Less than three months after her narrow and hard-fought loss to Jay Jones in the Democratic primary for attorney general, Henrico Commonwealth Attorney Shannon Taylor announced she is running for Congress in Virginia’s First Congressional District.
She is hoping to defeat Republican Rep. Rob Wittman, who Democrats believe could be vulnerable during midterms with President Donald Trump in office.
“As Henrico’s top prosecutor, I’ve made it my mission to protect and defend Virginia families by locking up violent criminals, taking on fraudsters and scammers, and getting drugs and guns off our streets to keep our community safe,” Taylor said. “Now I’m taking on a new fight to prosecute the case against Rob Wittman because he has spent nearly 20 years in Washington enriching himself while selling out the very community I’ve fought to protect.”
Taylor has been the commonwealth’s attorney in Henrico since 2012. Previously, she worked as a prosecutor in the City of Richmond Commonwealth’s Attorney Office and as a special assistant in the United States Attorney’s Office.
She has the backing of influential Democrats, including U.S. Senator Tim Kaine and Virginia Reps. Don Beyer, Eugene Vindman and Suhas Subramanyam.
“As a friend of Shannon’s for more than 15 years, I’m proud to endorse her as she runs to serve as an independent leader in Congress for her community,” Kaine said with Taylor’s announcement.
Democrats believe the district is a possible flip and have made it a target. Wittman was reelected in 2024 by 13 points, but House Democrats released a poll Monday morning showing Wittman with a 1-point lead over Taylor. (The poll was conducted by Democrats, so take it with a grain of salt.)
The attacks on Wittman from Democrats appear to be centered around healthcare and his vote in support of Trump’s legislation.
“Wittman lied to us when he promised to lower costs but instead voted to rip healthcare away from tens of thousands of our neighbors and risk closing rural hospitals like Rappahannock General to fund tax cuts for billionaires,” Taylor said Monday. “Virginians deserve a representative who will fight for them. That’s what I’ve done in the courtroom, and that’s exactly what I’ll do in Congress.”
Several other Democrats — eight in total — are also seeking the Democratic nomination.