Virginia State Senate Election: 2026 U.S. and 2027 State Races

Virginia has two Senate elections on the horizon, and they are easy to confuse. The next Virginia Senate election at the federal level is the U.S. Senate race on November 3, 2026, where three-term Democrat Mark Warner is seeking reelection. The next election for the Virginia State Senate, the 40-seat upper chamber of the General Assembly in Richmond, is scheduled for November 2, 2027, when all 40 seats will be on the ballot at once.¹²

The 2026 U.S. Senate Race

Mark Warner, who has served in the U.S. Senate since 2009 and chairs the Senate Intelligence Committee, is running for a fourth term. He has no Democratic primary opponent. On the general election ballot he will face the winner of an August 4 Republican primary along with independent candidate Mark Moran of Falls Church.¹

Virginia’s other U.S. Senator, Tim Kaine, is not on the ballot. His term runs through January 2031.³

The Republican Primary Field

The Republican Party of Virginia has certified three candidates for the August 4 primary:⁴

Bert Mizusawa, a retired U.S. Army Major General and West Point graduate who holds a Harvard law degree and master’s in public policy. His career includes combat command in Afghanistan, service as Deputy Under Secretary of the Army, work as a senior advisor to the CIA director, and a stint on the Senate Armed Services Committee staff. He had raised roughly $192,000 and reported about $55,400 on hand as of mid-2026.⁵¹
Kim Farington, a certified public accountant with 33 years in federal financial management. She has held positions at the Department of Agriculture, the Office of Personnel Management, and the White House, and served as Chief Financial Officer of the First Responder Network Authority, where she managed a $100 billion budget. She had raised about $126,000 with roughly $22,700 on hand.⁶¹
David Earl Williams, a Marine Corps veteran who describes himself as the great-grandson of a Mecklenburg County sharecropper. He had raised roughly $51,000 with about $6,600 on hand.⁷¹

A fourth Republican, Chuck Smith, has a pending lawsuit that could still place him on the primary ballot.⁴ State Senator Bryce Reeves had been the best-known Republican in the race before withdrawing on December 28, 2025, citing a “serious family health matter”; he said he would seek reelection to his State Senate seat in 2027 instead.⁸

The Independent Candidate

Mark Moran, a Falls Church native and former finance professional, is running as an independent after initially planning a Democratic primary challenge. He broke with the party in early 2026, citing disagreements over Second Amendment policy and proposed mid-decade congressional redistricting. His platform includes a 2% gross revenue fee on data center operations in Virginia and a constitutional amendment banning corporate political spending.⁹ Moran was fined $6,229 and banned for five years by the betting platform Kalshi after he placed a wager on his own race, which he publicly acknowledged.¹⁰

Where the Race Stands

Warner’s fundraising has outpaced the Republican field by a wide margin. FEC data shows he has collected more than $18.7 million in individual contributions across recent cycles, with over $9.3 million from donors giving $2,000 or more.¹¹

Early polling puts him well ahead. A May 2026 Public Sentiment Institute survey of 1,047 likely voters (margin of error ±3.7%) had Warner at 54–55% against each of the three certified Republicans, who each drew 29%. Between 16% and 17% of respondents picked “other” or were undecided.¹² An earlier poll from late 2024 testing a hypothetical Warner-Youngkin matchup found Warner leading 45% to 38%.¹³

Key 2026 Dates

The Republican primary falls on August 4, 2026, after being moved from an earlier date by House Bill 29, signed into law on February 20, 2026. Early voting for the primary runs from June 19 through August 1, and the voter registration deadline is July 24.¹⁴¹⁵ The general election is November 3, 2026.

The 2027 Virginia State Senate Election

The Virginia State Senate is the upper chamber of the General Assembly. Its 40 members serve four-year terms, and every seat is on the ballot in the same odd-year election.¹⁶ The next statewide vote is November 2, 2027.²

Democrats hold a 21–19 majority, a margin they have kept since winning control in the 2023 elections on the current redistricted map.¹⁷¹⁸ Republicans need a net gain of two seats in 2027 to take the chamber. Among incumbents who have already signaled their plans, Bryce Reeves says he will seek reelection in the 28th District after dropping his federal bid.⁸

The January 2026 Special Election That Held the Majority

The 21–19 Democratic majority was briefly at risk after Senator Ghazala Hashmi won election as Virginia’s lieutenant governor in November 2025, becoming the first Indian American and first Muslim to hold statewide office in Virginia.¹⁹ Democrats kept the seat in a January 6, 2026 special election in Senate District 15, where Delegate Mike Jones defeated Republican John Thomas, preserving both the chamber split and the party’s governing trifecta.²⁰ Jones had won the Democratic nomination in a December 7, 2025 firehouse primary, defeating fellow Delegate Debra Gardner.²¹

1
Virginia Public Access Project. U.S. Senate Elections
2
Virginia Public Access Project. Senate Candidates
3
GovTrack. Senator Timothy Kaine
4
Republican Party of Virginia. Republican Party of Virginia Announces Candidates for U.S. Senate Primary
5
Bert for Senate. About Bert Mizusawa
6
Kim for Virginia. Meet Kim Farington
7
Charlottesville Tomorrow. Q&A With Virginia’s Three Republican Primary Candidates for U.S. Senate
8
Politico. Bryce Reeves Drops Out of Virginia Senate Race
9
Cville Right Now. Mark Moran Looks to Lead Generational Change in Senate Bid
10
Virginia Scope. Virginia Senate Candidate Placed a Wager on His Own Race
11
Federal Election Commission. 2026 Virginia Senate Election Financial Data
12
270toWin. 2026 Virginia Senate Polls
13
The New York Times. Virginia U.S. Senate Election Polls
14
Virginia Department of Elections. Upcoming Elections
15
Virginia Department of Elections. Primary Election Moved to August 4
16
James Madison University. Virginia General Assembly Guide
17
Senate of Virginia. Virginia Senate Member Directory
18
The New York Times. Results: Virginia State Legislature
19
WRIC. Special Election for Hashmi Seat in January
20
Virginia Independent News. Virginia Senate Democrats Retain Majority After Special Election Victory
21
Virginia Mercury. Jones Wins Democratic Nomination in Virginia Senate District 15