NORFOLK, Va. — Election Day is here as Americans go to the polls Tuesday to wrap up what could be a record-breaking national turnout of voters.
This story will provide live updates on local and statewide results in Hampton Roads and northeastern North Carolina, including the Virginia 2nd District Congressional race as well as US Senate races in both North Carolina and Virginia. And of course, updates on local results in the presidential election between President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden.
Wednesday, November 4
2:05 p.m.
Jody Wagner has conceded to Mayor Bobby Dyer in Virginia Beach's mayoral race.
11:24 a.m.
According to the Associated Press, Democrat Elaine Luria has won reelection to the U.S. House in Virginia's 2nd Congressional District.
11:00 a.m.
Donald McEachin (D) has won reelection over Leon Benjamin, Sr. (R) in the U.S. House 4th Congressional District race.
1:50 a.m.
Voters have approved a referendum that puts next year’s redistricting in Virginia in the hands of a bipartisan commission.
The amendment to the state constitution caps a years-long effort by reformers looking to end partisan gerrymandering. A bipartisan commission of citizens and legislators equally divided between Democrats and Republicans will now redraw the state’s congressional and General Assembly districts to conform with the 2020 Census.
Voters also passed another referendum that creates a car tax exemption for disabled veterans.
12:15 a.m.
Shannon Glover has won the six-way race to become Portsmouth's next mayor. A surge in early and absentee ballots put him over the top of his closest challenger, Danny Meeks.
Portsmouth City Council will also see some new faces. Lisa Lucas-Burke won re-election, but Nathan Clark lost his bid. De'Andre Barnes won as did former councilman Mark Whitaker. For Whitaker, he came in ahead of Tamara Shewmake by a few hundred votes, so a recount could be possible.
Also in Portsmouth, the casino referendum overwhelmingly passed by a margin of 67 percent to 33 percent.
Tuesday, November 3
11:48 p.m.
The Associated Press has called Virginia's 3rd Congressional District, projecting incumbent Democrat Bobby Scott has won re-election.
10:53 p.m.
Early returns are showing support for casinos in two Hampton Roads cities.
Both Portsmouth and Norfolk had ballot referendums to bring casino gambling to their cities. So far, voters have come out in support of both measures.
10:39 p.m.
Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper has been reelected, defeating Republican challenger Lt. Gov. Dan Forest.
The mild-mannered governor has often been reluctant to criticize President Donald Trump. He has been generally praised for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
However, some complained he was slow to reopen K-12 public schools and certain parts of the economy. Forest often criticized the shuttering of small businesses, including bars, bowling alleys, and gyms.
10:33 p.m.
The commissioner for the Virginia Department of Elections is urging patience as ballots continue to be counted, and that many Central Absentee Precinct (CAP) votes have yet to be tabulated.
“The CAP includes in-person early voting as well as mailed in absentee votes," said Christopher Piper. "It just depends on the locality as far as the question regarding when they will be reported. I think the best thing we can say is in a lot of cases the CAP is the last thing they’ll report because they want to ensure they process the absentee ballots that came in today either by mail or the drop-off polling places at the General Registrar’s office so typically you’ll see that as the last thing reported."
Piper said localities have been given a cutoff time of 11 p.m. to report their CAP numbers.
“Registrars and localities are working hard through the night, through 11 o'clock to make sure they process as many mail-in ballots as possible, and then you’ll start to see the majority of the results coming in," Piper said.
He added: "I also still want to caution, again, ballots will still be coming through Friday at noon.”
9:57 p.m.
Virginia's 2nd District race between Democratic Rep. Elaine Luria and Republican Scott Taylor remains too close to call. Early results currently have Taylor in the lead, but Virginia Beach Registrar Donna Patterson confirms with 13News Now that all results currently displayed online are from ballots cast today, with no early voting or absentee ballots counted so far.
8:50 p.m.
The Associated Press said question 2 on the Virginia ballot, which asked if cars driven by disabled veterans or their spouses should be exempt from local property taxes, has passed. This means the vehicles will be exempt from those taxes.
8:08 p.m.
Republican Robert Wittman wins reelection to U.S. House in Virginia's 1st Congressional District, the Associated Press reports.
7:39 p.m.
Democrat Joe Biden has won the state of Virginia, the Associated Press reports.
He was awarded its 13 electoral votes on Tuesday.
Democrat Hillary Clinton won Virginia over Republican Donald Trump in 2016, helped in part by her choice of running mate: Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine.
Virginia has grown increasingly liberal over the last four years, and as a result of the 2019 elections, Democrats now control every branch of government in the state.
7:15 p.m.
Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia has won a third term to office, the Associated Press reports.
It is too early to call the winner of the presidential contest between President Donald Trump and Joe Biden in Virginia, as well as three competitive U.S. House races.
Warner defeated Republican challenger Daniel Gade on Tuesday in a low-key race whose outcome was never in doubt.
7:00 p.m.
Polls closed at 7 p.m. after voting proceeded smoothly Tuesday across Virginia.
If you are currently in line to vote, keep your place in line and you'll still be allowed to cast your ballot.
New voting laws and other changes made in response to the coronavirus pandemic made it easier to vote early, and more than 2.75 million voters cast ballots before Election Day. That's more than two-thirds of the total overall voter turnout from four years ago in Virginia.
