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Miyares leans in on law-and-order message ahead of 2025 election
As protests erupt again in Los Angeles over U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids and President Donald Trump’s deployment of U.S. Marines to back up the National Guard, Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares isn’t blinking. “It’s not unprecedented,” Miyares, who is seeking a second term as Virginia’s top law enforcement official, said of Trump’s decision to send troops to the streets. . . . In a wide-ranging interview at his office in Richmond earlier this week, Miyares, the son of a Cuban refugee and the first Hispanic Virginian elected statewide, insisted that what’s happening in California is the result of leadership failure.
VPAP Visual House Pre-Primary Fundraising Totals: 2001-2025
Current Virginia Delegates have raised more than $20 million through the pre-primary reporting period, the most since VPAP began tracking money in legislative races. See how fundraising this cycle from incumbents, challengers and candidates running for open seats compares to past elections.
Virginia employers are exploring subsidized child care options for workers
The shortage of affordable child care options in the greater Richmond area — and statewide — is an ongoing problem that experts and advocates want employers to help address. . . . Carter T. Whitelow, vice president of government relations with the Virginia Chamber of Commerce, said there’s a business case to be made for employers providing subsidized child care: Employees who don’t have to worry about quality child care will be happier — and more productive.
16 months after Richmond pulled city staff directory from its website, newspaper publishes it
In February 2024, The Times-Dispatch reported that, amid public outcry over issues with utility bills and meals tax collection, officials under then-Mayor Levar Stoney removed the city’s staff directory from the city website. The directory contained the names, phone numbers and email addresses of City Hall’s many department directors. Without it, Richmond residents were unable to directly contact their highest-paid, most visible and most responsible public servants. . . . Now, The Times-Dispatch is publishing its own database of department directors' desk and cellphone numbers.
Big bet: Can a $130M conservation deal in Virginia’s coal country curb climate change and lift Appalachia?
Waiting around isn’t Debbi Hale’s forte. So nobody in this depleted coalfield town of barely 850 near the Kentucky border was shocked four years ago when the retired gym teacher orchestrated a $10,000 makeover of a neglected patch of grass across from a trailer court. From there, it’s just a short hike down to a paddler’s bliss, where Bad Creek flows into eight undisturbed miles of the Pound River. Then, just days before the July 2022 ribbon-cutting, a ferocious flood ripped through Appalachia. . . . It’s an all-too-familiar pattern for the Wise County native. Such exhausting episodes of one step forward, two steps back are common in this place, which has foundered as King Coal’s century-plus reign plays out. That demise has government agencies and entrepreneurs alike casting about to “fix Appalachia” . . .
Friday Read Friends raced to hit every Metro station in one day. Would they make it?
Lots of people — okay, at least seven people — have visited every Metro stop in a single day. It’s even in the Guinness Book of World Records. But as far as they know, John Veltum and his friends are the first to try actually swiping in and out of all 98 stations. Why? To see if they could.
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EXECUTIVE BRANCH
Army’s 250th birthday commemoration held in Yorktown ahead of Fort Eustis event Friday
Virginia’s governor and the secretary of the Army visited Yorktown on Thursday afternoon as part of several days of celebrations for the service’s 250th birthday. “Together, these links through the last 250 years demonstrate the proud patriots that form the most magnificent band of brothers,” Gov. Glenn Youngkin told the crowd of roughly 200. “That’s the legacy of service and sacrifice.” The event marked the second in a three-part national series, and the speakers included Youngkin and Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll.
STATE ELECTIONS
Democratic field makes closing arguments in crowded Virginia LG race
With the June 17 Democratic primary days away, six candidates locked in a quiet-but-crowded race for lieutenant governor are making their final push to stand out — and to convince voters they’re the best bet to take on Republicans this fall. The contenders include state Sens. Ghazala Hashmi and Aaron Rouse, former Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney, Prince William County School Board Chair Babur Lateef, former federal prosecutor Victor Salgado, and attorney Alex Bastani. The six candidates have done little to differentiate themselves from one another and only a few personal attacks have been made.
