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VPAP Visual Statewide Democratic Primary Turnout
Preliminary turnout numbers from the June 17 Democratic primary show the highest turnout since the 1990s for a Democratic primary without a gubernatorial nomination. This excludes presidential primaries, which are held separately in March and generally have a much higher turnout than state primaries.
Chesapeake Bay is on a rebound, but Trump’s proposed budget could set it back
The sun is barely up when Bill Scerbo unties the lines on his aging crabber and turns its bow toward open water. He and his deckhand are heading out to check crab traps in the shallows where the Rhode and West rivers flow into the Chesapeake Bay. It's something that Scerbo, who is 65, has been doing since the 1980s. It was then, just out of high school and attending community college, that he had an epiphany about his future. "It was a beautiful day and I was sitting in an economics class and I just said, 'To hell with this. I'm done.'"
Can AI identify safety threats in schools? Loudoun County wants to try.
Loudoun County schools will use an artificial intelligence system to help identity fights, bullying or other potential safety threats on campuses. The system, from local tech company VOLT AI, will use AI to monitor video footage from the school district’s existing security cameras to spot incidents that might require staff intervention, such as the presence of weapons or other safety threats or medical emergencies. The cameras are used only in common areas, not bathrooms or locker rooms.
Child care costs squeeze Virginia families
The cost of child care in Virginia and around the nation is skyrocketing, with a new report finding that it's outpacing overall inflation. Rising child care costs put a huge financial strain on families, Axios' Emily Peck reports. They can force some parents — typically women — to either ratchet back their working hours or leave the labor force entirely. For single parents, the calculus can be even more painful. The average annual cost of daycare tuition in Virginia for two children — one toddler and one infant — rose to $30,680 last year, according to data from Child Care Aware, an advocacy group.
Can this tiny Appalachian town be a blueprint for the region’s rebirth?
Lou Wallace couldn’t bear to watch her hometown on the Wise-Russell county line continue to crumble. On a whim in the late 1990s, she called The Nature Conservancy’s Abingdon office, lamenting, “Our little town is dying. Can you help?” Instead of shunning her, a now-retired employee of the nonprofit tossed out a lifeline. He helped her secure a $10,000 grant. That was enough to hire a company that fashioned a strategic plan revolving around the Clinch River—the hiding-in-plain-sight biological jewel bisecting St. Paul that residents had long dismissed as a dirty and forlorn nuisance.
Robinson: Selling federal lands would betray future generations
In early May, Congress slipped a provision deep into its budget resolution that should alarm every American. Buried in the text was language authorizing the sale of nearly half a million acres of our federally managed public lands — mostly in Utah and Nevada. It would set a precedent that threatens every corner of this country. This isn’t simply a Western issue. What happens in the deserts outside Salt Lake City today could be replicated tomorrow in the forests of Virginia or the marshes of Delaware.
Morris: To meet energy demand, don't miss the trees for the forest
Recent coverage in the Richmond Times-Dispatch has highlighted Virginia’s “all-in” strategy to meet growing electricity demand, citing a diverse mix of solar, wind, gas, nuclear, coal and oil. Yet one proven, renewable resource is notably missing from that list: biomass from Virginia’s forests. Biomass — primarily in the form of wood chips and sawdust — is a natural byproduct of Virginia’s robust forest products industry. These materials are already used efficiently to power industrial boilers and pulp mills across the state. With minimal modifications, those same materials can fuel steam turbines to generate electricity ...
Virginia's trailblazing candidates for governor prepare to battle over the economy, abortion and Trump
Tuesday is primary day in Virginia — but the general election matchup for the commonwealth’s highest office is already set. Democrat Abigail Spanberger, a former U.S. representative, and Republican Winsome Earle-Sears, the state’s lieutenant governor, have known for months that they would face off against each other in the race to succeed Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin, since they were the only major-party candidates to qualify for the ballot. One of them is guaranteed to make history by being elected Virginia's first female governor. And they’ve already been running general election-focused campaigns for months, providing an early jump-start to one of just two governor’s races this year (the other is in New Jersey).
Charlottesville City Council primary is city’s first to use ranked choice voting
In Tuesday’s City Council primary, Charlottesville is about to become the second locality in Virginia — after Arlington County — to use ranked choice voting, after a century of using a winner-take-all block system. In block voting, voters choose as many candidates as there are open seats for a certain office. With ranked choice voting, voters don’t just select their favorite candidates; instead, they rank as many of the candidates as they would like, in order of their preference.
From VPAP June Primary Election Results
See results from yesterday's primary elections, including Democratic nomination contests for lieutenant governor and attorney general, and both Republican and Democratic primaries for the House of Delegates and local offices.