Election Day 2021 results live Biden avoids questions after Republican Glenn Youngkin wins Virginia race

Glenn Youngkin makes victory speech after winning Virginia governor race

Republican Glenn Youngkin has defeated Democrat Terry McAuliffe in a tight race for Virginia’s governor’s seat.

It is a blow for Joe Biden who had promoted Mr McAuliffe as “the proven leader who will move Virginia forward”. The president, whose national approval ratings are in the gutter, ignored reporters’ questions as he returned to the White House on Wednesday morning following his trip to Cop26.

Mr McAuliffe wanted to return to the office he left four years ago and tried to link Mr Youngkin to Donald Trump, hoping Democrats’ dislike for the former president would motivate them in a state Mr Biden carried by 10 points in 2020.

Mr Youngkin focused on culture-war topics like “election integrity” and how racial inequality is taught in school, appealing to Mr Trump’s base but avoiding campaigning with him in person. He benefited from high turnout in rural areas, according to the AP.

Meanwhile, Democratic governor Phil Murphy is in a dead heat in New Jersey against Republican challenger Jack Ciattarelli. And in New York City, Democrat Eric Adams defeated the GOP’s Curtis Sliwa in the mayoral race.

Show latest update 1635937661Biden entered White House shortly before 2am, but ignored reporters’ questions

Joe Biden got home from Cop26 at 1.38am on Wednesday

Joe Biden did not respond to reporters who shouted questions about the election results as he returned to the White House in the early hours.

The president was coming home from the Cop26 climate summit in Glasgow.

According to a pool report, the president reentered the White House at 1.38am but “did not respond to shouted questions seeking a response about election results”.

The Associated Press had called the Virginia gubernatorial result â€" a defeat for Democrat Terry McAuliffe, who had been heavily promoted by Mr Biden â€" almost exactly one hour before that time.

Read on below for what Glenn Youngkin’s victory might mean for the president:

Jon Sharman3 November 2021 11:071635937281Democrats need to get bills passed to boost Biden’s approval rating, strategist warns

Democrats are reeling from electoral defeats this morning and Joe Biden, at a low ebb of popularity, has returned home from Cop26 to a storm of difficulties.

He must bring feuding Democratic progressives and moderates together on the $1.75 trillion social safety-net spending plan and a $1 trillion infrastructure bill.

Reuters-Ipsos' latest polling suggests 44 per cent of Americans approve of Mr Biden, down from nearly 60 per cent early in his presidency.

"It would be catastrophic for us not to start passing some legislation immediately," said Democratic strategist Bud Jackson.

"I'm confident that if we can get this stuff passed, the economy starts to turn around and the supply chains improve, there are opportunities for Biden's poll numbers to improve. But they're not going to recover until we get this passed," he said.

Jon Sharman3 November 2021 11:011635935781Cincinnati joins Boston in electing first Asian-American mayor

Cincinnati has elected its first Asian-American mayor on the same day as Boston.

In Cincinnati, Aftab Pureval, 39, easily defeated former Democratic congressman David Mann.

"Tonight, we made history in Cincinnati," Mr Pureval told a large gathering of supporters. "Cincinnati is a place where no matter what you look like, where you're from, or how much money you have, if you come here and work hard you can achieve your dreams."

Previously Mr Pureval, the son of a Tibetan mother and Indian father, was county clerk, the first Democrat to serve in the role. He had left his job as a lawyer in 2015 to run for the office.

Jon Sharman3 November 2021 10:361635934521Image shows moment Glenn Youngkin realised he was ahead in Virginia governor race

A news photographer captured the moment Glenn Youngkin and his team realised they were ahead of Terry McAuliffe, the Democrat, in the race to become Virginia’s governor.

(Getty Images)Jon Sharman3 November 2021 10:151635933621Democrat wins special House election in Ohio

Shontel Brown has won the Cleveland, Ohio-area US House seat formerly held by Joe Biden’s housing secretary, Marcia Fudge, in a special election.

Ms Brown is a Cuyahoga county council member who also chairs the county Democratic Party. She defeated Republican Laverne Gore, a business owner and activist, in the 11th congressional district. The district is a heavily Democratic area that stretches from Cleveland to Akron.

