No winner had been called for the House of Delegates District 92 seat in the primary election by 11 p.m. Tuesday, but Democrat Bonita Anthony appears to have a slight lead over Kim Sudderth.
With only a little more than 200 votes between them and 95% of the vote counted, the Associated Press has not yet called the race. But Anthony declared victory in a press release sent out at 11:15 p.m.
“I am honored that the voters of the 92nd House district have put their trust in me,” she said. “As I have told the voters all along, this nomination is the beginning and I am ready to keep working for my community in this new capacity.”
Anthony also thanked Sudderth for “a hard fought campaign that stayed positive and productive.”
“I am excited to see what happens when Norfolk sends an engineer, an educator, and a caregiver to Richmond to fight for our values and community needs,” Anthony said.
Earlier in the night, Anthony celebrated Del. Angelia Williams Graves’ victory at Boss Queens Soul Café in Norfolk, and told The Virginian-Pilot she knew it’d be a close race.
With no Republican challenger on the ballot for the November general election, the primary election winner will be all but assured victory in a newly drawn district that includes parts of Chesapeake and Norfolk, including areas around Old Dominion University, downtown Norfolk, Berkley and South Norfolk.
During both of their campaigns, Anthony and Sudderth told The Virginian-Pilot that protecting public education, the environment and access to abortion are among the biggest priorities for the district.
Anthony, 55, is a university administrator for the College of Engineering and Technology at Virginia State University and received engineering degrees from Old Dominion University. She said she also previously worked for the Federal Aviation Administration, has taught K-12 and higher education and has been involved in community advocacy as a minister.
Anthony also identified gun violence as a major issue that she said requires policies that help address the what leads to it and the root causes, including legislation that addresses rent stabilization, tenant rights, livable wages and transportation infrastructure.
Anthony previously sought a seat on the Norfolk School Board during a crowded race in 2018.
Reached by phone after 10 p.m. Tuesday, Sudderth’s campaign said they had no comment due to the unofficial results.
Sudderth, 51, is a political newcomer with experience in community advocacy, including the Hampton Roads chapter of a group called Mothers Out Front, which works to amplify the voices of mothers and women with children in the climate movement. She also noted access to food and safety from flooding and gun violence are other concerns constituents have.
On the issue of reproductive healthcare, Sudderth said she would seek to preserve Virginia’s current rules on abortion and push for an amendment to “guarantee access to abortion without restrictions.”
Sudderth is a strategic planning consultant and has a bachelor’s degree in sociology, with a specialization in diversity and inequality, from Saint Leo University.
Natalie Anderson, 757-732-1133, [email protected]
