Virginia Beach state senator Aaron Rouse has announced he’s running for Lieutenant Governor in 2025.

Rouse, a former professional football player and Virginia Beach native, has had a quick rise through the political ranks. 

He was first elected to Virginia Beach’s City Council in 2018. When Jen Kiggans won election to Congress, Rouse took her state senate seat in a tight special election at the start of 2023. He was able to hang onto his seat in a rematch with Republican Kevin Adams last November.

But now, after just two sessions in the General Assembly, Rouse is making a play to be the state’s No. 2 executive.

As a state legislator, Rouse framed himself as a major defender of reproductive rights and  carried some major bills for the Democratic party, like the now-vetoed bill that would have finally created a retail market for cannabis in the state.

Rouse isn’t the only prominent Democrat looking to be the future governor’s second-in-command.

Levar Stoney, the mayor of Richmond, also announced Tuesday morning he was dropping out of the Democratic contest for Governor to instead seek the party nomination for lieutenant Governor. 

Stoney was set to square off against Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger for the gubernatorial nomination, but early polls had the Richmond mayor trailing Spanberger by a massive margin.

Rouse and Stoney won’t have their showdown for more than a year. The primaries and elections for Virginia’s governor and lieutenant governor aren’t scheduled until 2025.

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