The 2026 primaries for Congressional and local elections are next week, but Democrats are already looking ahead to 2028.
The presidential primary in Virginia is usually part of Super Tuesday in March. But Democrats are considering bumping up that date for the Commonwealth to late February 2028, possibly creating a scenario where Virginia voters play a decisive role.
"It provides us with the opportunity to be able to be courted by several different candidates who are running for president," says Wes Bellamy at Virginia State University. "And whomever receives the nomination, and in the event that they win their nomination, there'll be relationships that persons on the ground here have with said candidate."
A clear front-runner candidate often emerges long before Super Tuesday, although Jennifer Victor at George Mason University says not always – pointing to the Democratic primary in 2016.
"It took Hillary Clinton a long time to sew that primary, that nomination up. Bernie Sanders was her main opponent back then, and that went almost into June, I think," Victor says. "So, every once in a while, there's a very competitive cycle, very competitive race."
She says the politics of 2028 are so far into the future to know if the Democratic primary will be competitive by the time Virginia voters select a presidential preference.
