Editing Eric Cantor (section)

===House of Representatives===
Cantor was first elected to the [[U.S. House of Representatives]] in 2000, succeeding retiring 20-year incumbent Republican [[Tom Bliley]]. He defeated the Democratic nominee, Warren A. Stewart, by nearly 100,000 votes.<ref name="2000election">{{cite web|url=http://clerk.house.gov/member_info/electionInfo/2000election.pdf|title=2000 election results|date=November 5, 2000|publisher=Clerk of the House|page=65|access-date=April 13, 2010}}</ref> Cantor had won the closely contested Republican primary — the real contest in what was then one of the most Republican districts in Virginia — over state Senator [[Steve Martin (Virginia politician)|Steve Martin]] by only 263 votes. During his first term, he was one of only two Jewish Republicans serving concurrently in the House of Representatives, the other being [[Benjamin A. Gilman|Ben Gilman]] of (R-NY). Gilman retired in 2002, leaving Cantor the sole Jewish Republican House member.

In 2002, Cantor was opposed by Democrat [[Ben Jones (Georgia congressman)|Ben Jones]], an actor (who had played "Cooter Davenport" on ''[[The Dukes of Hazzard]]'') and a former congressman from Georgia.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/wp/2014/06/11/the-rise-and-fall-of-eric-cantor-a-timeline/?tid=hpModule_ba0d4c2a-86a2-11e2-9d71-f0feafdd1394 |title=The rise and fall of Eric Cantor: A timeline |author= Jaime Fuller |date=June 11, 2014 |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=June 12, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/06/11/320964904/the-cooter-effect-did-ben-jones-help-unseat-eric-cantor |title=The Cooter Effect: Did Ben Jones Help Unseat Eric Cantor? |author=Bill Chappell |date=June 11, 2014 |website=The Two-Way |publisher=[[NPR]] |access-date=June 12, 2014}}</ref>

In 2004, Cantor was opposed by Independent W. B. Blanton. Cantor won with 75.5% of the vote. In 2006, Cantor was opposed by Democrat James M. Nachman and Independent W. B. Blanton. Cantor won with 64% to Nachman's 34% and Blanton's 2%.{{citation needed|date=February 2014}}

In August 2008, news reports surfaced that Cantor was being considered as [[John McCain]]'s Vice-Presidential [[running mate]], with McCain's representatives seeking documents from Cantor as part of its vetting process.<ref>Rosenbluth, Susan, [http://jewishvoiceandopinion.com/EricCantor.html "Eric Cantor: He's Young, He's Conservative, He's against Dividing Jerusalem, and John McCain's Considering Him for VP"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080920140926/http://www.jewishvoiceandopinion.com/EricCantor.html |date=September 20, 2008 }}, ''Jewish Voice and Opinion'', August 2008.</ref><ref>Lewis, Bob, via [[Associated Press]]. [https://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080803/ap_on_el_pr/mccain_cantor "In veep search, McCain asks Cantor for records"], ''[[Yahoo! News]]'', August 3, 2008.</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Rep. Cantor Under Closer McCain Scrutiny for Veep|publisher=[[Fox News Channel]]|date=August 2, 2008|access-date=August 3, 2008|url=http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/08/02/mccain-campaign-asks-rep-cantor-for-personal-records/}}</ref> The idea for Cantor to be McCain's running mate was supported by conservative leaders like [[Richard Land]] and [[Erick Erickson]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Evangelical Leader Warns McCain on VP Pick|work=[[CBS News]]|date=August 8, 2008|access-date=August 3, 2008|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/evangelical-leader-warns-mccain-on-vp-pick/}}</ref> Cantor was not selected for the vice presidential nomination, and in his [[United States House of Representatives elections in Virginia, 2008#District 7|2008]] re-election campaign, Cantor defeated Democratic challenger Anita Hartke 63%–37%.

In [[United States House of Representatives elections in Virginia, 2010#District 7|2010]], Cantor was re-elected with 59% of the vote.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.vpap.org/candidates/federal |title=The Virginia Public Access Project |publisher=Vpap.org |access-date=August 13, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120629120825/http://www.vpap.org/candidates/federal |archive-date=June 29, 2012  }}</ref>

In [[United States House of Representatives elections in Virginia, 2012#District 7|2012]], Cantor faced a primary challenger, Floyd C. Bayne, in the June 12 Republican primary; Cantor won the primary with 79% of the vote<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://apps.elections.virginia.gov/election/DATA/2012/A2E23EAB-7EA6-40E2-AF41-3CE22C787EA4/Official/6_s.shtml |title=2012 primary |access-date=December 12, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220113141/https://apps.elections.virginia.gov/election/DATA/2012/A2E23EAB-7EA6-40E2-AF41-3CE22C787EA4/Official/6_s.shtml |archive-date=December 20, 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref> and then defeated Democratic challenger Wayne Powell in the general election. Although he won with 58% of the vote, Cantor received his lowest vote percentage since being elected to Congress in 2000.{{citation needed|date=December 2016}}