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Democrat Aaron Rouse has won a special election for a state Senate seat in Virginia after his Republican opponent conceded in a race that was widely viewed as a proxy fight over abortion.
Rouse, a former NFL player who has served on the Virginia Beach City Council for the past few years, flipped a GOP seat that had been held by Jen Kiggans until she won a congressional seat in November. In doing so, Rouse defeated Republican Kevin Adams, a retired lieutenant commander in the Navy.
“While the results last night were not what we wanted, I am proud of the campaign that we ran and so thankful for everyone who believed in me and this campaign along the way,” Adams said in a concession statement a day after Tuesday’s special election.
Democrats will now have a 22-18 majority in the state Senate, and Rouse is expected to provide a crucial vote against efforts by Gov. Glenn Youngkin and state GOP lawmakers to pass a bill that would ban abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy, instead of the current threshold of around 26 weeks.
“Reproductive rights and freedom in Virginia have been hanging by a tenuous thread, especially in the wake of Roe being overturned, and the only thing standing in the way is a one-vote margin in the Virginia state Senate,” Tarina Keene, executive director of REPRO Rising Virginia, told NBC News on Wednesday.
“It all comes down to one vote, and having Aaron Rouse added to the state Senate in this precarious time only helps shore up reproductive rights and freedom here in the Commonwealth. We know that he is a champion for reproductive rights and freedom and will be a solid vote no on any abortion ban that should be introduced in Virginia now,” Keene added.
Democratic state Sen. Joe Morrissey last week expressed a willingness to consider legislative proposals restricting abortion access, telling ABC affiliate WRIC in an interview that he would keep an “open mind.”
Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, a Republican, casts tie-breaking votes in the state Senate, meaning an Adams victory coupled with Morrissey potentially crossing the could have put Youngkin in a stronger position to get his abortion proposal through. Republicans control the Virginia House of Delegates.
During the campaign, Rouse said that protecting access to abortion was a key priority, vowing on his website that he would “not compromise” on abortion rights.
Adams, meanwhile, said he would back Youngkin’s proposed ban “while providing reasonable exceptions to protect the life of the mother or in the instance of rape or incest,” according to a statement on his campaign website. Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America backed Adams in the race.
In his State of the Commonwealth address Wednesday, Youngkin called on the General Assembly to pass a 15-week ban.
“When it comes to unborn children we can come together, we can choose life, and choose to support mothers, fathers, and families in difficult decisions,” Youngkin said. “This session I have asked the General Assembly to come together to protect life at 15 weeks, the point when a baby can feel pain. It is clear, Virginians want fewer abortions, not more.”
Rouse, who received a congratulatory phone call from President Joe Biden on Wednesday, responded to Youngkin on Twitter by saying, in part, “I’ll always defend women’s repro-rights, support public education, and build an economy for everyone.”
Amanda Terkel contributed.
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