FAIRFAX, Va. — Voters in Virginia’s 11th Congressional District head to the polls Tuesday in a rare special election that has become a flashpoint over federal layoffs, education policy and public safety. The race will determine who replaces longtime Democratic Rep. Gerry Connolly , who died of cancer earlier this year .

On the ballot are Democrat James Walkinshaw , a Fairfax County supervisor and Connolly’s former chief of staff, and Republican Stewart Whitson , a former FBI special agent and Army veteran. The two candidates present sharply contrasting visions for a district hit particularly hard by recent federal workforce reductions under the Trump administration.

Fairfax County is home to more than 80,000 federal employees, and cuts from the Department of Government Efficiency

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