Northern Va. congressional incumbents expected to prevail over political newcomers For Connolly, 62, a former Fairfax County supervisor, the win would mean a third term in Congress. Although he beat his Republican challenger by fewer than 1,000 votes in 2010, his victory this time was seen as all but certain, in large part because his district, which includes portions of Fairfax and Prince William counties, was redrawn to be more favorable to Democrats. He faced retired Army Col. Chris Perkins, a political outsider with far less money who had never run for elected office. Connolly served 14 years as a supervisor before joining Congress, and since then he has established a reputation for championing federal workers. In campaigning, he criticized Perkins for what he said was his failure after leaving the Army to become civically engaged in the 11th District. A former Green Beret, Perkins won a competitive primary and knocked Connolly as a typical career politician. He promised to rein in federal spending and work for a more limited government. But for voter Eddie Ward, 73, who cast a ballot in Annandale, the choice was clear: "I picked Connolly," he said Tuesday afternoon. He's a local boy. He knows Fairfax County. In the 8th District, Moran, 67, was expected to beat Republican Patrick Murray, also a retired Army colonel. It was the second time Murray challenged Moran; in 2010, he lost by 24 points. First elected to Congress in 1990 after serving as mayor of Alexandria, the well-known Moran has won each of his past seven elections with more than 60 percent of the vote, despite a series of controversies. The latest came last month, when Moran's son and campaign field adviser resigned after he was recorded discussing possible voter fraud with an activist posing as a campaign worker. The 8th District was redrawn this year and now includes Arlington County, Alexandria, Falls Church and parts of Fairfax County. Murray was counting on Republican gains in the new district, along with the name recognition he built in his previous run. He campaigned on what he said was a sincere belief that Moran's constituents deserve better, citing what he called Moran's repeated "ethical lapses" and ­"anger-management problems." But no analysts were predicting that Murray's message would be enough to convince voters. The 10th District race was expected to play out similarly, with Wolf, 73, winning a 17th term and vanquishing Democrat Kristin Cabral, a Harvard-educated former federal prosecutor. Running on a promise of fresh leadership, she blasted Wolf as a partisan obstructionist who is badly out of touch with the needs of women, young families and his district, which includes the highly populated eastern suburbs of Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William counties as well as rural swaths of Clarke and Frederick. But with comparatively little campaign money, her largely grass-roots effort wasn't expected to hurt Wolf. As Virginia's longest-serving member of the House, he has established a reputation for providing strong constituent services and speaking out on global human rights issuesjame 35 years. First elected to Congress in 2007 after the death of Rep. Jo Ann S. Davis, he faced Democrat Adam Cook, a lawyer and Air Force veteran who served in Afghanistan. Also expected to win re-election by a wide margin was Republican House Majority Leader Eric Cantor in the 7th District. In the only congressional race in Virginia that had been deemed competitive, Republican Scott Rigell in the 2nd District was leading with 53 percent of the vote as of 8:45 p.m., with 17 percent of precincts reporting. For about 100,000 Prince William residents who used to be part of the 10th and 11th districts, Tuesday was their first time voting in a redrawn 1st District, which stretches from Prince William to Hampton Roads.