Tuesday primary to narrow field for 49th District race
Voters in Danville and some parts of Pittsylvania County will get to select the party candidates for 49th District of Virginia’s House of Delegates seat in Tuesday’s primary. ... The 49th District covers all of Danville and the southeastern portion of Pittsylvania County. It also extends east into Halifax County. The seat was held by Del. Danny Marshall, a longtime Southern Virginia lawmaker, who announced his retirement. Madison Whittle and Vanessa Scearce are vying for the Republican Party’s nomination. Gary Miller and Jasmine Lipscomb are on the ballot seeking the Democratic nod.
STATE GOVERNMENT
Alpha-gal syndrome is gaining recognition in Virginia
Just days before Christmas 2021, Nicole Cooper was struggling to breathe. Her husband called 911, and moments before the ambulance arrived, Cooper jabbed herself with an epinephrine shot. She could tell she was having an allergic reaction, but she didn’t know what she was reacting to. She remembers the panic, the medical questions and treatments in the emergency room. What she doesn’t remember is the tick bite that triggered it all. . . . A bill that passed unanimously during the 2024 General Assembly session added alpha-gal syndrome to Virginia’s list of reportable diseases. Starting July 1, health care professionals must report cases to the Virginia Department of Health.
CONGRESS
'The law is the law': Va. senator rejects Trump move to rebrand Army posts to former names
Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine is rejecting what he calls the Trump Administration’s "whim" to change the names of Fort Gregg-Adams and two other Virginia Army posts back to their original branding, saying he will continue to refer to the installations with their current names because "the law is the law." In a Zoom session June 11 with Virginia reporters, Kaine said he does not believe President Donald Trump has the authority to overturn congressional litigation that changed the names of Forts Lee, A.P. Hill and Pickett to Fort Gregg-Adams, Fort Walker and Fort Barfoot, respectively. The legislation, part of the unanimously passed 2020 Defense Authorization Bill, was vetoed by Trump in 2020 because of the removal of the names of Civil War Confederate heroes. Congress, however, overrode the veto, and the Biden Administration moved forward with the initiative.
ECONOMY/BUSINESS
Killing a Biden-era submarine deal would be a 'lost opportunity' for Hampton Roads, local leader says
When Australia and the United Kingdom signed a deal to buy nuclear submarines from the United States and have U.S. experts teach them to build their own, Hampton Roads officials saw doors opening. The deal, which would see Australia buy as many as five Virginia-class subs from the U.S. to help curb China’s expanding influence in the Pacific, could ultimately be worth more than $200 billion over the next couple of decades. But President Donald Trump announced Wednesday his administration will review the Biden-era deal to ensure it aligns with Trump’s “America First” agenda.
Aspiring CPAs Consider Ditching Grad-School Plans as States Revamp Laws
Recent changes to CPA licensing laws in many U.S. states mean one thing for some prospective accountants: School’s out early. . . . Nearly 20 U.S. states have amended CPA licensing laws since January, in what may become a precursor for the entire country. Several professional groups say they expect close to or all 50 U.S. states to offer alternatives to the 150-hour rule by 2027. The changes permit CPA candidates like Flannery to use an additional year of work experience instead of schoolwork to qualify as a certified public accountant. . . . Virginia, like Ohio and several other states, will implement its new law at the start of 2026. Kameron Samuel, a rising senior at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Va., is setting aside plans to try to reach the 150-credit threshold in favor of applying for jobs once he graduates next May.
HIGHER EDUCATION
Virginia professors’ association calls for end to “politicization” of university leadership
A group of Virginia professors and academics is speaking out against Governor Glenn Youngkin’s appointments to university Boards of Visitors across the state and calling for an end to what they say is the “politicization” of university leadership. This comes after the Virginia Senate Privileges and Elections Committee voted 8-4 to reject Youngkin’s appointees, including former state Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli. On June 11, the American Association of University Professors Virginia Chapter sent a letter to the General Assembly, expressing support for the Committee’s decision to block the appointees and calling on the legislature to “[w]ithhold confirmation of all future BOV appointments by Governor Youngkin until he demonstrates a sustained commitment to appointing individuals who uphold academic freedom, respect shared governance, and prioritize institutional integrity over politics.”
VIRGINIA OTHER
ICE Makes Arrests at Sterling Immigration Court
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Wednesday arrested up to 11 people at the Sterling Immigration Court building. New Virginia Majority Loudoun & Western Fairfax Campaign Coordinator Sofia Saiyed said the officers were not identifiable and would not say where they were taking the individuals. “They started taking people three by three and packing them into vans and taking the vans away,” Saiyed said.
