Ellen Kanzinger
Incumbent Bob Goodlatte held on to his congressional seat after winning his 13th consecutive election Tuesday night. With 215 of 244 precincts reporting, the Republican Congressman had 68.2 percent of the vote over challenger Kai Degner, including 65.4 percent of the votes in Rockbridge County and 73.5 percent of the vote in Buena Vista.
Degner carried Lexington, with 57.6 percent of the vote.
The polls closed at 7 p.m. and Goodlatte was declared the winner by the Associated Press at 7:37 p.m.
Goodlatte has won every race since his first election in 1993.
Next year marks Goodlatte’s 25th year in office.
In other Congressional races in Virginia, Republican Tom Garrett defeated Democrat Jane Dittmar in the 5th District. The incumbent in the Charlottesville-area district decided not to run.
In the 2nd District, which includes Virginia Beach, Republican Scott Taylor defeated Democrat Shaun Brown. The incumbent Republican Scott Rigell chose not to run.
The 6th District covers parts of 12 counties and seven cities, including Lexington, Roanoke and Harrisonburg.
Goodlatte has won at least 60 percent of the vote in each of the past 13 elections. In four of those cycles, no one challenged his seat.
Goodlatte, 64, graduated from Bates College for undergraduate studies and Washington and Lee for law school. He worked as a partner in a private Roanoke law firm before running for office.
While serving Virginia, Goodlatte has worked on a number of different committees, including the House Committee of Agriculture and House Judiciary Committee.
In 2013, members of the majority party selected Goodlatte to chair the influential Judiciary Committee.
The Judiciary Committee considers legislation dealing with the administration of justice, including the federal courts and national law enforcement agencies. When called for, the committee also oversees presidential impeachment trials.
Degner, 36, is a real estate agent from Harrisonburg. He received his bachelor’s degree and masters from James Madison University. Degner is serving his ninth year on the Harrisonburg City Council and briefly held the position of mayor in 2009 and 2010. This was his first congressional race.
According to the Federal Election Commission, Goodlatte raised over $1.6 million in comparison to Degner’s roughly $150,000. Individuals donated 43 percent of his campaign finances whereas political action committees (PACs) made up 55 percent of his contributions.