Former VA-05 Democratic Congressman Tom Perriello announced Tuesday that he is running for the seat he represented from 2008 to 2010. Perriello is the lone Democrat to win the VA-05 seat in nearly three decades.
“It is not right that Virginians are working harder and harder just to afford the rising cost of food, electricity, and health care,” Perriello said in a statement. “We shouldn’t have to pay more out of our pockets because John McGuire and this Congress are letting reckless tariffs and rampant corruption drive up prices.”
Perriello flipped the seat in 2008, and he voted in support of former President Barack Obama’s Affordable Healthcare Act during that term. That vote was the dagger in Perriello’s reelection prospects, according to Obama, who wrote about it in his book.
Obama wrote that during a conversation about the ACA, Perriello told him he would vote for the bill regardless of the political consequences because “Some things are more important than getting re-elected.”
“It was often those with the most to lose who needed the least convincing,” Obama wrote.
Perriello also ran a late-in-the-game primary challenge to Ralph Northam for the gubernatorial nomination in 2017.
Northam had the support of Michael Bills, who would eventually start Clean Virginia and become one of the most prominent donors in Virginia politics.
Sonjia Smith — who is married to Bills — is also a prominent donor in Virginia politics on her own, and she supported Perriello during the gubernatorial primary.
Northam eventually won the Democratic nomination by nearly 10 points before defeating Ed Gillespie in the general election.
Democrats are eyeing Republican seats
The Fifth Congressional District has seen plenty of turnover in representation since Perriello lost in 2010, but the turmoil has been between Republicans. Sitting GOP representatives in this district have lost primaries over officiating a gay marriage ceremony, or not being loud enough supporters of President Trump, for example.
After huge wins by Virginia Democrats last month, they feel the momentum on their side heading into congressional midterms next year.
Rep. John McGuire, R-VA05, won in 2024 by 15 points, making this a steep climb for Democrats, however.
But big Democratic names have announced their candidacy in some of these districts that seem impossible to win. Del. Sam Rasoul, D-Roanoke, announced an exploratory committee for a potential congressional run on Monday, and Beth Macy, the author and former Roanoke Times journalist, recently announced her candidacy in VA-06, where Rep. Ben Cline won by 29 points in 2024.
And Perriello is not the only former member of Congress seeking a comeback. Elaine Luria announced last month that she is hoping for a rematch against Rep. Jen Kiggans, R-VA02, who unseated Luria in 2022.
It could be optimism, or it could be that Democrats are banking on the General Assembly to redraw congressional boundaries to eliminate some Republican districts as the national redistricting war continues.
Last week, Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell, D-Fairfax, said the redistricting process is “full steam ahead” after the Supreme Court upheld Texas’ gerrymandered maps.
House Speaker Don Scott, D-Portsmouth, and Senate Pro Tempore Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, have both indicated an interest in changing four of Virginia’s five House seats that Republicans currently represent to make them easier for Democrats to win.
Democrats began the process to redraw the lines earlier this year. In order to amend the constitution to redraw the lines, the full General Assembly, which is under Democratic control, has to approve the legislation for a second time in January, before Virginia voters decide in a referendum vote.
If those two steps are completed, Democrats can redraw the congressional boundaries ahead of November’s midterm elections.