Tuesday, Nov. 3, students at the College of William and Mary joined Williamsburg residents and United States citizens at the polls for the midterm elections.
Voters cast their ballots for two Williamsburg City Council members, a U.S. House representative for Virginia’s 1st Congressional District and a U.S. senator. Three amendments to the state constitution were also on the ballot.
Williamsburg City Council: Too close to call
The Williamsburg City Council election featured three candidates running for two seats: incumbent Stacy Kern-Scheerer, local business owner and recent graduate Eino Korpela ’25 and longtime City employee Carolyn Murphy.
As of 11 p.m. Eastern time Wednesday, Kern-Scheerer led with 42.4% of the vote (4,179 votes). Murphy was second with 29.19% (2,877 votes) and Korpela was third with 26.77% (2,638 votes). All early, Election Day and mail-in ballots had been counted.
City Communications Director Nicole Trifone said 664 provisional ballots must still be counted. Since that number exceeds the 239-vote gap between Murphy and Korpela, the race for the second seat is too close to call.
“The official results will be published Tuesday [Nov. 10] once the provisional ballots have been counted and accepted,” Trifone wrote in an email to The Flat Hat.
Virginia’s 1st Congressional District: Shannon Taylor (D)
The race featured longtime incumbent Republican Rep. Rob Wittman and Democratic Henrico County attorney Shannon Taylor, who won the Democratic primary Tuesday, Aug. 4. The election was widely considered among the most competitive.
As of 11 p.m. Eastern time Wednesday, Nov. 4, Taylor was elected with 51.04% of the vote, and Wittman trailed with 48.72%.
Constitutional Amendments: Questions 1, 2 and 3 pass
Virginians voted on three amendments to the state Constitution. Question 1 would enshrine the right to reproductive freedom. Question 2 would remove the Virginia Constitution’s current prohibition on same-sex marriage. Question 3 would grant automatic restoration of voting rights to those incarcerated for felonies upon release.
All three amendments passed. As of 11 p.m. Eastern time Wednesday, Nov. 4, Question 1 held 62.39% approval, Question 2 maintained 57.38% and Question 3 recorded 56.47%.
U.S. Senate: Mark Warner (D)
Incumbent Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Warner ran for a fourth term, facing a challenge from Republican Bert Mizusawa, a retired Army major general and former Pentagon executive. Warner won with 61.16% of votes as of 11 p.m. Eastern time Wednesday.
