The June Primary Election is Tuesday, absentee votes have been ‘through the roof’

Tuesday is Primary Day across Virginia, where voters will head to the polls to choose candidates for Senate and House of Representatives.

Polls open at 6 a.m. Tuesday, June 23, and close at 7 p.m.

Three Republicans are vying to unseat Mark Warner, a Democrat who was first elected to the office in 2009.

On the Republican ballot for is:

• Daniel M. Gade
• Thomas A. Speciale II
• Alissa A. Baldwin

In the House of Representatives, Democrats will have options in these races:

In House District 1, which includes a portion of Prince William and Stafford counties, on the ballot is:

• Qasim Rashid
• Lavangelene A. “Vangie” Williams

Rasid ran last year for Virginia Senate House of Delegates 28 District in Fredericksburg and Stafford County and lost. The seat is now held by Richard Stuart  Joshua Cole.

For Williams, this is a rematch Wiliams ran for the same seat two years ago and lost to Republican Rob Wittman.

In House District 11, voters in Prince William County will see two names on their ballots:

• Gerald E. “Gerry” Connolly
• Zainab M. Mohsini

Connolly, 70, has held since 2008, which he won after serving as At-large chairman of the Fairfax Board of County Supervisors. This marks the first campaign for Zaibab, 31, who works as a legal coordinator for a “reproductive justice organization,” the campaign tell us.

Both candidates live in Fairfax County.

In Manassas, four Democrats are competing for three open seats on the city council.

• Pamela J. Sebesky (Incumbent)
• Mark D. Wolfe (Incumbent)
• Tom Osina 
• Helen Anne Zurita

The winners of this Primary Election will go to compete in the November 3, 2020 Election.

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam delayed the Primary Election by two weeks due to the coronavirus. Northam and election officials across the state urged all voters to obtain an absentee ballot by June 16 to vote by mail.

In Prince William County, a total of 12,701 absentee votes have already been cast in the Democratic contest. A total of 1,589 absentee ballots of have cast.

Together, the numbers represent about 5% of registered voters in the county.

Prince William County Office of Elections spokesman Matthew Wilson says:

I’ll start with Absentee numbers, which have been through the roof.

Most [absentee] voters have been sent ballots through the mail. I’m sure this is some kind of a record for a June Primary, however, I cannot corroborate that. [The] turnout before election day will be at roughly 5% but remember that in June Primaries our ceiling is something like 20%.

We are confident in our preparation but there are some things that we are expecting that will be out of the norm:

–An increase in Outside Polls or Curbside Voting. Voters, in the name of safety, might not feel comfortable going inside the precinct.

–Although things are “loosening up,” [so] to speak, this will be the first public event for many people and there could be an increase in typical turnout.

–For many of our absentee voters, this will be their first time voting by mail.

–Many have called and asked about being to vote in their precinct. Many are also concerned about their ballot getting to us in time. As per the usual many voters waited until the last day (June 16th) to apply.

–There could be an increase of spoiled or provisional ballots depending on whether they bring those mailed ballots with them.

The Virginia Department of Elections created a resource page to answer questions about voting, to include where to find your polling place.