In a unanimous vote, the Virginia State Board of Elections has certified the apparent narrow defeat of Republican Congressman Bob Good in the state's June 18 primaries. Good, who is known as one of America's most conservative congressmen and chairs the hard-right House Freedom Caucus, was challenged by state Senator John McGuire, endorsed by former President Donald Trump.

The certified results show that McGuire emerged as the winner of the primary in Virginia's 5th Congressional District, with a margin of victory of approximately 375 votes out of nearly 63,000 ballots cast, constituting a 0.6 percentage point lead. This falls within the 1% margin requirement for requesting a recount. However, since the margin is larger than 0.5 percentage points, Good will be obligated to bear the cost of the recount himself.

Last week, the Associated Press (AP) declared the race too close to call, signaling the likelihood of a recount. Good, in response, stated his intention to pursue both a recount and legal challenges to prevent a McGuire victory. On social media, he called for a "do-over" in Lynchburg, the largest city in the district and a stronghold for Good. He cited alleged irregularities concerning the acceptance of ballots from a drop box after Election Night.

The Lynchburg registrar acknowledged a procedural error in which seven ballots were retrieved from a drop box on the Friday after the election instead of on Election Night. Nevertheless, the registrar believes that the ballots were deposited on Election Day, and no one witnessed any of the seven ballots being dropped off after that day.

Additionally, Good's campaign expressed skepticism about three fire alarms that went off at polling places in three different precincts on Election Day. Virginia elections commissioner Susan Beals explained during Tuesday's meeting that the fire alarms were triggered by maintenance activities at schools hosting the polling places. Beals commended election officers for securing the ballots and ensuring that no voters were turned away. She emphasized that these occasional issues did not call into question the election results as a whole.

Daniel Bruce, an election lawyer representing the McGuire campaign, asserted that there is no reason to doubt the results despite efforts to undermine confidence. Bruce acknowledged the concerns regarding the Lynchburg drop box and clarified that, at most, there were only seven votes involved.

With the results now certified, Good's campaign has a 10-day window to file a recount petition with one of the circuit courts in the 5th District. However, campaign manager Diana Shores has not provided information on the specific location where the petition will be filed.

Both Good and McGuire have joined other Republicans in expressing concerns about election integrity following Trump's false claims of voter fraud in the 2020 election. Good was among over 100 GOP House members who objected to the Electoral College count in January 2021. The Good-McGuire race has highlighted internal divisions within the party and has been viewed as a test of Trump's influence over the GOP electorate.

Regardless of the primary outcome, either Republican candidate would be considered the favorite over Democratic nominee Gloria Witt in the upcoming November election, given the district's conservative leanings. If Good were to lose, he would be the first House incumbent nationally to lose a primary challenge this year, with the exception of one race involving incumbents due to redistricting.