The 2013 Virginia Attorney General election took place on November 5, 2013, to elect the Attorney General of Virginia. The incumbent Attorney General, Republican Ken Cuccinelli, did not run for re-election. He was instead his party's nominee in the 2013 gubernatorial election.
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  Herring: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% Obenshain: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% Tie: 50% | |||||||||||||||||
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On May 18, 2013, a Republican state convention in Richmond nominated State Senator Mark Obenshain over State Delegate Rob Bell.[1] The Democratic primary on June 11, 2013, was won by State Senator Mark Herring, who defeated former Assistant United States Attorney Justin Fairfax.[2]
While the statewide elections for governor and lieutenant governor garnered more national attention, the race for attorney general was the most competitive.[3] Obenshain had an election night lead of 1,200 votes. In the following days, as provisional ballots were counted, Herring narrowed the lead and ultimately overtook him.[4] On November 25, the Virginia State Board of Elections certified the results and Herring was declared the winner by 1,103,777 votes to 1,103,612 – a difference of 165 votes out of more than 2.2 million cast, or 0.007%.[5][6][7]
After the certification, Obenshain requested a recount,[8] which began on December 16.[9] Obenshain conceded the election on December 18, and later that day, the recount ended with Herring winning by 907 votes, or 0.04%.[10] Democrats held the Attorney General's office for the first time since 1994, and with Herring's victory, Democrats held all five statewide offices – including both U.S. Senate seats – for the first time since 1970.
Republican nomination
Candidates
Nominated at convention
- Mark Obenshain, state senator[11]
Defeated at convention
Withdrew
- John Frey, Fairfax County Clerk of the Circuit Court[13]
Democratic primary
Candidates
Declared
- Justin Fairfax, former Assistant United States Attorney[14]
- Mark Herring, state senator[12][2]
Withdrew
- Michael Signer, attorney and candidate for lieutenant governor in 2009[15]
Declined
- Ward Armstrong, former Minority Leader of the Virginia House of Delegates[16]
Polling
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Justin Fairfax | Mark Herring | Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public Policy Polling | May 24–26, 2013 | 322 | ± 5.5% | 19% | 22% | — | 59% |
Results
- Herring—80–90%
- Herring—70–80%
- Herring—60–70%
- Herring—50–60%
- Tie
- Fairfax—50–60%
- Fairfax—60–70%
- Fairfax—70–80%
- Fairfax—80–90%
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Mark Herring | 72,861 | 51.66% | ||
| Democratic | Justin Fairfax | 68,177 | 48.34% | ||
| Majority | 4,684 | 3.32% | |||
| Turnout | 141,038 | ||||
General election
Endorsements
- Current and former statewide politicians
- Newspapers
- Organizations
- Virginia Police Benevolent Association[20]
- Elected Officials
- Bill Chase, independent Culpeper County Supervisor[21]
- Marty Williams, former Republican state senator[22]
- Others
- John Brownlee, former United States Attorney for the Western District of Virginia and 2009 candidate for the Republican nomination for Attorney General[23]
- Newspapers
- Organizations
- Virginia Fraternal Order of Police[26]
Predictions
| Source | Ranking | As of |
|---|---|---|
| Sabato's Crystal Ball[27] | Lean D (flip) | October 24, 2013 |
Polling
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Mark Obenshain (R) | Mark Herring (D) | Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public Policy Polling | November 2–3, 2013 | 870 | ± 3.3% | 45% | 47% | — | 8% |
| Christopher Newport University | October 25–30, 2013 | 1,038 | ± 3% | 45% | 43% | — | 12% |
| Public Policy Polling | October 26–27, 2013 | 709 EV | ± 3.6% | 42% | 54% | — | 3% |
| Hampton University | October 24, 26–27, 2013 | 800 | ± 2.9% | 45% | 39% | — | 16% |
| Washington Post/Abt SRBI | October 24–27, 2013 | 762 | ± 4.5% | 46% | 49% | — | 4% |
| Roanoke College | October 21–27, 2013 | 838 | ± 3.4% | 35% | 46% | — | 20% |
| Christopher Newport University | October 8–13, 2013 | 753 | ± 3.6% | 46% | 45% | — | 9% |
| Watson Center | October 1–6, 2013 | 886 | ± 3.1% | 42% | 45% | — | 14% |
| Roanoke College | September 30–October 5, 2013 | 1,046 | ± 3% | 38% | 35% | — | 26% |
| Hampton University | September 25–29, 2013 | 800 | ± 2.9% | 41% | 37% | — | 23% |
| University of Mary Washington | September 25–29, 2013 | 559 | ± 4.7% | 42% | 36% | 6% | 16% |
| Washington Post/Abt SRBI | September 19–22, 2013 | 562 | ± 5% | 42% | 45% | — | 14% |
| Conquest Communications | September 19, 2013 | 400 | ±5% | 35.8% | 24.5% | — | 39.8% |
| NBC/Marist | September 17–19, 2013 | 546 | ± 3% | 34% | 39% | — | 26% |
| Roanoke College | September 9–15, 2013 | 874 | ± 3.3% | 31% | 33% | — | 34% |
| Public Policy Polling | July 11–14, 2013 | 601 | ± 4% | 36% | 38% | — | 25% |
| Roanoke College | July 8–14, 2013 | 525 | ± 4.3% | 33% | 29% | — | 38% |
| Public Policy Polling | May 24–26, 2013 | 672 | ± 3.8% | 32% | 33% | — | 34% |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Mark Obenshain (R) | Justin Fairfax (D) | Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public Policy Polling | May 24–26, 2013 | 672 | ± 3.8% | 32% | 30% | — | 38% |
Initial results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Mark Herring | 1,103,777 | 49.89% | +7.60% | |
| Republican | Mark Obenshain | 1,103,612 | 49.88% | -7.63% | |
| Write-in | 4,892 | 0.22% | +0.13% | ||
| Majority | 165 | 0.01% | |||
| Turnout | 2,212,281 | ||||
| Democratic gain from Republican | Swing | ||||
Recount
It was widely reported that a recount was expected after the results were certified on November 25, 2013. According to the Virginia Board of Elections rules, as updated for the November 2013 election: "there are no automatic recounts. Only an apparent losing candidate can ask for a recount, and only if the difference between the apparent winning candidate and that apparent losing candidates is not more than one percent (1%) of the total votes cast for those two candidates."[28] This race is the second of the past three Virginia attorney general elections to go to a recount. In the 2005 race, Bob McDonnell won by 360 votes, with the result certified in December.[29]
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Mark Herring | 1,105,045 | 49.91% | +7.62% | |
| Republican | Mark Obenshain | 1,104,138 | 49.87% | -7.64% | |
| Write-in | 4,892 | 0.22% | +0.13% | ||
| Majority | 907 | 0.04% | |||
| Turnout | 2,214,075 | ||||
| Democratic gain from Republican | Swing | ||||
