Richmond voters do not want Stoney to be Virginia’s next lieutenant governor

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- The majority of Richmond voters do not want their former mayor to be Virginia's next lieutenant governor, according to unofficial primary election results from the Virginia Department of Elections.

On Tuesday, June 17, Virginia held primary elections to select the nominees for several consequential races.

While the Republican nominees for the Commonwealth's top three officials had already been chosen, the Democratic nominees for lieutenant governor and attorney general had not.

A total of six Democratic lieutenant governor candidates were on the ballot, including former Richmond mayor Levar Stoney.

LIVE RESULTS HERE: Virginia Primary Election Results for June 2025

The race between Stoney and two of his opponents, senators Ghazala Hashmi (D-Chesterfield) and Aaron Rouse (D-Virginia Beach), is extremely tight.

As of about 10:50 p.m. Tuesday, the Associated Press has Hashmi in the lead with 27.39% of the vote. Stoney and Rouse are close behind, with 26.64% and 26.32% of the vote, respectively -- meaning they are all within about 1% of one another. Hashmi has since declared victory.

However, within the city of Richmond, the race was not nearly as close. Hashmi raked in over three times as many votes as Stoney, coming in at 58.15% compared to his 20.73%, according to the Virginia Department of Elections. He did outperform Rouse, who got 11.11% of the vote.

All election results are unofficial until certified. If the statewide results remain this close, the race could potentially be recalled -- and if the difference between candidates remains under 1%, the state of Virginia will foot the bill for said recall.

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The winner of this race will become the running mate of the Democratic candidate for governor, former Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger. The two will face off against Republican current Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears and her running mate, former radio host John Reid.