As votes are being corrected and provisional ballots examined by election boards across the Fifth District, the underdog candidate for the congressional seat can breathe a little easier. For now.
As of 3:51pm today, Democratic candidate Tom Perriello is leading incumbent Virgil Goode by 635 votes, 158,516 (50.07 percent) votes to 157,881 (49.87 percent). At this time, 186 write-ins have been recorded.
Although Virginia law allows the losing party to request a recount if the results are within 1 percent or less, Jessica Barba, communications director for the Perriello campaign, said in a statement that they feel confident Perriello will be "declared the winner in this race."
"Our win margin has been growing wider as the results have been coming in from the official vote tally and now it appears that we now have a substantial lead in the race," said Barba in a press release issued when the lead was around 850 votes. "It’s clear that the fifth district is eager for a change in leadership to stabilize the economy, achieve energy independence, and correct our course in Iraq and Afghanistan. Perriello will deliver that leadership."
