Democrats have gained control of both chambers of the Virginia General Assembly after gains in the House of Delegates in Tuesday’s elections. Democrats have reached the threshold of 51 seats to take control of the House chamber and have reached the 21 seats needed to retain control of the Senate.
Republican Chris Obenshain won the delegation against Democrat Lily Franklin by a 52%-48% margin in a race for the 41st District Virginia House of Delegates seat.
Democrat Schuyler VanValkenburg, ‘04, defeated Republican Siobhan Dunnavant in the election for the Virginia Senate in the 16th District, by a margin of 53% to 47% of the popular vote.
Democrat Rodney Willett won the race for the 58th District of the Virginia House of Delegates on Tuesday night, defeating Republican Riley Shaia by a margin of 53%-47%.
The casino referendum was expected to be one of the most competitive races this year, with polls from late October showing a tight race with 52% voting against building the casino. With more than 90% of votes reported, over 60% of voters rejected the project.
The Virginia General Assembly passed a bill in 2020 which allowed localities to implement ranked choice voting for local governing bodies, like city councils or boards of supervisors.
University of Richmond students voting as Virginia residents will vote in either Richmond City or Henrico County. Here is what they can expect on their ballot.
Despite its 2021 ballot defeat, the prospect of having a casino in Richmond is far from over. On Monday, Sept. 18, businessmen and community members gathered at Pine Camp Arts and Community Center to discuss the proposed Richmond Grand Casino and Resort, which will be on the ballot as a referendum question this November.
“Maybe the right way wasn’t before when we were sleeping in dorms with no air conditioning in Marsh Hall. That wasn’t an awesome experience,” he said. “But the kind of bare-bones gym we had, it worked just fine.”
Jackson accused “a certain Afro-American woman on the board” of using her son’s graduation and death to push Superintendent Jason Kamras out of office.
Hedlund displayed a sign at RF&P park in Glen Allen that said “Biden Sucks” with a depiction of male genitalia outside of a youth baseball tournament on Aug. 17.
"What's been going through my mind lately is just the gun violence and mass shootings, and I'm tired of people saying it's a mental health problem," said the college student, who introduced herself as “K.”
Climate activist Mollee Sullivan held a bright poster on Richmond’s Capitol Square Aug. 28 condemning Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s decision to remove Virginia from a program supporting low-income communities impacted by climate change.
High school graduate Shawn Jackson and his father, Renzo Smith, were killed. Five others were treated for life threatening and minor injuries.
Bagby was widely favored to win the historically democratic district, beating Republican candidate Stephen Imholt in a landslide victory with over 89% of the votes.