Ms Brown will fill the remainder of Fudge's term, which runs until January 2023, and faces a reelection battle just next year. Already, her defeated primary opponent, the progressive Nina Turner, has begun campaigning for the full congressional election.

Ms Brown’s victory is a boost for establishment Democrats, who sought to defend the district against a takeover by progressives. Her backers included Hillary Clinton, congressman Jim Clyburn and several labor unions.

The established bloc in the Democratic Party fared less well elsewhere, however, with Terry McAuliffe, a former Clinton fundraiser, defeated in Virginia.

Jon Sharman3 November 2021 10:001635931821Republican lieutenant governor candidate in Virginia claims victory

Winsome Sears, the Republican candidate for lieutenant governor in Virginia, has claimed victory in her battle against Democrat Hala Ayala.

Ms Sears, who served in the legislature for a single term two decades ago and was attempting a political comeback. Either also would be the first woman of color to be elected to statewide office in Virginia.

While the Associated Press had not called the down-ballot races, Republicans were claiming victoy. Ms Sears stood with her family in front of cheering supporters at a victory party in Chantilly, saying, "What you are looking at is the American Dream."

Ms Ayala did not concede defeat early Wednesday morning.

Either would be the first woman of colour elected to statewide office in Virginia, and the first female lieutenant governor.

Additional reporting by agencies

Jon Sharman3 November 2021 09:301635930141Biden’s approval rating shrinks to 42 per cent as 7 in 10 Americans say he is leading US in wrong direction

More than 50 per cent of Americans disapprove of Joe Biden’s performance in the White House, a poll has found.

According to a survey by NBC News, about 71 per cent of the participants believed that the US was headed on the wrong track under the presidency of Mr Biden, while only 42 per cent of the adults approved of him as the president, writes Namita Singh.

Mr Biden did not seem to be doing well in other surveys as well. About 58 per cent of Americans were critical of Mr Biden’s handling of the economy, found a poll by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

Jon Sharman3 November 2021 09:021635928281Coal lobbyist wins open House seat in Ohio

Mike Carey, a Republican and long-time coal lobbyist, wom an open US House seat in central Ohio for his party in Tuesday's special congressional election.

Mr Carey defeated two-term Democratic state representative Allison Russo, a public health policy consultant, in the state’s 15th congressional district, even though Ms Russo had raised more money in the district than any Democrat in history.

Donald Trump had endorsed Mr Carey to succeed veteran congressman Steve Stivers, a centrist Republican who resigned in April to become chief executive of the Ohio Chamber of Commerce.

Mr Trump called Mr Carey a "courageous fighter" and visited the state to campaign for him, as did former vice president Mike Pence.

Mr Carey has been vice president of government affairs for American Consolidated Natural Resources, formerly Murray Energy, since 2012. He also chairs the board of the Ohio Coal Association.

Additional reporting by agencies

Jon Sharman3 November 2021 08:311635927141Seattle mayor’s race: Bruce Harrell says ‘history in the making’ as he takes 30% lead over rival Lorena González

The man who would be Seattle’s first Asian-American mayor has claimed this is “history in the making” as he surged to a 30 per cent lead over his rival, writes Andrew Buncombe.

Bruce Harrell, 64, a former president of the city council and whose mother, originally from Japan, was interned during the Second World War, appeared before supporters as early results placed him more than 30 points ahead of Lorena González.

Jon Sharman3 November 2021 08:121635926001Boston elects first woman as mayor

Michelle Wu has made history by being both the first woman and first non-white person to be elected as Boston’s mayor.

Throughout its long history, Boston had previously only elected white men as mayor.

Ms Wu defeated fellow Boston city councilor Annissa Essaibi George. The two Democrats faced off against each other after defeating several other mayoral hopefuls in a September preliminary election.

The election of Ms Wu, whose parents immigrated to the US from Taiwan, marks another break from tradition in Boston.

Ms Wu grew up in Chicago, only moving to Boston to attend Harvard University and Harvard Law School. Boston typically elects mayors with lifelong Boston roots.

Additional reporting by agencies

Jon Sharman3 November 2021 07:53

Share this post