New Virginia Majority Protests ICE Arrests, LCSO Agreement at Sterling Immigration Court
After U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents began arresting undocumented immigrants – particularly at the Sterling Immigration Court – community members gathered on Thursday to protest the actions and an agreement between the Sheriff’s Office and ICE. A press conference was led by the political advocacy group New Virginia Majority whose members have been raising the alarm about increased ICE actions in Loudoun. “Right now, our communities are under attack,” NVM Campaign Director Sofia Saiyed said.
Loudoun activists say immigration crackdown feeds climate of fear
The Trump administration's national immigration crackdown has created a climate of fear in Loudoun County, immigration advocates said at a June 12 news conference. "Our communities are under attack," said Sofia Saiyed, campaign coordinator for New Virginia Majority, a nonprofit immigration reform group. "Our (immigration) systems have long been broken, but today they are reaching a new level of crisis at the federal, state, and local levels."
National parks lose superintendents in Richmond, Petersburg amid 'tough time'
Valentine’s Day was the worst day that Scott Teodorski said he spent in 36 years working for the National Park Service. Teodorski, then-superintendent of the Richmond National Battlefield Park and Maggie L. Walker Historic Site, had to tell three park service employees at the two sites that they were out of a job in a purge of probationary employees as part of President Donald p’s attempt to slash the size of the federal workforce and government spending.
D.C. region launches dashboard to deliver more detailed, timely crime data
A new initiative reporting crime data from across the D.C. region in “near-real time” has won praise from local leaders and will provide new tools for policymakers, public safety agencies and the public. “It’s the only one we’re aware of in the nation,” said Eli Russ, a senior public safety planner for the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG), who serves as project manager for the effort. Officially launched before the group’s monthly meeting Wednesday, the new COG Regional Crime Dashboard will draw from daily reports issued by public safety agencies in 24 jurisdictions spread across D.C., Virginia and Maryland.
New dashboard brings near real-time info about crime around the region
Police departments around the region are increasingly offering updates on crime data, but depending on how big the department is, the speed of those updates might vary. . . . But to track it all, you usually have to go to each individual department’s webpage and search around for the information you want, if you’re trying to compare one area to another. That will no longer be the case. The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments has unveiled a new dashboard that lets you track crime around the region, from the District to the biggest suburban counties in Maryland to the smaller municipalities that also work with COG. You can break it down by jurisdiction or group the D.C. area together.
Tribal leaders discuss land loss, environmental challenges in coastal Virginia
Indigenous communities have navigated Virginia’s land and waters for thousands of years, weathering countless wars, storms and growing development. Local tribal leaders say they’re now facing several environmental challenges, such as flooding and shoreline erosion, that threaten some of the land and resources they’ve worked hard to protect.
LOCAL
Advocates fear FCPD policy change could lead to more contact with ICE
Facing funding threats at both the state and federal levels, Fairfax County leaders have publicly maintained confidence in their policies banning voluntary cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). As President Donald Trump’s administration began ramping up ICE activities to support his campaign threats of mass deportations, however, the Fairfax County Police Department quietly revised its policy governing officer interactions with immigrants. As of Feb. 21, the department’s General Order 604 no longer explicitly prohibits employees from assisting and sharing information with ICE, directing them instead to comply with the broader Trust Policy adopted by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors in 2021. Removing those guardrails could open the door for police officers to essentially serve as informants for federal immigration authorities, immigrant rights advocates say.
Loudoun Supervisor Sees New ‘Reality’ Amid Unprecedented Power Growth
Loudoun Board of Supervisors Vice Chair Michael Turner (D-Ashburn) has been voicing concerns for years about the challenges and impacts of supplying power to the area’s data centers. After the latest report from the region’s energy coordinator, he is stepping up that alarm. PJM Interconnection, the entity responsible for coordinating power throughout 13 states including Virginia, is seeing demand for electricity grow more rapidly than predicted just a year ago—at a rate that, it said, that could not have been foreseen.
