Bert Mizusawa won the Republican nomination for Virginia’s U.S. Senate seat and incumbent 5th District Rep. John McGuire beat his challenger in Tuesday’s primary elections.
“Thank you, Virginia!” Mizusawa said in a post on Facebook. “We campaigned hard across Virginia and thanks to you, we now move on to defeat Senator Mark Warner. I also congratulate my fellow Republican candidates — we were never opponents — and let’s unite Virginians for a big win in November.”
Mizusawa did not respond to a request for comment.
He beat two primary opponents, David Earl Williams and Kim Farington, claiming 50% of the vote as of 9 p.m. Tuesday, according to preliminary results from the Virginia Department of Elections.
A retired U.S. Army major general, Mizusawa served as a deputy undersecretary of the Army and as a staff member on the Senate Armed Services Committee. If elected to the U.S. Senate, he said he hopes to serve on that same committee. An attorney, he also expressed an interest in serving on the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Mizusawa was a senior national security adviser to President Donald Trump’s first campaign and served as a senior adviser to the CIA director. He currently heads a McLean-based consulting and technology firm.
Unseating the incumbent Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Warner in November may prove to be a difficult task for Mizusawa. Warner’s seat is considered solidly Democratic, according to the nonpartisan Cook Political Report. Warner was elected to the Senate in 2008 after a failed attempt to unseat the incumbent Republican Sen. John Warner in 1996 and went on to win reelection in 2014 and 2020. He served as governor of Virginia from 2002 to 2006 and was the commonwealth’s Democratic Party chair from 1993 to 1995.
Mizusawa heads into the general election season with $52,964 cash on hand, compared to Warner’s $16.1 million, according to recent filings with the Federal Election Commission.
Warner issued a statement congratulating the slate of Democratic candidates that won their primary contests Tuesday. He did not mention his own challenger or other Republicans.
“I’m proud to be on the ballot alongside this exceptional Democratic ticket, and I know that if we knock doors, make calls, and organize, we can hold this Senate seat, protect our path to a Democratic Senate majority, help Democrats win back the House, and begin to turn the page on the politics of chaos, corruption and division in Washington,” Warner said.
McGuire bests primary challenger in 5th District contest
Incumbent Republican Rep. John McGuire will go on to face former Congressman Tom Perriello in the race for the 5th District Congressional seat in November. McGuire beat Melanie Lucero, claiming 84% of the vote by 9 p.m. Tuesday, according to preliminary Virginia Department of Elections results.
McGuire thanked his primary opponent after securing the nomination on Tuesday and took aim at Perriello’s work with the Open Society Foundation, a progressive organization, in a statement Tuesday.
“I’ll keep fighting for lower costs, a secure border, secure elections, the Second Amendment, and the freedom to worship, and to keep the Fifth the best place to live, work, and raise your family in peace,” McGuire said.
McGuire, a central Virginia native, served as a U.S. Navy SEAL. He was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates in 2017 and to the state Senate in 2023. He challenged former 5th District Rep. Bob Good in a primary contest in 2024 and beat the incumbent by roughly 370 votes. McGuire has served one term in Congress. He has been endorsed by Trump as well as House Speaker Mike Johnson.
During his first term, McGuire has introduced 22 bills in Congress. Two have passed the House. One would allow the Wintergreen resort in Nelson County to build an emergency exit to the Blue Ridge Parkway; the other is the “Make the District of Columbia Safe and Beautiful Act of 2025,” which would codify Trump’s executive orders dealing with public spaces and immigration enforcement in the nation’s capital. Both measures are pending in the U.S. Senate.
The 5th Congressional District is considered a solidly Republican seat, according to the Cook Political Report. McGuire won the 5th District seat in 2024 with a 15-point margin, and President Donald Trump won the district with a 12-point margin that same year.
McGuire will go into the general election season with $524,403 cash on hand compared to Perriello’s $1.5 million, according to recent filings with the Federal Election Commission.
Winners in other Republican primary elections
- Douglas Ollivant won the Republican primary for the 7th Congressional District and will go on to face incumbent Democratic Rep. Eugene Vindman; and
- Dave Beckwith won the Republican primary for the 10th Congressional District and will go on to face incumbent Democratic Rep. Suhas Subramanyam.
