Stoney wins reelection in Richmond mayor’s race

This story originally ran on the Capital News Service. 

Incumbent Levar Stoney defeated his four opponents in the Richmond mayoral race, winning six council districts out of nine after all votes were counted Wednesday night.

The mayoral race is officially non-partisan and the winner must have a plurality of votes in five of the city’s nine districts. Stoney won districts 3, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9, capturing 38,470 votes — around 37.42%, according to the Virginia Public Access Project (VPAP).

Kim Gray trailed close behind, winning district 1 and capturing 26,859 votes. Alexsis Rodgers took home District 2, and District 4 was a tie between Stoney and Justin Griffin, according to VPAP.

“I am humbled by the results of the election and eager to get back to the important work of building One Richmond,” Stoney said in a press release. “Serving as Mayor of Richmond has been the honor of a lifetime. Thank you to all the supporters and volunteers who made this victory possible — I could not have done this without you. Most importantly, thank you to the voters for having faith in me and my vision for the city over the next four years.”

Stoney raised $1,073,879 as of Oct. 22. He outraised all of his opponents combined, who came in at $853,435 collectively by the same date.

Rodgers’ grassroots campaign, which was mainly funded by individual contributions, lost by an 11% margin. Rogers said earlier this month that her campaign had set a record for individual support, with 2,5993 individual donations of less than $100 as compared to Stoney’s 1,189 as of Oct. 1, 2020.

None of Stoney’s challengers have spoken out publicly about the defeat [as of Nov. 5.]

Key issues mayoral candidates focused on this election cycle were the city’s infrastructure, public education including universal kindergarten and preschool education for Richmond residents, police reform, environmental concerns and public housing.

All of the candidates have debated the issues in multiple mayoral forums over the course of the last three months.

Contact Capital News Service reporter and features writer Alex Maloney at alexandra.maloney@richmond.edu. Contact Capital News Service reporter and public relations director Heather Neiman at heather.neiman@richmond.edu.