By Shirleen Guerra | The Center Square
(The Center Square) – Charlie Schmidt won the House District 77 firehouse primary, securing the Democratic nomination for the Jan. 6 special election to fill the seat vacated by Del. Mike Jones.
The party-run firehouse primary was held Sunday after Jones resigned from the House to run for the state Senate. Jones won a Democratic firehouse primary for Senate District 15 earlier this month, triggering special elections for both his former House seat and the vacant Senate seat. Both elections will be held on Jan. 6.
House District 77 includes parts of Richmond and Chesterfield County.
According to the Virginia Public Access Project, Schmidt finished first in the firehouse primary, defeating former Richmond City Council member Michelle Mosby and Gregory Thomas Powers.
Firehouse primaries are party-run nominating contests rather than state-run elections, with voting locations and procedures set by the party instead of state election officials.
Following the results, Democratic Party of Virginia Chair Sen. Lamont Bagby, D-Henrico, congratulated Schmidt in a post on social media, saying Schmidt ran on “providing dignity, safety, and opportunity to all Virginians” and that his legal and community experience would serve him well in the House of Delegates.
The Jan. 6 special election will determine who fills the remainder of Jones’ House term. Voters in House District 77 will also cast ballots that day in a separate special election to fill the Senate District 15 seat vacated by Lt. Gov.-elect Ghazala Hashmi.
As of Monday afternoon, no Republican candidate had publicly announced a run in the House District 77 special election.