Rep. Elaine Luria and her Republican challenger, state Sen. Jen Kiggans, faced off in their third and final debate Tuesday night, jousting over gun violence, energy prices, election integrity and abortion.
The candidates are in a tight race to represent Virginia’s 2nd Congressional District in the U.S. House. It’s among several close contests that likely will determine which party controls the House, with a recent poll stating that the candidates are in a dead heat.
Tuesday’s debate displayed the stark differences between the candidates, as well as the growing divide between the nation’s two main political parties, with Luria and Kiggans finding little, if any, common ground.
Following a question about election integrity, Luria accused her opponent of jumping on the “election denier train” and said real dangers arose from perpetuating lies about voter fraud.
The congresswoman slammed Kiggans for being one of four state senators who voted for a $70 million budget amendment to conduct an audit of the 2020 presidential election results in Virginia. The measure did not pass.
“I haven’t heard her have any concerns about the 2021 election because, of course, she was pleased with that outcome,” Luria said, presumably referencing Glenn Youngkin’s victory in Virginia’s gubernatorial election.
Kiggans — who has repeatedly dodged questions about whether she acknowledges President Joe Biden was fairly elected — said election integrity is one of her top priorities.
“We’ve got to restore strength and confidence in the way we conduct elections,” she said.
When asked about gun violence, Luria, a Democrat, recalled how the 2019 mass shooting at the Virginia Beach Municipal Center had “tragically shaped” the community.
She said she supported universal background checks for firearms and an assault weapons ban.
“(Assault weapons) can kill so many people so quickly,” she said. “We have to do more to get this epidemic of gun violence under control.”
Kiggans said supporting the police was the best solution. Police departments are struggling with shortages because officers face too much scrutiny, she said.
“We have to treat our law enforcement like the heroes that they are and criminals like criminals,” she said. “We can do better by backing the blue.”
While discussing energy and gas prices, Kiggans slammed Biden for traveling to nations like Saudi Arabia and “begging” for oil.
She said the United States should reopen the Keystone oil pipeline and reduce regulations for the oil and gas industry. She also voiced support for nuclear energy.
Luria said she advocated for energy policies that incorporate “all of the above”— nuclear power, offshore wind, natural gas and solar energy.
Luria, who has previously blamed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine for the rising cost of gas, said the U.S. must continue supporting Ukraine.
“I have been very supportive of that continued aid to Ukraine so they can kick out every last Russian invader and we can restore back to normalcy the supply chain for energy and fuel,” she said.
Kiggans didn’t offer where she stands on aid to Ukraine, but she did contend the U.S.’s chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021 played a role in the current crisis in Ukraine.
In regards to abortion, Luria said she supported codifying the recently overturned U.S. Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade into law in order to protect abortion access.
Kiggans described herself as a pro-life candidate — but said abortion laws should be decided at the state level. A moderator asked Kiggans to clarify if this meant she would decline to vote on abortion-related legislation in Congress.
Kiggans did not answer the question and instead reiterated that abortion laws should be set by the state.
When asked about her role on a House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, Luria said she believed the panel was “on the right side of history.”
The congresswoman said the many departments and officials, including former Vice President Mike Pence, were pressured before and during the attack to undermine the presidential election results.
“Our democratic institutions, if we allow that to slip away, that is something that we can never recover from,” she said, adding the committee will provide recommendations on how to prevent another attempt to overturn an election.
Kiggans called Jan. 6 “a dark day” but said when she knocked on doors in the district, residents shared concerns about the economy, not the attack on the Capitol.
The debate, which was televised and livestreamed, was hosted by News 3. News anchor Barbara Ciara served as the moderator.
Luria was first elected to Congress in 2018. She is a retired Naval commander who served as a nuclear-trained surface warfare officer.
Kiggans was elected to the General Assembly in 2019. She is a geriatric nurse practitioner and a former Navy helicopter pilot.
Election Day is Nov. 8; early voting is underway.
Katie King, katie.king@virginiamedia.com
