(The Center Square)–Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Warner won a fourth term Tuesday, defeating Republican Bert Mizusawa and keeping Virginia’s two Senate seats in Democratic hands.
The call of the race was made immediately after polls closed with no percentages posted.
The race brought together a former Virginia governor who has spent nearly two decades in the Senate and a retired Army major general seeking his first term in Congress.
Warner was first elected to the Senate in 2008, defeating former Republican Gov. Jim Gilmore. He went on to win reelection in 2014 and 2020.
His closest Senate race came in 2014, when he narrowly defeated Republican Ed Gillespie. Warner won by fewer than 18,000 votes, a much smaller margin than his victories in 2008 and 2020.
Warner said during this year’s campaign that a fourth term would be his last.
Mizusawa entered the race after winning the Republican nomination in August. His campaign focused on federal spending, national security and lowering costs for Virginia families.
The two candidates spent the campaign discussing healthcare costs, rising electricity bills, housing and federal spending.
Virginia voters entered Election Day after a sharp increase in early voting compared with the last midterm election.
More than 1.6 million early ballots had been cast by Sunday, compared with about 938,000 at the same point before the 2022 election, according to the Virginia Public Access Project.
Warner’s victory gives him another six years in Washington and keeps Virginia’s Senate delegation entirely Democratic. He will continue serving alongside Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine, who won reelection in 2024.
