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Former Rep. Elaine Luria, D-Va., a member of the Jan. 6 committee who lost re-election in 2022, is launching a bid for her old congressional seat against GOP Rep. Jennifer Kiggans. In an exclusive interview with NBC News announcing her plans, Luria said the “chaos” in Washington compelled her to run again for the battleground district. “I’ve watched the chaos here in Washington — really, it’s a do-nothing Republican Congress, and they haven’t even been to work for about 50 days,” Luria said. “I said to myself, this is the time for me to continue to serve in that capacity and go back to being representative for Virginia’s 2nd District again.” Luria will likely face several opponents in the Democratic primary before the general election in what is expected to be one of the most competitive seats in the 2026 midterms, when control of the House is up for grabs. President Donald Trump barely carried the 2nd District — which runs up and down the state’s coast and is centered around Norfolk and Virginia Beach — in 2024 as Kiggans won a second term by less than 4 points. A former naval officer, Luria is particularly interested in issues related to veterans in a district with a major military presence. She said she is concerned about the Trump administration’s aggressive use of military intervention in places like South America without congressional approval and believes Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is not up to the job. “I really don’t have a lot of confidence in his leadership,” Luria said. “I mean, it’s really disturbing as an American to think that the only information that we’re getting out of the Pentagon is through vetted reporters who agree to essentially not ask questions and only parrot press releases that were handed to them by the Pentagon spokesman.” Luria drew national attention for her role as a member of the House select committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol. She and former Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., took center stage in a prime-time hearing that highlighted Trump’s lack of action during a 187-minute window of time as the violence was ramping up on Capitol Hill. She said she is worried about Republican efforts to rewrite the narrative of that day and has no regrets from serving on the committee. “People told me at the time, ‘This will be your own political peril. You’re probably not going to get re-elected in a district like yours.’ And I essentially said at the time, ‘I don’t care. I’m doing the right thing,’” Luria said. “The right thing is to stand up and be part of this committee and present the facts to the American people and I’m not scared.” Luria and every other member of the Jan. 6 committee received a pre-emptive pardon from President Joe Biden in an effort to prevent the Trump administration from seeking retribution for their investigation. She acknowledged her role on the committee has made her a target. “Are there attacks? Have there continued to be attacks? Was there a sheriff’s van parked outside my house for nine months? Were there people waving guns in my neighbor’s driveway? Did someone try to break into our house? Did we get threats to my office? Did people harass me online? It’s a sad state that that’s where we are in politics today,” she said. “I think I’ve always stood up for what was right, even when it wasn’t politically expedient, and I’m going to continue to do that when I come back.” Should Luria emerge from the Democratic primary, it would set up a rematch with Kiggans, who like Luria is a veteran and someone who has worked to carve out a record as a bipartisan member representing a swing district. Kiggans is one of a few House Republicans vocally encouraging the party to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits, a position Luria views as too little, too late. “She’s a nurse and a veteran; she can’t even bring herself to make sure that people have affordable health care,” Luria said. “So no, I think that what she’s doing is really just a gesture to act like she cares. But look at her voting record. She doesn’t care about your health care.” Luria said one of the reasons she is running is because she believes Kiggans has toed the party line too often. “It’s one thing to just go out there and pretend that you’re caring more across the aisle, but I was voted one of the most bipartisan members of Congress because I have a track record of working across the aisle, especially on veterans and military issues,” Luria said. Meanwhile, Republicans are eager for a potential rematch. “Retread loser Elaine Luria remains an out of touch liberal who rubber-stamped Biden’s destructive cost-raising, open borders agenda,” National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman Reilly Richardson said in a statement. “If Luria moves even further left than she already is to win a messy Democrat primary, she’ll have the honor of conceding to Jen Kiggans twice.” A wild card in the race is Virginia’s push to engage in the national mid-decade redistricting battle. Democratic lawmakers recently took the first step toward advancing a constitutional amendment that would allow them to draw a new map that would benefit the party. Luria said she supported the Legislature’s efforts to redraw the lines. “To be in a position where we can do things like cut prices, make things more affordable, ensure that people have affordable health care, and move forward with all of the things that we think are important for our communities and for people across Virginia, in order to do that, you’ve got to get into the fight. You can’t just stand by,” she said.
