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       RICHMOND — Democrats in Virginia’s congressional delegation are already uniting behind Navy veteran Missy Cotter Smasal to challenge Rep. Jen A. Kiggans (R) in 2024, with Reps. Abigail Spanberger and Jennifer Wexton releasing endorsements Tuesday morning.

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       Cotter Smasal, who ran unsuccessfully for state Senate in 2019, announced last week that she would seek the Democratic nomination in the hotly contested 2nd Congressional District, which is based in Hampton Roads with Virginia Beach at its heart.

       Kiggans, also a Navy veteran, defeated Rep. Elaine Luria (D-Va.) by four points in 2022, reclaiming the district for the GOP just four years after Luria had flipped it to blue. Kiggans’s win was the sole pickup for Republicans in last year’s congressional races, and Democrats are wasting no time getting in position to try to take it back.

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       Cotter Smasal “knows what it means to serve her community and her country,” Spanberger said in her endorsement, with Wexton adding that she would be “a trusted partner in our work to grow Virginia’s middle-class.”

       Rep. Jennifer McClellan (D-Va.) endorsed Cotter Smasal last week. No other Democrat has filed to run in the district.

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       Cotter Smasal served as a surface warfare officer in the Navy, then owned an Italian ice business in Virginia Beach for a decade. She now is executive director of Valor Run, a nonprofit that stages races and running events to benefit military women.

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       Her bid for state Senate in 2019 was one of the most expensive races in the state that year. She ran heavily on a gun safety message in a district that had suffered a mass-casualty shooting event at Virginia Beach’s municipal offices, but lost by about 4 points to a favored Republican incumbent.

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       In announcing her run for Congress, Cotter Smasal emphasized safeguarding abortion rights and issues related to military families.

       Kiggans, a former Navy helicopter pilot who had served in the state Senate before winning her congressional seat, also ran on issues related to veterans and military families.

       Delanie Bomar, spokeswoman for the National Republican Congressional Committee, issued a statement last week calling Cotter Smasal “an extreme Democrat with a losing record who is the wrong fit for this district. Meanwhile, Congresswoman Jen A. Kiggans is delivering support for service members’ mental health and fighting to preserve Medicare and Social Security.”

       The 2nd Congressional District has tended to favor Republicans in most elections, but went for Democrat Ralph Northam in the 2017 gubernatorial race and for Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) in 2018 as well as supporting Luria for two terms. Glenn Youngkin (R) won the district by 11 points in his 2021 gubernatorial bid.

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