While Republicans in Virginia’s 9th Senate District are set to gather at a mass meeting in Charlotte County on Tuesday evening to elect their party’s nominee for the Jan. 9 special election, Democrats in the district will hold a firehouse primary at seven locations across the district.
Both parties are hoping to win the seat that will be vacated by Sen. Frank Ruff, R-Mecklenburg County, who announced on Friday that he would retire for health reasons before the General Assembly convenes for its 2024 session on Jan. 10. A total of six Republicans have since stepped up to run for the seat in the GOP-leaning district.
Longtime party activist Trudy Berry was the frst Democrat to formally announce her candidacy and file the paperwork. Berry made news earlier this year when she — her party’s nominee to take on Ruff — was denied ballot access for the Nov. 9 election over an email error.
But on Sunday, Berry said she received a call from Sen. Scott Surovell, D-Fairfax, the incoming Senate majority leader, urging her to forfeit her bid. “He asked me to step down from the Senate District 9 special election in favor of Vice Mayor Gary Miller of Danville,” Berry said in a text message.
Miller, a cardiologist, said in a brief phone interview on Monday evening that he had his paperwork notarized and that he will deliver it to the Department of Elections in Richmond Tuesday morning.
On Monday evening, the Mecklenburg County Democratic Committee said on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, that Brenda Rather-Holman and Tina Wyatt-Younger have also declared their candidacies.
The district’s Democratic State Senate Nominating Committee set a firehouse primary for between 6 and 7 p.m. Tuesday at the following locations:
Charlotte County
Drakes Branch Municipal Building
4801 Main St.
Drakes Branch
Halifax County
TJM Center
1011 Cluster Springs School Road
South Boston
Lunenburg County
Kenbridge Town Hall Conference Center
511 E. 5th Ave.
Kenbridge
Mecklenburg County
Boydton Library
1294 Jefferson St.
Boydton
Nottoway County
UBC Community Center and Gym
1719 West Virginia Ave.
Crewe
Pittsylvania County/Danville
Greater Triumph Missionary Baptist Church
581 Fairview Road
Chatham
Prince Edward County
(excluding the area around Farmville)
Hampden Sydney Volunteer Fire Department
108 S. Boundary Road
Hampden Sydney