
Tonight's most closely watched race, the Virginia gubernatorial contest between Democrat Ralph Northam and Republican Ed Gillespie, is going down to the wire. To help you figure out who's on track to win from the comfort of your own home, we've created benchmark estimates of the vote shares both candidates need in each Virginia county and city.
Unofficial returns will be available on Virginia's election website after polls close at 7pm. If either Northam or Gillespie is consistently exceeding the locality targets below, he is probably on track to win. For example, if Northam is keeping Gillespie's margin under 25 points in Fauquier County, that would bode well for his chances.
Keep in mind, rural and heavily GOP areas tend to report votes earlier in Virginia, whereas Democratic-voting urban areas tend to report votes later in the evening.
What is The Cook Political Report?
The Cook Political Report is an independent, non-partisan newsletter that analyzes elections and campaigns for the US House of Representatives, US Senate, Governors and President as well as American political trends.
Subscribe Today
Our subscribers have first access to individual race pages for each House, Senate and Governors race, which will include race ratings (each race is rated on a seven-point scale) and a narrative analysis pertaining to that race.