For the past 22 years, the Alexandria area has been represented in the Virginia legislature by Adam Ebbin. This January, Ebbin announced that he would be resigning from the Virginia Senate, where he has served since 2012 representing Senate District 39, to join Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s administration. Covering Alexandria City as well as parts of southern Arlington county and the fringes of Fairfax county, the district lies in one of the most heavily Democratic areas of Virginia.
Delegate Elizabeth Bennett-Parker won an extremely speedy Democratic primary, spending just six days campaigning before winning 70% of the primary vote against former Del. Mark Levine, former Vice Mayor Amy Jackson, and Charles Sumpter. Bennett-Parker has served in the Virginia House of Delegates since 2022, and previously sat on the Alexandria City Council.
Prior to his election to the Senate, Ebbin spent a decade in the House of Delegates, where he made history as the first openly LQBTQ person elected to the General Assembly. In his time in the legislature, Ebbin has been a driving force behind investments in transportation infrastructure, the decriminalization of marijuana, and anti-discrimination laws. Notably, Ebbin previously chaired the powerful Senate Privileges and Elections Committee (the author of this article interns for the Office of Sen. Ebbin). He will now be taking a role as Senior Advisor at the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority.
Within an hour after Ebbin announced his resignation, Bennett-Parker, announced her candidacy for the seat. Picking up the endorsements of Spanberger, the leaders of both bodies of the Virginia legislature, Alexandria Mayor Alyia Gaskins, and Ebbin himself, she quickly became the race’s front runner.
Bennett-Parker will be the overwhelming favorite in the Feb. 10 special election against Republican Julie Robben Lineberry, a realtor. In the 2024 election, Democrat Kamala Harris won 76.2% of the vote in the district, according to the Virginia Public Access Project.
Ebbin’s departure comes at an unfortunate time for Alexandria, and Northern Virginia as a whole, efforts to secure more transit funding from the state. As Metro and other transit agencies increase funding needs, Virginia legislators will be critical to whether or not NOVA will receive the funding it needs.
