Wittman, Beyer Win Respective Primaries in Virginia

U.S. Rep. Rob Wittman (R) won the 1st District primary Tuesday evening while Don Beyer (D) declared victory in the 8th District primary.

Beyer, a Volvo dealer who served two terms as lieutenant governor before losing the governor's race in 1997, has received the backing of several Obama administration officials in his bid for the nomination in a Democratic stronghold in the Washington, D.C., suburbs.

Two state lawmakers, Del. Patrick Hope and Sen. Adam Ebbin, were among the other candidates vying for the seat, which opened up when long-term Del. Jim Moran (D) announced his retirement earlier this year.

They were joined by radio talk show host and constitutional attorney Mark Levine, Alexandria Mayor Bill Euille, former Northern Virginia Urban League President Lavern Chatman, and Virginia Tech professor Derek Hyra.

Wittman is a former field director for the Virginia Health Department's Division of Shellfish Sanitation and member of the state House of Delegates. He was first elected to Congress in 2007. His campaign had more than $1 million on hand, according to the most recent campaign finance reports.

He faced off against Robert Riedel, the spokesman for the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation and has never held public office. Riedel raised about $23,000. During the campaign, he criticized Wittman for not being conservative enough.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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