Former Rep. Luria aims to challenge Kiggans to retake VA-2 congressional seat

HAMPTON ROADS, Va. — A former Democratic representative is aiming to win back her Congressional seat following a series of Democratic victories in Virginia on Election Day 2025.

Former Rep. Elaine Luria announced her bid for the House of Representatives in a statement sent to News 3 on Wednesday.

Luria is seeking to reclaim Virginia’s 2nd Congressional District seat, which she previously held after winning it in the 2018 midterms. She served two terms in Congress before narrowly losing to current Rep. Jen Kiggans, a Republican, in the November 2022 midterms. Kiggans successfully defended her seat in last year's election.

The district encompasses Virginia Beach, Suffolk, Franklin, Isle of Wight County, parts of Chesapeake, and the Eastern Shore. The highly-competitive district has seen back-and-forth representation from both Democrats and Republicans over the years. Winning this swing district would be quite the prize for either party during the 2026 midterm elections.

This would mark the second election where Kiggans and Luria face off for the House seat if the latter wins the Democratic primary.

“I cannot sit back and watch as Republicans in Congress create chaos while failing to address the rising cost of living and the issues that matter to Coastal Virginians,” Luria said in a statement announcing her bid. “Virginians are hungry for change, and I look forward to getting back to work for Hampton Roads.”

Watch previous coverage: Jen Kiggans wins 2nd Congressional District seat after Elaine Luria concedes

In an interview with News 3 on Wednesday, we asked Luria why she decided to run for Congress again. She answered, "Like everybody else, we've seen nothing but costs go up. I mean, you go to the grocery store, it's more expensive. You want to buy a house, send your kid to college. There's just so much uncertainty in the economy and this chaos in Washington."

In response to Luria's announcement, a spokesperson for the National Republican Congressional Committee sent the following statement:

“Retread loser Elaine Luria remains an out of touch liberal who rubber-stamped Biden's destructive cost-raising, open borders agenda. If Luria moves even further left than she already is to win a messy Democrat primary, she'll have the honor of conceding to Jen Kiggans twice."

Luria, a Navy veteran, had positioned herself as a moderate Democrat in previous elections. During her time in Congress, she served on a House committee tasked with investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. She previously accused Trump of a “dereliction of duty.”

Mike Williamson, a Marine veteran who entered the Democratic primary for Virginia's 2nd Congressional district earlier this year, ended his campaign soon after Luria's campaign was announced, according to a post on LinkedIn. In the same statement, he endorsed the former Democratic representative.