Virginia 2026 primary elections: Who's running in the Democratic Primary for Virginia's 1st District?

WASHINGTON - More than half a dozen Democrats are fighting for the party’s nomination in the upcoming primary election for Virginia’s First Congressional District. All are hoping to swing the district blue for the first time in more than half a century.

Virginia's 2026 primary election voter guide: races, candidates and dates

The candidates range from a longtime Commonwealth’s Attorney to a nonprofit and several veterans. The winner will move on to November's general election to face the incumbent, Republican Rob Wittman, who's represented the district for nearly two decades.

Here’s who’s on the ballot in Virginia’s First District:

JUMP TO: ELIZABETH DEMPSEY BEGGS | SALAAM BHATTI | TIM CYWINSKI | JASON KNAPP | ERICKA KOPP | SHANNON TAYLOR | MEL TULL

Elizabeth Dempsey Beggs

Elizabeth Dempsey Beggs is a U.S. Army veteran. She is a self-described "New Deal Democrat," On her campaign website, Beggs says she's running on a platform focused on "Accountability. Affordability. Rights."

Beggs says she wants to enact age and term limits and ban stock trading for members of Congress and their families. She has also vowed to not accept corporate PAC money.

Economically, she wants to increase the federal minimum wage, raise taxes for billionaires, cap profits for medical insurance companies and eliminate medical debt. Beggs says she wants Medicaid for all within the next six years, and to preserve women's right to abortion access. 

Beggs says she's also looking to implement social reforms, including getting rid of the cash bail system, eliminating private prisons and legalizing marijuana and expunging records for low-level offenses. She also supports bans on assault weapons, high-capacity magazines, private firearm sales and the 3D printing of guns and gun parts. She also wants to mandate waiting periods and background checks for firearm purchases.

Salaam Bhatti

Salaam Bhatti is a public interest lawyer who says he was "born to immigrants and raised on Mister Rogers, Sesame Street, public libraries and schools."

Bhatti says his campaign's three priorities are Medicare for all, taxing billionaires and reforming campaign finance law. He calls "big money in politics" and the current campaign finance system "the root of all our issues," saying corporate interests are why Americans don't have social services like Medicare for All or better access to schools and healthcare.

Bhatti also supports women's reproductive rights, funding the Department of Education, hiring more immigration judges to lessen a backlogged immigration system and gun reform, including universal background checks and red flag laws. 

Locally, Bhatti wants to restore federal funding to dredge jetties in the Chesapeake Bay regularly, and says he wants to "break up the agribusiness monopolies" to support local farmers.

Bhatti has been endorsed by several current state representatives, including State Sen. Saddam Salim, Del. Charlie Schmidt and Del. Sam Rasoul and organizations like Citizens Against AIPAC Corruption, Progressive Victory and CItizens’ Impeachment.

Tim Cywinski

Tim Cywinski is the communications director for the Sierra Club, a nonprofit organization that says it fights to protect public lands. Prior to joining the nonprofit sector, he had interned for Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine.

Cywinski calls his platform the "Fair Shot Agenda," which focuses on "restoring competition, accountability and opportunity."

He says he wants to get corporate interests out of politics by eliminating corporate PAC donations, overturning Citizens United, banning stock trading by congressmembers, their staffs and families, and by mandating congressmembers hold town halls with constituents.

Cywinski says he also plans to fight corporate interests by closing "the endless sea of billionaire and corporate tax loopholes," pausing the development of AI data centers until enacting strict regulations.

His platform also focuses on medical policies including Medicaid for All, breaking up healthcare monopolies, lowering drug prices and increasing access to reproductive and veterans’ care, among other things.

Jason Knapp

Jason Knapp is a retired Navy fighter pilot who served in Iraq, at NATO headquarters and with the U.S. European Command. 

Similar to some of his fellow candidates, Knapp has vowed to refuse corporate PAC donations, and to ban Congressional stock trading. If elected, Knapp has pledged he would serve no more than four terms.

Much of Knapp’s platform involves healthcare access, preserving social safety net programs, and protections for servicemembers. Knapp wants to establish universal healthcare, preserve TRICARE for military members, fight against the repeal of the Affordable Care Act, ensure women’s access to reproductive health, and more.

Knapp also wants to fund the Department of Education and assistance programs like SNAP, and eliminate work requirements for Medicaid. 

Locally, Knapp has said he plans to build more housing by expanding the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, offering low-interest mortgages for first-time home buyers and expanding programs to address veteran homelessness. 

He also wants to invest in the preservation of the Chesapeake Bay, both environmentally and industrially, and says he wants to help rural farmers by limiting agricultural tariffs.

Ericka Kopp

Ericka Kopp is a healthcare lawyer who frames herself as a progressive candidate, with policies focused around addressing corruption in government, healthcare and social safety nets.

To fix what she calls "a broken healthcare system," Kopp wants to expand programs like Medicaid and access to VA healthcare benefits, establish a universal healthcare system, codify women’s access to abortion and disability services, and mandate transparent pricing for medical services.

Kopp also wants to expand programs like SNAP and child tax credits, establish universal childcare and guarantee 12 weeks of paid family leave. 

In Washington, Kopp says she plans to file articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump and multiple Supreme Court justices, abolish ICE, ban congressmembers and their staffs and families from lobbying or trading stocks, and enact term limits.

Kopp backs the Green New Deal and wants to raise the minimum wage to $30 an hour, eliminate private prisons and regulate things like artificial intelligence, cryptocurrency and Flock cameras.

Kopp is endorsed by the Young Democratic Socialists of America and Citizens’ Impeachment, among others.

Shannon Taylor

Shannon Taylor has served as the Commonwealth’s Attorney for Henrico County since 2012, the first woman to ever hold the position. 

A major part of Taylor’s platform involves addressing corruption in Washington, by doing things like banning congressmembers from becoming lobbyists and trading stocks and rejecting corporate PAC money. If elected, she says her first bill would mandate jail time for congressmembers caught stealing taxpayer funds.

Taylor also proposes an amendment to limit the President’s ability to issue pardons, which she says "has been abused by both parties," and overturn Citizens United.

Taylor has been endorsed by Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger, Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner, former governors Ralph Northam and Terry McAuliffe and more than a dozen organizations including the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, the SMART union, Teamsters union, Iron Workers union and Electrical Workers union.

Mel Tull

Mel Tull is an Army veteran and business lawyer who says his campaign is based on "practical leadership focused on real results."

Tull’s platform focuses on protecting programs like Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and SNAP and reducing costs, including inflation, housing and healthcare costs.

Tull wants to address the housing crisis by creating tax credits for renters and first-time homebuyers, increase public housing and housing vouchers and reform zoning laws.

Tull also wants to reform campaign finance laws and ban congressmembers from trading stocks.

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