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Democrats hoping for anti-Trump backlash in Virginia’s race to elect first female governor
Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, a Republican, faces an uphill climb against former Rep. Abigail Spanberger in Virginia’s gubernatorial race, according to analysts and party insiders who say the state’s political landscape favors Democrats. Republicans, though, insist Democrats face a serious challenge convincing voters who have been relatively happy with Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s leadership that it is time for an ideological shake-up. “The Democrats will represent a dramatic change from the direction the state has been in for the last four years,” said Jeff Ryer, chairman of the 1st Congressional District Republican Party. “I am not sure Virginians are ready for a change that would align this state with California, Illinois and New York.”
Isle of Wight School Board to outsource policy updates to School Board Member Alliance
Isle of Wight County’s School Board voted 4-1 on June 12 to outsource the periodic review of its more than 400 written policies to the School Board Member Alliance, which formed three years ago as a rival to the Virginia School Boards Association. The vote comes just under a year since Isle of Wight disaffiliated from the VSBA over objections to the association’s annual lobbying of the Virginia General Assembly.
Rebuilding one of the nation’s oldest Black churches to begin at Juneteenth ceremony
A ceremonial groundbreaking will be held Thursday for the rebuilding of one of the nation’s oldest Black churches, whose congregants first gathered outdoors in secret before constructing a wooden meetinghouse in Virginia. The First Baptist Church of Williamsburg officially established itself in 1776, although parishioners met before then in fields and under trees in defiance of laws that prevented African Americans from congregating. Free and enslaved members erected the original church house around 1805, laying the foundation with recycled bricks.
Archaeologists unearth foundation of 1760s schoolhouse for Black children in Virginia
Archaeologists in Virginia have unearthed the foundation of a building from the 1700s that once supported the nation’s oldest surviving schoolhouse for Black children, William & Mary announced Wednesday. The university in Williamsburg said the foundation is nearly completely intact. Archaeologists also uncovered a cellar that is layered with centuries of artifacts, including slate pencil fragments and jewelry. The schoolhouse was later used as a dormitory, housing some of the first generations of women to attend college in the U.S.
Completed Va. tickets testing battle lines for Nov. election
The races were tight, with the definitive results coming late — and closer than has been the pattern in Virginia primaries — but the two parties’ November tickets are now complete. State Sen. Ghazala Hashmi, D-Chesterfield, is the Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor and former Del. Jay Jones, D-Norfolk, will run for attorney general, on a ticket led by former Rep. Abigail Spanberger — all of them promising to run as a united team. So far, there’s been no word that that’s the plan for the GOP slate of Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears for governor, former radio host John Reid for lieutenant governor and Attorney General Jason Miyares, seeking re-election to that post.
Virginia Board of Education approves $83.4 million allocation for infrastructure grants
After a competitive application process, multiple school divisions and a regional technical center will receive $83.4 million in grants for school construction projects, a move the Virginia Board of Education approved on Wednesday. A total of $80 million from the fiscal year 2025 application process will be allocated to 10 school divisions, including Lunenburg County for Central High School, the city of Richmond for Woodville Elementary School, and Massanutten Technical Center in Harrisonburg. The Petersburg High School project, which received $13 million towards the project’s $91 million total, was the only project that did not receive full funding.Petersburg missed out on an additional $13 million.
State Sen. Tara Durant announces her intention to run for Congress
State Sen. Tara Durant wants to trade Richmond for Washington. Durant, a Republican from Stafford County, on Wednesday announced her intention to run for Congress. If she were to get the GOP nomination, that would likely set up a contest next year versus Democratic Rep. Eugene Vindman in Virginia’s 7th District, which includes the Fredericksburg area. Vindman, who lives in Dale City, won the seat in November in a close — and closely watched — race against Republican Derrick Anderson, who grew up in Spotsylvania County.
Crypto group wades into Virginia special election
The special election in Virginia to replace the late Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) is getting $1 million worth of attention via broadcast TV ads, courtesy of the crypto PAC Protect Progress. Crypto funds had an outsized impact on congressional elections in the 2024 election and the groups have pushed on into each of the three special elections that have come up this year. Protect Progress will use its funds to support Democratic candidate James Walkinshaw, the former chief of staff for Connolly.
Clean Virginia tops Dominion in Democratic primaries
The clash between Clean Virginia and Dominion Energy was on full display in Tuesday night’s Democratic primaries — and Clean Virginia came out on top. Dominion Energy, the state’s largest public utility, is one of Virginia’s most prolific political donors, contributing to candidates in both parties. Clean Virginia, a rival donor group, says its mission is to promote clean government and clean energy — and backs only candidates who refuse contributions from Dominion.
Friday Read 280,000 eggs disappeared from America’s top producer. Then came a ransom note.
“I’d like to report a crime,” said the man who called a Maryland sheriff’s office on April 16. There was a theft, he explained, involving a freight truck. “So they stole the whole freight?” a dispatcher asked. “Only took the cargo,” the man answered. It was valued, he said, at about $100,000. The dispatcher asked what was stolen. The caller hesitated. “They took … basically … they took a whole trailer full of eggs.”