1973Final resultsSpecial election
1973 special election for Virginia Senate District 20
Virginia State Senate · Virginia
Virgil Goode (Ind) won with 54.6% of the vote, defeating Sherman S. Dutton (R) by 33.3 points.
Virgil GoodeIndependent · winner
54.6%12,551
Sherman S. DuttonRepublican
21.3%4,887
Francis T. WestIndependent
12.3%2,821
Ebb W. Williams IIIIndependent
8.8%2,028
Jesse CahillIndependent
2.0%470
Cary J. RandolphIndependent
1.0%233
22,990 votes
Source: Harvard Dataverse / Carl KlarnerUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:29 AM ET
The seat over time
D − R margin in this seat's races around 1973
Races before and after
Source: Harvard Dataverse / Carl KlarnerUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:29 AM ET
The candidates
Virgil Goode (I)Sherman S. Dutton (R)Francis T. West (I)Ebb W. Williams III (I)
Also on the ballot: Jesse Cahill (Independent), 2.0%; Cary J. Randolph (Independent), 1.0%