:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tronc/LW7CEQJ4HZFM5KCDZUZDQJEAU4.JPG)
VIRGINIA BEACH — A former NFL player is heading to the General Assembly. Aaron Rouse of Virginia Beach declared victory Tuesday night in a tight special election for Virginia’s 7th Senate District.
Rouse, a Democrat and a former Virginia Beach city councilman, faced Navy veteran Kevin Adams, a Republican. Both candidates raised roughly $1 million for their campaigns. Adams, 61, had not previously run for political office.
“It’s a great victory for the people of the commonwealth,” Rouse, 39, said in an interview with The Virginian-Pilot after he declared victory surrounded by a large crowd at a hotel in Virginia Beach’s Town Center. “I know they’re looking forward to me getting to Richmond.”
Rouse won by less than 1% with 19,430 votes to Adams’ 19,082, according to the unofficial election results reported by the Virginia Department of Elections as of Wednesday morning.
Adams conceded Wednesday and congratulated Rouse.
“While the results last night were not what we wanted, I am proud of the campaign that we ran and so thankful for everyone who believed in me and this campaign along the way,” Adams said in a release. “We put everything we had into this race and left no stone unturned. Despite the result, I will never stop serving Hampton Roads.”
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tronc/GLCSSTRSGBCGPJOHMOCNPENVRQ.jpg)
Both candidates hit the polls early Tuesday morning to meet and shake hands with voters. Adams also spent several hours knocking on doors in the district where he said some residents weren’t aware they were eligible to vote.
District 7 includes a large swath of northwest Virginia Beach and several precincts in Norfolk.
The seat was left vacant when Republican Jen Kiggans resigned after winning Virginia’s 2nd Congressional District race in November. Rouse will finish the last year of Kiggans’ term.
Today's Top Stories
Pharrell Williams endorsed Rouse in a video on social media Tuesday, saying that he played an integral role in bringing the Something in the Water festival back to Virginia Beach.
Rouse’s campaign focused on protecting abortion rights in Virginia, where the procedure is allowed during the first and second trimesters of pregnancy.
Adams supported Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s desire to ban the procedure at 15 weeks of pregnancy with some exceptions, including cases of rape, incest and when the mother’s life is in danger.
[ Be ready for some surprises when lawmakers return to Richmond for General Assembly session ]
Rouse’s win will add to the already Democratic majority in the state senate. Republicans control the House of Delegates.
Former U.S. Rep. Elaine Luria joined Rouse’s celebration.
“His win reflects what’s important to voters in Virginia Beach and part of Norfolk,” said Luria, defeated by Kiggans. “I’m going to sleep better tonight knowing that Aaron’s going to Richmond and that Gov. Youngkin isn’t going to get any of these abortion bans across the finish line this General Assembly session.”
Stacy Parker, 757-222-5125, stacy.parker@pilotonline.com