New water crisis report calls for 'regional utility coordination'
City officials on Wednesday evening released the latest report to detail officials’ emergency response to January’s water outage. It’s the third report on Richmond’s first water crisis, following a review of the city’s water infrastructure and standard operating procedures by engineering firm HNTB, and a probe by officials in the Virginia Department of Health. The new document, produced by Hagerty Consulting, in many ways retreads now-familiar territory ... Here are three takeaways from the latest review.
Richmond enters formal agreement with VDH to fix its water system
Richmond is further dedicating to fixing what’s broken at its water treatment plant after the regional water crisis exposed those weaknesses. The city announced that it has entered into an Order of Consent with the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) to address the alleged violations the agency found when investigating January’s water crisis, according to a June 12 press release.
Virginia Beach’s newest economic development director has resigned
Christian Green, the city’s newest economic development director, resigned after less than five months on the job. “Christian Green put in his notice of resignation on June 11; specific details are not available to the public as this is a personnel matter in accordance with HR policy,” a city statement said. “We can confirm, in collaboration with Mr. Green, that he elected to resign from his position due to pressing family matters. Christian is leaving on good terms with the City, and we wish him well in his future endeavors.”
Hampton hits pause on anti-camping ban
Hampton is holding off on banning camping, sleeping and storing personal items on public property for now. City Council on Wednesday postponed a vote until September 24. Mayor Jimmy Gray said that’s to update the proposed ordinance with input from residents, advocates and service providers working with people experiencing homelessness. The pause comes as Hampton is working with nearby localities on regional approaches to combatting homelessness.
Hampton defers camping in public spaces ban after community pushback
City Council delayed a vote Wednesday to ban camping and storage on public property, which would have cleared the way for the city to criminalize homeless encampments. Mayor Jimmy Gray said the decision came after individual conversations with council members, and a new version of the ordinance will be presented in August. ... Nearly 20 people spoke at Wednesday’s council meeting against the proposal, with some critical of how it would affect homeless people and highlighting the need for more resources such as affordable housing.
Hampton council defers vote on proposed law targeting homeless population
It’s easy to miss, but just off Pine Chapel Road and Barrack Street in Hampton is the place 54-year-old Donald Cook calls home. Cook told 10 On Your Side’s Regina Mobley there’s a reason why a homeless camp near a busy road in now abandoned, leading to those that called the place home moving deeper in to the woods near the Hampton Convention Center. . . . If Hampton City Council signs off on the reenactment of a law taking aim at homeless people, it will make it unlawful to camp, lay, sleep or store items on public property. At a City Council legislative session Wednesday night, members decided to defer a vote on the ordinance that would prohibit camping or storage on public property.
New exhibit examines coal dust pollution in Newport News
Environmental studies have yet to directly link Newport News residents’ health problems with coal dust pollution the community has spent generations advocating against. An exhibition opening Thursday is presenting its own evidence. Local nonprofit EmPower All is collaborating with The Repair Lab, an environmental justice research lab out of the University of Virginia, to present “Evidence: Coal Dust in Hampton Roads.”
Fredericksburg Council may consider a ranked-choice voting system
The Fredericksburg City Council might take a new look at how future city elections with multiple candidates for a single position are determined. Councilman Will Mackintosh Tuesday night raised the idea of exploring a ranked-choice voting system in future city elections. In such a system, voters would list their preferences in order in single-seat races involving three or more candidates. ... “I just wanted to start the conversation and see where it goes,” Mackintosh said. “It would ensure that no one would win without at least 50% of the vote.”
Moss Free Clinic is ceasing operations in Fredericksburg
The Lloyd F. Moss Free Clinic announced it was ceasing operations on Thursday, June 12, after 16 months of struggling to keep the doors open as its operational funds were used up and its longtime partnership with Mary Washington Healthcare dissolved. “The clinic is working with area health systems and health-care providers to ensure continuity of care for current patients,” Corie Bacher, director of development, stated in a two-paragraph news release.
Battery facility proposed in Spotsylvania
A Texas-based company wants to build a battery power storage facility in Spotsylvania County. Only a few details on the proposal are available as it is early in the process, but the company, Plus Power, plans to host a community meeting later this month to provide more information about the proposal.
