VIRGINIA, USA — Retired Navy captain and Trump endorsee Hung Cao has won the Republican nomination for Virginia's 2024 U.S. Senate election, setting up a contest against Democratic incumbent Tim Kaine.
As of 7:30 p.m., Cao is leading the pack with 67% of the vote against candidates Jonathan Emord, Eddie Garcia, Scott Parkinson, and Chuck Smith.
SEE ALSO: 13News Now Primary Election Results
Cao's Senate nomination comes after he previously ran for the U.S. House in Virginia's 10th Congressional District in 2022, losing to Democratic U.S. Rep. Jennifer Wexton by more than six points. Former President and 2024 presumptive presidential nominee Donald Trump backed Cao's Senate candidacy ahead of Tuesday's primary.
Cao is campaigning on border security issues popular within the Republican Party, including building a wall, using advanced technology, and supporting the Border Patrol.
In a victory post on Facebook, Cao immediately criticized President Joe Biden’s decision on Tuesday to allow certain U.S. citizens’ spouses without legal status to apply eventually for citizenship.
“Tomorrow, we begin our campaign to save the country that saved my life,” Cao stated. “I spent twenty-five years in the Navy, while Tim Kaine spent thirty years in elected office.”
In a recent campaign ad, Cao, who was born in Vietnam, makes comparisons between the country’s communist regime during the Cold War to the Biden Administration.
On the Democratic side, Kaine automatically became his party's nominee since he ran unopposed. He won his first Senate election in 2012 and secured another term in 2018.
In a statement following Cao's Republican primary victory, Kaine said in part:
"I’ve been standing up for Virginians for 40 years as a civil rights lawyer and public servant representing my city, Commonwealth and country. As your Senator, I’ll keep standing up for an economy that works for all, affordable healthcare, reproductive freedom, enhanced career and technical education and strengthening our military and allies while supporting our troops, veterans, and their families."
If Cao defeats Kaine, he would become the first Republican elected to the upper chamber since 2002. However, Sabato's Crystal Ball political analyst J. Miles Coleman told 13News Now he believes Kaine is a strong favorite for the general election.
Kaine has a long history of holding elected office in Virginia, having served as governor from 2006 to 2010, lieutenant governor from 2002 to 2006 and Richmond's mayor from 1998 to 2001.
Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.