Cameron Webb, Democrat physician, wins Virginia House primary

A Democratic physician won the primary election in Virginia’s 5th District on Tuesday, beating out three other candidates for the nomination. 

Dr. Cameron Webb, whose campaign focuses on affordable health care, is expected to face off against Republican Bob Good (R) in November, The Hill reports. He could be the first Black person to represent the mostly rural district. His victory comes amid the rising racial tension in the country over the police killing of George Floyd. 

“It’s all humbling, it’s all powerful and one thing I will say is that the voices in our community are resounding and are powerful and I think that’s part of what we saw tonight, and I’m excited to be kind of able to carry this banner forward,” said Webb, a Charlottesville physician and director of health policy and equity at the University of Virginia. He also holds a law degree.

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https://twitter.com/DrCameronWebb/status/1174766542837440514

House Democrats are reportedly targeting the 5th District again this year, hoping to flip the seat. 

“We’re in a moment as a nation,” Webb said Tuesday night. “We’re facing a global health pandemic, crisis of racial injustice, and you layer on top of that inequities in education, health care, criminal justice, employment, people heard in our message something that spoke to them.”

The 5th District has not been represented by a liberal politician since Tom Perriello lost to republican Robert Hurt in 2010. 

“We won in 2008 because of the mobilization of Black voters, and then the district was redrawn to make it harder to win,” Webb said last week. “So you need that mobilization even more now. My engagement with the Black community has been lifelong. And it’s been deeds, not words.”

Webb previously served on Barack Obama’s health care team. He also worked on the former president’s My Brother’s Keeper initiative, which aids vulnerable young men of color and aims to promote racial justice.