VIRGINIA BEACH — In the House District 96 Democrat primary, incumbent Kelly Convirs-Fowler was leading with 95% of the precincts reporting as of 11 p.m. Tuesday, but the race was too close to call.
She’s facing former legislative aide Susan Hippen, health care administrator Brandon Hutchins and real estate agent Sean Monteiro.
Convirs-Fowler led Tuesday night with 1,176 votes. Hutchins and Hippen followed closely behind with 1,069 votes and 1,047 votes, respectively. Monteiro trailed with 831 votes.
The Democrat-leaning district encompasses central Virginia Beach to the southwest border of the city. Republican challenger Mike Karslake is on the ballot in the November general election.
Convirs-Fowler, 42, is the only candidate with state legislator experience. She currently represents District 21, of which two-thirds has been incorporated into the new District 96. She was first elected in 2017, and is serving her second term.
The delegate has made headlines for numerous reasons unrelated to her work in the General Assembly in recent years. In January, she came into possession of a personal laptop that purportedly belonged to the man who carried out the 2019 mass shooting in Virginia Beach, and she questioned whether investigators missed a potential piece of evidence. A copy of the laptop’s hard drive is currently being investigated by the office of the attorney general. Last year, she came out as bisexual, and confronted a past sexual abuser in court. She also publicly clashed with Virginia Beach Sheriff Ken Stolle over her husband’s dismissal from the agency.
Hippen was once a legislative aide during a General Assembly session for Convirs-Fowler. She previously ran unsuccessfully for state Senate and House districts.
Hippen, 63, entered the race for District 96 last January, while Convirs-Fowler joined later, in March. Convirs-Fowler decided to run because she was concerned that Hippen wouldn’t win and that a woman needed to be the district’s representative, she said.
Hutchins, 42, ran for an at-large seat on the Virginia Beach City Council in 2020. Monteiro, 47, was a newcomer to politics.
Stacy Parker, 757-222-5125, [email protected]
