VApolitics.net
| J. Randy Forbes (R) | Louise Lucas (D) | Write-Ins | Total Votes | |
| Amelia County | 1,285 | 775 | 1 | 2,061 |
| Brunswick County | 1,463 | 1,947 | 4 | 3,414 |
| Chesterfield County | 4,562 | 2,815 | 15 | 7,392 |
| Dinwiddie County | 2,677 | 2,137 | 0 | 4,814 |
| Greensville County | 964 | 1,297 | 3 | 2,264 |
| Isle of Wight County | 898 | 581 | 1 | 1,480 |
| Nottoway County | 1,570 | 1,322 | 0 | 2,892 |
| Prince George County | 3,260 | 1,838 | 13 | 5,111 |
| Southampton County | 1,920 | 1,886 | 5 | 3,811 |
| Sussex County | 1,133 | 1,455 | 0 | 2,588 |
| Chesapeake | 26,778 | 17,225 | 82 | 44,085 |
| Colonial Heights | 3,303 | 608 | 17 | 3,928 |
| Emporia | 706 | 651 | 0 | 1,357 |
| Franklin | 862 | 1,084 | 14 | 1,960 |
| Hopewell | 2,174 | 1,293 | 3 | 3,470 |
| Petersburg | 1,398 | 5,873 | 0 | 7,271 |
| Portsmouth | 9,042 | 15,266 | 36 | 24,344 |
| Suffolk | 6,922 | 7,137 | 14 | 14,073 |
| Total | 70,917 | 65,190 | 208 | 136,315 |
| Percentage | 52.02% | 47.82% | 0.15% | 100.0% |
Source: State Board of Elections.
Republican Randy Forbes and Democrat Louise Lucas, both State Senators, faced off in a special election to succeed Norman Sisissky, Democrat of Petersburg, who died in March 2001. Forbes's base was in Chesapeake while Lucas's was in Portsmouth. Forbes won the Republican nomination over Delegate Kirk Cox of Colonial Heights at a convention, while Lucas was unopposed for the Democratic nomination. The contest attracted national attention due to the slim Republican majority in the U.S. House of Representatives and the media hype as a referendum on the Bush administration. The result was a gain for the Republican Party.