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In Fairfax, Earle-Sears pushes Trump agenda with national GOP leader

By MICHAEL MARTZ, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Subscription Required)

Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears came to deep-blue Northern Virginia with the leader of the national Republican party on Tuesday to push the agenda of President Donald Trump — particularly in protecting voter ballots — to volunteers in her campaign for governor. Earle-Sears and Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley told about 40 campaign volunteers they want them to reach into every Virginia community — regardless of race, ethnicity, gender and age — in statewide and House of Delegates elections this year to carry Trump’s message on energy, education, jobs and public safety, while ensuring the integrity of elections.

VaNews June 4, 2025


Krizek and Ebbin: As gaming explodes, lack of oversight puts Virginia at risk

By PAUL KRIZEK AND ADAM EBBIN, published in Richmond Times-Dispatch (Subscription Required)

Nearly a decade ago, Virginia became the first state to establish a framework that legalized and regulated fantasy sports. Since then, fantasy sports and other forms of gaming have proliferated amid a marketplace that has continually evolved. Virginia’s once-innovative regulatory model, unfortunately, is now outdated and fails to provide the clarity, fairness and accountability that Virginians deserve. The solution is simple. Virginia needs to establish and empower a single, self-funding agency to protect consumers and ensure operators comply with legal requirements for responsible play.

Del. Krizek, D-Fairfax, is chair of the House General Laws Committee’s ABC/Gaming subcommittee. Sen. Ebbin, D-Alexandria, is chair of the Senate General Laws and Technology Committee.

VaNews June 3, 2025


Where the hot spots are for immigration enforcement

By RUSSELL CONTRERAS AND BRITTANY GIBSON, Axios

Efforts to arrest and remove unauthorized immigrants appear most aggressive in five southern states with Democratic-leaning cities, while deeply red, rural states are seeing less activity, according to an Axios analysis. Our review of removal orders, pending deportation cases and agreements between immigration officials and local law enforcement agencies sheds light on where the Trump administration is dispatching resources to support its mass deportation plan. The analysis shows local law enforcement agencies in Texas, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia have been most cooperative with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in rounding up immigrants through deals known as 287 (g) agreements.

VaNews June 3, 2025


Who is running in the District 70 primary in Newport News?

By BRIANNA FALLON, WVEC-TV

... In Newport News, there are two Republican candidates running in the primaries to get on the November 2025 ballot, hoping to represent District 70 in the House of Delegates. ... Hailey Dollar is one of two candidates running in the Republican primary. Dollar is an army combat veteran who was born and raised in Hampton Roads, between York County and Newport News. ... Dollar's Republican primary opponent is Cynthia Scaturico. Scaturico was born in Illinois, then in 2014 she moved to York County for a few years where she worked at Smithfield Foods. During the pandemic, Scaturico moved to Iowa where she began her political career after being elected to the Board of Supervisors.

VaNews June 3, 2025


Grants funded by your car insurance pay for surveillance tech in Virginia

By LISA ROWAN, Cardinal News

More than 30 years ago, the General Assembly created a fund to reward tipsters who shared information leading to motor vehicle theft arrests. If there’s leftover money in the Help Eliminate Auto Theft — better known as HEAT — reward fund, the Virginia State Police can allocate it to educational programming to help drivers prevent auto theft or to support local law enforcement or judicial agencies in their efforts to reduce theft. Since 2022, the Virginia State Police has been using an increasing amount of money from the fund to help local law enforcement agencies buy equipment to help them prevent and solve vehicle theft and related crimes.

VaNews June 3, 2025


Va. attorney general says Loudoun County school system misused authority in locker room case

By AIMEE CHO, WRC-TV

Virginia's attorney general found “disturbing misuse of authority” by a school district that investigated three boys regarding claims of sexual harassment of a transgender student in a boys’ locker room. Jason Miyares referred the Title IX investigation of the incident to the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Justice for further investigation. Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin asked Miyares to investigate Loudoun County Public Schools over its handling of an alleged incident in which three boys at Stone Bridge High School expressed concern about a transgender boy in the locker room in March. The transgender student allegedly recorded cellphone video of their reactions.

VaNews June 3, 2025


2 newcomers to Newport News compete in House District 70 GOP primary

By DEVLIN EPDING, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)

An Army combat veteran and former Iowa Board of Supervisors representative are on the ballot in the Republican primary for House District 70 as newcomers to Newport News. Republicans Hailey Dollar and Cynthia Scaturico are running in the June 17 primary to see who will face Democrat incumbent Del. Shelly Simonds.

VaNews June 3, 2025


Republican candidates vie for Virginia’s 62nd District seat

By CARL WILLIS, WJLA-TV

Two Republican candidates are competing to represent Virginia's 62nd District in the House of Delegates, which encompasses Greene and Madison Counties, as well as large parts of Orange and Culpeper Counties. Clay Jackson, the current Chair of the Madison County Board of Supervisors, and Karen Hamilton, a small business owner and military wife, are both vying for the position.

VaNews June 3, 2025


Virginia Board of Education member is also serving in Trump administration

By ANNA BRYSON, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Subscription Required)

Virginia Board of Education member Amber Northern started a new job in the Trump administration on Monday, as a senior adviser to Secretary of Education Linda McMahon – raising questions about whether simultaneously holding the positions at the state and federal levels poses a conflict of interest. ... She is serving in the federal role under an Intergovernmental Personnel Act agreement, which allows employees from outside organizations to temporarily work in federal agencies. Northern said she is awaiting guidance from “the powers that be” on whether her roles in the state and federal government could present a conflict.

VaNews June 3, 2025


Virginia Department of Education plans to launch Office of Excellence and Best Practices

By NATHANIEL CLINE, Virginia Mercury

The Virginia Department of Education is preparing to launch a new Office of Excellence and Best Practices by hiring an executive director who will be responsible for fostering innovation, highlighting high-performing schools, and directing resources toward initiatives with a proven track record of improving student outcomes. The agency posted an advertisement for the opening last week. Superintendent of Public Instruction Emily Anne Gullickson, who began in March, said it has been challenging for the agency to track and share successful educational practices and resources across school divisions, despite significant funding. ... Some Democratic state legislators, including Senate Education and Health Committee Chair Ghazala Hashmi, D-Richmond, are concerned about the timing of the agency’s decision to fill a senior position.

VaNews June 3, 2025