Nelson County Social Services calls claims of degrading work 'unfounded'
Nelson County officials and other local agencies are ringing alarm bells over an “inexcusable decline” and lack of transparency in the county Department of Social Services, but the board charged with oversight of that department says those allegations are “unfounded” or already addressed. The Nelson County Board of Supervisors issued a letter on May 23 to the Department of Social Services board in response to “credible reports” the county received from key local partner agencies regarding the department’s poor collaboration and communication on several child protective services cases.
Lynchburg vice mayor apologizes to Peacemakers leader for past defamatory comments
Some Lynchburg City Council members are apologizing for something that happened during a meeting a few years ago. During Tuesday's Lynchburg City Council work session, Vice Mayor Curt Diemer spoke out against personal attacks in their meetings. It happened during a 2023 meeting. During public comment, a speaker said something defamatory about Shawn Hunter, the leader of the Peacemakers in Lynchburg. Hunter sued her and won. Hunter was just awarded $50,000 in damages in a Lynchburg Circuit Court on June 6.
Martinsville City Council members remain mostly mum on lawsuit controversy
Members of the Martinsville City Council are remaining largely quiet about the federal lawsuit filed by council member Aaron Rawls against the city manager and city sheriff’s deputy. Council members each cited the pending litigation as their reason for not commenting on the suit that Rawls filed against City Manager Aretha Ferrell-Benavides and Deputy Reva Keen. . . . Rawls filed the case June 2 in U.S. District Court in Danville. The suit alleges that the pair acted in violation of Rawls’ First, Fourth and 14th amendment rights. The alleged violations are concerned with Rawls’ right to speech, freedom from unlawful seizure and deprivation of liberty.
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EDITORIALS
Trump parade, nationwide ‘No Kings’ protests mirror national division
Saturday will mark 250 years since the Second Continental Congress approved the creation of an army to organize a military response to the increasingly intolerable rule of the British, a day now celebrated as the birth of the U.S. Army. Two years later, also on June 14, the colonial legislature adopted a resolution regarding the design of a new flag, now recognized annually as Flag Day. Both are worth commemorating and, in normal times, would be cause for national celebrations. But these aren’t normal times, and Saturday will instead feature an unprecedented parade of military hardware and personnel in Washington, D.C., and the likelihood of widespread protests across the country, including several in Hampton Roads.
COLUMNISTS
Yancey: No, Trump did not rename Virginia military bases after Confederate generals. Here’s what he did instead.
President Donald Trump traveled to a military base in North Carolina this week to announce that he’s changing the names of seven military bases that had been changed not long ago by then-President Joe Biden. Besides Fort Bragg, “we are also going to be restoring the names to Fort Pickett, Fort Hood, Fort Gordon, Fort Rucker, Fort Polk, Fort A.P. Hill and Fort Robert E. Lee,” Trump said. Not quite.
OP-ED
Wittman: Voting for spending bill kept my word to Virginians
The Virginian-Pilot & Daily Press Editorial Board recently accused me of selling out my constituents by voting for the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (“A predictable betrayal,” Our Views, May 23). That couldn’t be further from the truth. Let me set the record straight: I kept my word. I fought for Virginians, and I voted to protect working families, strengthen our safety net, and invest in national security and economic opportunity. Before this bill even came to a vote, I raised my voice publicly to demand protections for the vulnerable. In April, I wrote to House leadership making clear that balancing the budget must not come at the expense of pregnant women, children, seniors or individuals with disabilities.
Parker: Martinsville is no county, and hardly a sanctuary
Apparently, I now live in “Martinsville County, Virginia.” That’s news to me — and to anyone with a functioning map. Martinsville is an independent city surrounded by Henry County, where I actually live. There is no such place as “Martinsville County.” But that didn’t stop the Trump regime and its Department of Homeland Security from naming it a so-called “sanctuary jurisdiction” for undocumented immigrants. ... It’s not just wrong. It’s fiction.
Toalson: Yes, Virginia, we can build our way out of the housing crisis
Virginia’s housing production is not keeping pace with overwhelming demand for it. Our population increased by 0.9% (nearly 77,000 people) from July 2023 to July 2024. Last year, and consistent with recent years, Virginia issued just 34,000 single-family and multifamily permits — roughly half the annual pace from the mid-2000s, and we trail our neighboring states in permits. The result is that more families, workers and young people are struggling to find Virginia homes they can afford. Housing competition is intensifying across Virginia because the supply is falling short.