Virginia's first congressional district is a
United States congressional district
Congressional districts in the United States are electoral divisions for the purpose of electing members of the United States House of Representatives. The number of voting seats within the House of Representatives is currently set at 435, wi ...
in the commonwealth of
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
. It streches from the
Richmond
Richmond most often refers to:
* Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada
* Richmond, California, a city in the United States
* Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England
* Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...
suburbs towards the
Northern Neck
The Northern Neck is the northernmost of three peninsulas (traditionally called "necks" in Virginia) on the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay in the Commonwealth of Virginia (along with the Middle Peninsula and the Virginia Peninsula). The P ...
and
Middle Peninsula
The Middle Peninsula is the second of three large peninsulas on the western shore of Chesapeake Bay in Virginia. To the north the Rappahannock River separates it from the Northern Neck peninsula. To the south the York River separates it from th ...
. The district encompasses the
Historic Triangle
The Historic Triangle includes three historic colonial communities located on the Virginia Peninsula, bounded by the York River on the north and James River on the south. The three points that form the triangle are Jamestown, Colonial Williams ...
of
Jamestown,
Williamsburg
Williamsburg may refer to:
Places
*Colonial Williamsburg, a living-history museum and private foundation in Virginia
*Williamsburg, Brooklyn, neighborhood in New York City
*Williamsburg, former name of Kernville (former town), California
*Williams ...
, and
Yorktown. It has been represented by
Republican Rob Wittman
Robert Joseph Wittman (born February 3, 1959) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for since 2007. The district contains portions of the Richmond suburbs and Hampton Roads area, as well as the Northern Neck and Middle ...
since 2007.
The district is sometimes referred to as "America's First District" since it includes the
Historic Triangle
The Historic Triangle includes three historic colonial communities located on the Virginia Peninsula, bounded by the York River on the north and James River on the south. The three points that form the triangle are Jamestown, Colonial Williams ...
of
Jamestown,
Williamsburg
Williamsburg may refer to:
Places
*Colonial Williamsburg, a living-history museum and private foundation in Virginia
*Williamsburg, Brooklyn, neighborhood in New York City
*Williamsburg, former name of Kernville (former town), California
*Williams ...
, and
Yorktown. In the 18th and early 19th century, it comprised northwestern Virginia (that became
Frederick County, Virginia
Frederick County is located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 91,419. Its county seat is Winchester. The county was formed in 1743 by the splitting of Orange County. It is Virginia's nor ...
as well as the
Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia after the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
). The district includes major military installations and has been represented by Republican
Rob Wittman
Robert Joseph Wittman (born February 3, 1959) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for since 2007. The district contains portions of the Richmond suburbs and Hampton Roads area, as well as the Northern Neck and Middle ...
since 2007.
In 2016, the adjacent
3rd district was ruled unconstitutional. New districts have been drawn.
Recent district election results from statewide races
Composition
For the
118th and successive Congresses (based on redistricting following the
2020 census), the district contains all or portions of the following counties and communities:
Chesterfield County (4)
:
Bon Air,
Brandermill,
Midlothian
Midlothian (; ) is registration county, lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area and one of 32 council areas of Scotland used for local government. Midlothian lies in the east-central Lowlands, bordering the City of Edinburgh council ar ...
,
Woodlake
Essex County (1)
:
Tappahannock
Tappahannock is the oldest town in Essex County, Virginia, United States. The population was 2,375 at the 2010 census, up from 2,068 at the 2000 census. Located on the Rappahannock River, Tappahannock is the county seat of Essex County. Its nam ...
Gloucester County (2)
:
Gloucester Courthouse,
Gloucester Point
Hanover County (3)
:
Ashland,
Hanover
Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...
,
Mechanicsville
Henrico County (5)
:
Glen Allen (part; also
4th
Fourth or the fourth may refer to:
* the ordinal form of the number 4
* ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971
* Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision
* Fourth (music), a musical interval
* ''The Fourth'', a 1972 Soviet drama
...
),
Innsbrook,
Short Pump,
Tuckahoe,
Wyndham Wyndham may refer to:
*Wyndham (name), a surname and given name
Places Australia
*City of Wyndham, an LGA (local government area) in Victoria
* Shire of Wyndham-East Kimberley, a LGA in Western Australia
* Wyndham Important Bird Area, Western Aust ...
James City County (0)
: No incorporated or census-recognized communities
King and Queen County (1)
:
King and Queen Court House
King William County (3)
: All 3 communities
Lancaster County (5)
: All 5 communities
Mathews County (2)
:
Gwynn,
Mathews
Middlesex County (3)
: All 3 communities
New Kent County (1)
:
New Kent
Northumberland County (1)
:
Heathsville
Richmond County (1)
:
Warsaw
Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...
Westmoreland County (2)
:
Colonial Beach,
Montross
York County (2)
:
Bethel Manor,
Yorktown
Independent cities (2)
:
Poquoson
Poquoson (), informally known as Bull Island, is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 12,460. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Poquoson with surroundin ...
