Jones Wins Democratic Nomination In Virginia Senate District 15 After Tense Primary

By Markus Schmidt, Virginia Mercury

December 8, 2025

Del. Mike Jones of Richmond clinched the Democratic nomination Sunday evening for next month’s special election in Virginia’s Senate District 15, defeating Del. Debra Gardner, D-Chesterfield, in a firehouse primary. The spotlight now shifts to a January showdown for control of a key Virginia Senate seat.

Jones, first elected to the House in 2023, will face Republican John Thomas next month in a race Democrats view as critical to protecting their narrow 21–19 majority in the Virginia Senate.

The solidly Democratic district, which covers parts of Richmond and northern Chesterfield County, is expected to be one of the first major tests of the party’s strength heading into the 2026 General Assembly session.

Sunday’s firehouse primary — a rapid, party-run process held under a compressed timeline after Lt. Gov.-elect Ghazala Hashmi resigned to prepare for her statewide post — drew steady turnout from local Democrats at three polling locations. Party leaders quickly rallied behind Jones after polls closed Sunday.

“Mike Jones has shown through his work and leadership that he is deeply committed to serving Virginians and tackling the everyday challenges families face,” Democratic Party of Virginia Chair Lamont Bagby, a state senator from Henrico, said in a statement.

Jones, he said, “brings a steady, solutions-focused approach to public service, and he understands what it takes to make life more affordable and strengthen our communities. Keeping our Democratic majority in the Senate is critical to continuing that progress, and I look forward to serving with him in the Senate.”

Jones currently represents House District 77. If he wins the Senate seat on Jan. 6, the victory will immediately trigger another special election to fill his House seat.

Sunday’s primary followed an unusually tense week in what had been a brief nomination contest.

As reported by Virginia Scope on Thursday, the campaigns of Gardner and Jones — once close political allies who often described each other as friends — came to blows after Gardner released a TV and digital ad focused on past allegations involving Jones and a 2024 protective-order case that was later dismissed by a judge.

The ad displayed old news headlines and asserted, “Mike Jones’ history of alleged violence toward women is shocking, dangerous and disqualifying.”

Jones criticized the ad in an interview with the outlet, saying Gardner left out the full context of the case’s resolution.

“I am honestly saddened that a member of my own party, someone who I thought was a friend, who I’ve talked in confidence with about this situation, would use portions of it for her political gain,” Jones said.

Gardner’s campaign declined to answer questions from Virginia Scope about whether she was aware of the judge’s decision dissolving the protective orders.

Jones, meanwhile, spent more than $100,000 on his own advertising, running spots on Richmond-area TV and radio stations focused on “lowering costs, school funding and housing affordability.”

Top Democratic officials lined up behind both candidates in the final days of the race.

Hashmi was among the first to endorse Jones last month, calling herself “proud” to support him. Richmond Mayor Danny Avula backed Jones on Thursday.

Gardner, a former deputy county administrator, received endorsements from Senate President Pro Tempore Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, and Sen. Aaron Rouse, D-Virginia Beach.

The special election was scheduled after Hashmi’s victory in the November statewide contest created a vacancy that needed to be filled before lawmakers return to Richmond in mid-January.

Redrawn in 2021, Senate District 15 is safely Democratic but geographically split between Richmond and Chesterfield, with strong pockets of organized voter turnout. Hashmi won the seat by a decisive margin in 2023.

Thomas, the Republican nominee, is familiar to voters after challenging Gardner in House District 76 last month, a race he lost by more than 37 percentage points.

With the nomination settled, Jones now has less than a month to focus on the general election and consolidate Democratic support.

This story was originally published by the Virginia Mercury. For more stories from the Virginia Mercury, visit VirginiaMercury.com.