The race for the United States Senate will be on the top of ballots for Virginia voters in November’s mid-term elections. The Republican candidate hoping to unseat Democratic incumbent Senator Mark Warner secured the nomination this week.
"The mainstream media sucks," says Bert Mizusawa, the Republican candidate running against Warner. He's talking about how much foreign visitors loved America when they were here for the World Cup.
"I mean, it took a World Cup here in order to attract them to come here, so I guess soccer actually does have a lot of value. But not to every American. The NFL hasn't started yet."
When the NFL season kicks off in September, Election 2026 will be in full swing. Warner will likely be able to raise significant sums of money, although Mizusawa struggled with fundraising during the primary. Karen Hult at Virginia Tech says Mizusawa will be facing a difficult challenge going up against a mainstream senator.
"The real concern I think for him is that Senator Warner has been so popular, so visible and so engaged around the state of Virginia," Hult says. "So, he is a hard candidate to imagine taking on in a serious way."
The last time Warner faced a serious challenge from a Republican was back in 2014, when he defeated Ed Gillespie 49% to 48%. In 2020, he had a double-digit victory over Daniel Gade.