,
Williamsburg
Williamsburg may refer to:
Places
*Colonial Williamsburg, a living-history museum and private foundation in Virginia
*Williamsburg, Brooklyn, neighborhood in New York City
*Williamsburg, former name of Kernville (former town), California
*Williams ...
Historic district boundaries

The Virginia First District started in 1788 covering the counties of
Berkeley
Berkeley most often refers to:
*Berkeley, California, a city in the United States
**University of California, Berkeley, a public university in Berkeley, California
*George Berkeley (1685–1753), Anglo-Irish philosopher
Berkeley may also refer to ...
,
Frederick Frederick may refer to:
People
* Frederick (given name), the name
Given name
Nobility
= Anhalt-Harzgerode =
* Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670)
= Austria =
* Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria fro ...
,
Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...
,
Hardy
Hardy may refer to:
People
* Hardy (surname)
* Hardy (given name)
* Hardy (singer), American singer-songwriter Places Antarctica
* Mount Hardy, Enderby Land
* Hardy Cove, Greenwich Island
* Hardy Rocks, Biscoe Islands
Australia
* Hardy, ...
,
Harrison
Harrison may refer to:
People
* Harrison (name)
* Harrison family of Virginia, United States
Places
Australia
* Harrison, Australian Capital Territory, suburb in the Canberra district of Gungahlin
Canada
* Inukjuak, Quebec, or "Port H ...
,
Monongalia,
Ohio
Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...
,
Randolph Randolph may refer to:
Places In the United States
* Randolph, Alabama, an unincorporated community
* Randolph, Arizona, a populated place
* Randolph, California, a village merged into the city of Brea
* Randolph, Illinois, an unincorporated com ...
and
Shenandoah. Of these only Shenandoah and Frederick Counties are in Virginia today; the rest are now part of
West Virginia
West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...
. The modern counties of
Clarke
Clarke is a surname which means "clerk". The surname is of English and Irish origin and comes from the Latin . Variants include Clerk and Clark. Clarke is also uncommonly chosen as a given name.
Irish surname origin
Clarke is a common surname ...
,
Warren
Warren most commonly refers to:
* Warren (burrow), a network dug by rabbits
* Warren (name), a given name and a surname, including lists of persons so named
Warren may also refer to:
Places Australia
* Warren (biogeographic region)
* War ...
and most of
Page
Page most commonly refers to:
* Page (paper), one side of a leaf of paper, as in a book
Page, PAGE, pages, or paging may also refer to:
Roles
* Page (assistance occupation), a professional occupation
* Page (servant), traditionally a young m ...
as well as the independent city of
Winchester
Winchester (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs N ...
were included as part of Frederick and Shenandoah counties in 1788. In West Virginia all the current state north and east of a generalized line running from
Wood County to
Pocahontas County was in the congressional district. The one exception was that
Pendleton County, West Virginia
Pendleton County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 6,143, making it the second-least populous county in West Virginia. Its county seat is Franklin. The county was created by the ...
was in
Virginia's 3rd congressional district.
In the redistribution which followed the 1850 census (in force 1853–1863), the First District comprised sixteen counties in eastern Virginia. The counties included (amongst others)
Accomack Accomac may refer to:
Geography
*Accomac, Virginia, a town in Virginia
** Accomac Shire, a former county in Virginia of which the town was the county seat
* Accomac, Pennsylvania
Peoples
* Accomac people, a historic Native American tribe from ...
,
Essex
Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...
,
Gloucester
Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city, non-metropolitan district and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West England, South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean ...
,
James City,
King and Queen,
Mathews,
Middlesex
Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...
,
New Kent,
Richmond
Richmond most often refers to:
* Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada
* Richmond, California, a city in the United States
* Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England
* Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...
,
Warwick
Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon, Warwickshire, River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined wit ...
and
Westmoreland. In an 1862 Union special election three out of the sixteen counties in the Union district supplied returns.
The First District is noted for its strong presence of military institutions, including the
Naval Surface Warfare Center
The Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) is part of the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) operated by the United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United Sta ...
. Increasing numbers of military and retired voters have swung the district to the right.
Recent election results
List of members representing the district
See also
*
Virginia's congressional districts
Virginia is currently divided into 11 congressional districts, each represented by a member of the United States House of Representatives.
Current districts and representatives
List of members of the United States House delegation from Virgini ...
*
List of United States congressional districts
Congressional districts in the United States are electoral divisions for the purpose of electing members of the United States House of Representatives. The number of voting seats within the House of Representatives is currently set at 435, wi ...
*
2007 Virginia's 1st congressional district special election
After the death of Republican Congresswoman Jo Ann Davis on October 6, 2007, a special election was required to fill the vacancy for the remainder of the 110th United States Congress. Governor Tim Kaine announced that the election would occur ...
References
*
*
Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present
{{DEFAULTSORT:Virginia's 1st Congressional District
01
Constituencies established in 1789
1789 establishments in Virginia
Constituencies disestablished in 1933
1933 disestablishments in Virginia
Constituencies established in 1935
1935 establishments in Virginia