RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Voting proceeded smoothly Tuesday across Virginia, where three competitive U.S. House races and a Senate seat vied with the presidential race for attention.

New voting laws and other changes made in response to the coronavirus pandemic made it easier to vote early, and more than 2.75 million voters cast ballots before Election Day. That's more than two-thirds of the total overall voter turnout from four years ago in Virginia.

Virginia Elections Commissioner Chris Piper said at a 4 p.m. news conference that there had been no major problems.

“So far it's been a very smooth day throughout the commonwealth,” Piper said.

David Hendrix, 54, voted at Community of Grace Church in Chesterfield County, where there was no line. The furniture store owner praised President Donald Trump and said he deserved a second term.

“He’s running the country like a business instead of just politics and they can’t buy him off,” Hendrix said.

Dorothy and Richard Cannon, who voted early in Norfolk, said they chose Democrat Joe Biden for president, in part because of their concerns about the cost of health insurance. They said they believe Biden will work to make it more affordable.

“It’s like half my check for me and him to have insurance,” said Dorothy Cannon, 49, who works in sales. “It’s like I’m working to have insurance.”

Democratic Sen. Mark Warner is running for reelection against Daniel Gade, a little-known Republican challenger.

And in a test of whether Virginia's “blue wave” has staying power, two Democrats are trying to hold the competitive House seats they flipped in 2018.

Rep. Abigail Spanberger is working to fend off Republican Nick Freitas in the Richmond area's 7th Congressional District, while Rep. Elaine Luria is in a rematch with Republican former Rep. Scott Taylor for a Hampton Roads-area seat in the 2nd Congressional District.

Spanberger and Luria are part of a group of moderate Democrats who came to Congress with deep military and intelligence experience. Their credentials were instrumental in pushing the House to impeach Trump over allegations that he pressured Ukraine to investigate Biden.

The 5th Congressional District, a reliably GOP seat in the western part of the state, has been closely watched as a potential bellwether. Bob Good ousted incumbent Rep. Denver Riggleman in a GOP primary, in part because of Riggleman's support for gay marriage. Good then faced Democrat Cameron Webb, a Black doctor with a law degree, who is hoping to flip the seat in the Trump-friendly district.

Voters also will decide a referendum that puts next year’s redistricting in Virginia in the hands of a bipartisan commission. If successful, the commission of citizens and legislators will redraw the state’s congressional and General Assembly districts to conform with the 2020 Census.

___

Find AP’s full election coverage at APNews.com/Election2020.