GOVERNMENT + POLITICS
State awards contract for electric-vehicle charging network
The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality has picked a Los Angeles company to build a $14 million electric vehicle charging network in the state. The money comes from Virginia’s nearly $94 million share of a $10 billion settlement with Volkswagen, which admitted to secretly installing devices to cheat emissions tests. EVgo, which says it operates […]
County supervisor and Radford administrator will compete for Roanoke-area House seat
A Roanoke County supervisor and Radford University administrator will compete for the 8th House of Delegates district seat in November. Joe McNamara, a Republican businessman who was first elected to the Board of Supervisors in 1998, first announced his candidacy a few days after Del. Greg Habeeb said he would be leaving the legislature. “My […]
Candidate at center of 2nd District petition mess appears to have enough signatures to stay on ballot
Shaun Brown, a Hampton businesswoman running as an independent in the tightly contested race for the 2nd District seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, will remain on the ballot despite an investigation into the validity of some signatures collected for her by the incumbent Republican congressman’s campaign staff. The Virginia Department of Elections reviewed […]
Who should redraw voting districts? About a quarter of Virginians favor an independent panel, survey says
In a regular redistricting process, 24 percent of Virginians would prefer a panel of local and state experts to redraw electoral boundaries, according to a new survey by Virginia Commonwealth University’s Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs. VCU asked 802 Virginians about the best way for the state to tackle drawing new electoral boundaries […]
Prosecutor requests investigation into signatures gathered by U.S. Rep. Scott Taylor’s staff
The Virginia Beach Commonwealth’s Attorney is requesting a special prosecutor oversee an investigation into possible violations of election laws and forgery in U.S. Rep. Scott Taylor’s re-election campaign. Taylor, a Republican from Virginia Beach representing the 2nd District, came under fire this week after it was revealed his paid staff members circulated a last-minute petition […]
What to expect in Charlottesville: Lots of police, an anti-racist rally and few white supremacists
The city will be on lockdown. Hundreds of state police officers are pouring in from around Virginia. One source says the governor has already decided to declare a state of emergency. But are any of the white supremacist groups that made Aug. 12 in Charlottesville such a disaster last year planning to return this weekend? […]
Someone threw a lot of red paint on the Lee Monument in Richmond
Capitol Police said someone defaced the the statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee sometime late Friday night or early Saturday morning. It’s easily the largest act of vandalism to target the graffiti-prone statues along Richmond’s Monument Avenue in recent memory. Officials believe whoever did it used a high pressure sprayer — either a fire […]
Redskins say Richmond training camp has been ‘great for the city.’ Does anyone believe them?
Redskins management this week called the agreement that brought the NFL team’s summer training camp to Richmond six years ago a “financial windfall” for the city, The Washington Times reports. At this point, not a single city official appears to agree with the team’s assessment. The deal cost city taxpayers well over $11 million and […]
A conservative activist in Virginia Beach is suing a Democratic lawmaker for ads that linked him to neo-Nazis
A conservative activist is suing Del. Cheryl Turpin, D-Virginia Beach, over ads she ran during her 2017 campaign that linked him to neo-Nazis and white supremacists. Scott Presler said in a lawsuit filed this week in Virginia Beach Circuit Court that he’s received death threats and is worried about his ability to get jobs after […]
Virginia’s Board of Elections struggling with ‘Stand by Your Ad’ law
On Election Day in 2017, Ned Gallaway realized 50 of his campaign signs were missing something: A sentence about who paid for them. Gallaway, running unopposed for the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors, found each sign and added the phrase “Paid for and authorized by Ned Gallaway for Supervisor,” by hand. “It was embarrassing,” he […]
Speaker sets special election for Roanoke-area House seat
The special election to fill a Virginia House of Delegates seat vacated by the resignation of Del. Greg Habeeb, a Republican from Salem, will be Nov. 6, the same day as the general election for U.S. House of Representatives, Senate and local races. The Republican Speaker of the House, Del. Kirk Cox of Colonial Heights, […]
Report: More than 150,000 Virginia families don’t claim tax credit
About 150,000 households in the state are missing out on getting thousands of dollars more back during tax season, a new report from The Commonwealth Institute found. The Richmond-based, nonpartisan research organization found only about 80 percent of Virginians who are eligible for the federal Earned Income Tax Credit — for low-to-moderate income taxpayers and […]