Virginia's 7th congressional district

Virginia's 7th congressional district
Current Representative		Eric Cantor (R)
Population (2000)	643,499
Median income	$50,990
Ethnicity	79.1% White, 16.2% Black, 2.3% Asian, 2.0% Hispanic, 0.3% Native American, 0.2% other
Cook PVI	R+9

Virginia's Seventh Congressional District is a U.S. congressional district in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The district is currently represented by Republican Congressman Eric Cantor (the current House Minority Whip), first elected in 2000.

Voting

Geography

The district stretches from the west end of Richmond and its suburbs in Henrico and portions of Chesterfield Counties, through Montpelier, Culpeper and northward to Page and Rappahannock Counties. Its current configuration dates from 1993, when Virginia was forced to create a majority-minority district by a Justice Department directive. At that time, most of Richmond, which had been entirely in the old 3rd District for over a century, was shifted to a newly created 3rd District. The remaining territory in the old 3rd was combined with some more rural areas to the north to form the new 7th District.

Prior to 1993, the 7th District stretched from the fringes of the Washington, D.C. suburbs to Charlottesville. It included the far northern portion of the Shenandoah Valley, as well as Manassas and Fredericksburg.

Demographics

The total population of the district is 643,499. Median Age for the district is 37.1 years. 79.1% of the district is white, 16.2% Black or African American, 2.3% Asian and 2.0% Hispanic or Latino. Owner-occupied housing is 72.8% and Renter-occupied housing is 27.2%. The median value of single-family owner-occupied homes is $128,800. 84.9% of the district population has at least a High School degree, 33.2% at least a Bachelor's degree or higher. 13.5% of the district are civilian veterans. 15.9% are of disability status (5 years or older). 4.8% are Foreign born and 6.8% speak a language other than English at home. 68.6% of the district is in the labor force, which consists of those 16 years and older. Mean travel time to work is 26.3 minutes. Median household income is $50,990. Per capita income is $25,861. 4.4% of the population account for families living below the poverty level, and 6.1% of individuals live below the poverty level.[1]

List of Representatives

References

• Martis, Kenneth C. (1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company. 
• Martis, Kenneth C. (1982). The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company. 
• Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present