thousands of dollars but Del. Davis’ grassroots campaign and pro-life message proved more effective than money. Del. Davis was endorsed by the VSHL PAC.

In the seventh district, Delegate Eric Cantor defeated state Senator Stephen Newman in a close race by a margin of only 263 votes out of 41,541 votes cast. Both have pro-life records.

Rep. Bateman has held the first district seat for 18 years and Rep. Bliley has been in the House for 20 years.

Published in VSHL Lifesaver, August 2000