Republicans flipped a Prince William County, Virginia supervisor seat Tuesday that Democrats had held for nearly four decades, after the Democratic nominee refused to drop out despite bipartisan calls to withdraw over resurfaced racist social media posts.
Republican Jeannie LaCroix won the Woodbridge District seat on the Prince William County Board of Supervisors, receiving 1,694 votes — about 43.7% of the total. Democratic nominee Muhammad Sufiyan “Sef” Casim came in second with 1,436 votes, roughly 37%. Write-in candidates claimed the remaining 744 votes, nearly one in five ballots cast. LaCroix is expected to be sworn in on March 14.
The win marks the first time a Republican has held the seat since 1988. Before Tuesday, the seat had been held by Democrat Frank Principi through three consecutive elections, then by Democrat Margaret Franklin, who won in 2019 and again in 2023 — when LaCroix ran for the same seat and lost with just 37% of the vote.
Casim’s candidacy was engulfed in controversy after archived social media posts were circulated that included racial slurs, sexually explicit insults, and disparaging comments about religious and ethnic communities. Records cited by the Prince William County Republican Committee also described posts “comparing Israel to Nazi Germany, endorsing the persecution of Christians and accusing the United States of funding genocide abroad.”
Casim apologized, blaming a “lack of maturity” at the time.
“I posted some comments on social media that are deeply offensive and hurtful, especially to the African American community. The tweets I wrote in my youth are not a reflection of my character and who I am today,” he wrote.
Top state and local Democrats were not satisfied. An open letter signed by Virginia Black Caucus Chairman Del. Luke Torian, state Sen. Jeremy McPike, and several local officials called his apology insufficient and his posts disqualifying.
“His use of deeply derogatory language that has caused immeasurable pain and harm to African Americans throughout this nation’s history reflects a fundamental failure of character and judgment that cannot be overlooked. Mr. Casim has demonstrated that he does not grasp the weight and history of the words he chose to use,” the letter read.
The Prince William County Democratic Committee stood by Casim anyway, saying his apology was sufficient. Casim stayed in the race, saying “the stakes of this election are too high.”