Democrat · Virginia's 5th District · 2026
Tom Perriello
Perriello grew up near Charlottesville, the son of a financial analyst and a pediatrician.
Biography
Tom Perriello is an Eagle Scout from Albemarle County's Troop 114, an uncle to ten nieces and nephews and a godfather to seven children.1 He attended local public schools and still lives outside Charlottesville.1 His education later took him to Yale, where he completed his undergraduate degree in 1996 and his law degree in 2001.2 /)
Perriello won a House seat in 2008 and represented the district from 2009 to 2011.2 /) He supported the Affordable Care Act and advocated going further through a public insurance option or Medicare buy in.1 After Congress, his work included advocacy organizations focused on healthcare, voting rights and reproductive freedom.1
Diplomacy subsequently took him to conflicts abroad: he served as the United States envoy for Africa's Great Lakes region in 2015 and 2016, and for Sudan in 2024 and 2025.2 /) His other work includes helping establish Bird of Light Ukraine and MutualAidSudan.org.1
His current campaign prioritizes affordable healthcare, childcare, housing and retirement, alongside ending tariffs and the Iran war.3 He also campaigns against political dark money and insider trading.3 Perriello faces Republican incumbent John McGuire and independent Cooke Harvey on the November ballot.4