Democracy Dies in Darkness

Backed by rival GOP factions, vets in Va. primary look similar on paper

The front-runners in the six-way Republican primary to replace Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D) represent dueling wings of their party. But some voters in Virginia’s 7th Congressional District are having trouble seeing the differences.

By
May 20, 2024 at 6:57 p.m. EDT
Derrick Anderson, left and Cameron Hamilton, candidates in the GOP primary for Virginia's 7th Congressional District. (Derrick Anderson campaign/Cameron Hamilton campaign)
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Save for the facial hair, it would have been hard to tell Derrick Anderson and Cameron Hamilton apart.

Sitting side by side at a candidate forum in Fredericksburg earlier this month, the front-runners in one of Virginia’s most competitive GOP primaries both highlighted their time serving in elite military units and then in the federal government. Both pledged to go hard on China and campus protesters while pitching themselves as Republicans’ best chance to flip this battleground seat.