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Democratic lieutenant governor candidate Aaron Rouse campaigns in Richmond
Democratic lieutenant governor candidate Aaron Rouse made a campaign stop in Richmond on Monday. Rouse spoke alongside a group of black leaders to make his pitch to voters ahead of the June 17 primary. “I stand before you today to say, while I may not know everything, I know that if we do this together, we can get the changes that we seek,” Rouse said.
13 Virginia localities sign agreements to help ICE
A handful of Virginia’s 133 localities, including two near Roanoke, have agreed to work with federal immigration enforcement. Several more, including the Portsmouth Sheriff’s Office, are in the process of signing similar agreements, according to documents from the Department of Homeland Security. Richmond’s own police department does not have such an agreement, which Police Chief Rick Edwards has suggested would undermine detectives’ ability to solve crime in immigrant communities. Immigrant advocacy organizations also vehemently oppose the partnerships.
GOP Group to Spend $2 Million in Virginia, New Jersey Elections
The Republican State Leadership Committee (RSLC) and its affiliated political action committees will commit $2 million in canvassing and paid advertising efforts to help Republicans win off-cycle elections in New Jersey and Virginia this cycle, National Review has learned. The early get-out-the-vote spending commitment — which will include direct mail, digital ads, and texting — is part of an initiative by the GOP spending group to help Republicans win governorships and other down-ballot races in each blue-leaning state this fall.
Democratic governors pledge $5 million to Spanberger
Former Rep. Abigail Spanberger, D-7th, got a $5 million boost for her campaign for governor from the Democratic Governors Association, which announced the pledge as “an initial investment” in the Virginia Democrat’s race against Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears to become the first woman elected to the state’s top office. Spanberger, a Henrico County resident who stepped down this year after three terms in Congress to run for governor, had raised $16.3 million through March 31, compared with the $5.7 million that Earle-Sears had raised.
Trump administration changes funding rules for broadband expansion
Virginia officials and broadband providers have had the “rug pulled out from under them” by a U.S. Commerce Department policy shift on internet expansion, the state’s Broadband Advisory Council chairwoman said Monday. Sen. Jennifer Boysko, D-Fairfax County, said she was frustrated that the Trump administration has restructured the Biden-era Broadband Equity Access and Deployment program, also known as “Internet for All.” The $42.5 billion program, part of the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, had prioritized fiber broadband over satellite and other wireless internet delivery systems to serve more rural regions.
Danville area is rare part of Virginia with both Democratic and Republican House primaries in same district
Del. Danny Marshall’s seat has drawn a primary election on both sides of the aisle. Marshall announced in February his intention to not seek reelection to the House of Delegates 49th District, citing health concerns. Two Democrats and two Republicans qualified for primary elections in a district made up of the city of Danville and parts of Halifax and Pittsylvania counties. Only one other House district in Virginia — District 89 in Chesapeake and Suffolk — also has both a Democratic and Republican primary this year. It’s also a district where the incumbent is retiring; in that case Del. Baxter Ennis, R-Chesapeake.
State Sen. Ghazala Hashmi leans on legislative experience in lieutenant governor run
State Sen. Ghazala Hashmi was an educator and an academic administrator before being elected in 2019 to represent Virginia’s 15th District, which covers much of Chesterfield County. Now, Hashmi is hoping to preside over the Senate as Virginia’s next lieutenant governor. She is the only woman of the six candidates in the June 17 Democratic primary for the statewide position. The winner will face Republican John Reid for the office currently occupied by Republican gubernatorial nominee Winsome Earle-Sears. VPM News state politics reporter Jahd Khalil recently spoke to Hashmi about her campaign, as part of a series of conversations with all six Democratic candidates for the state’s No. 2 job.
New system for using credit cards to ride Metro earns Virginia leaders’ praise
New tech allowing Metro users to pay their fare by tapping debit or credit cards is receiving good grades from local leaders. At a meeting last week, representatives on the Metropolitan Washington Area Transit Authority (WMATA) board of directors said the new “Tap-Ride-Go” initiative will benefit both regular and infrequent users of the regional system. “The acceptance of this program already has been hugely successful. The numbers are well beyond the expectation we had,” said Virginia representative Paul Smedberg at a Thursday meeting of the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission (NVTC).
Feds respond to Virginia lawmakers’ privacy concerns about airports’ facial recognition screening
Identification screening technology that launched during the pandemic to reduce airport check-in times has helped improve security and travelers’ experiences, but carries a privacy concern stemming from the capture and storage of passengers’ photos. Virginia lawmakers, privacy advocates and others have questioned how images of citizens are used and stored, and how peoples’ rights are being protected.
Wallace: Trump’s DEI mandate is a surrogate for white social grievances
On April 3, President Donald Trump issued an executive order requiring elementary through higher education institutions to certify they have no “illegal DEI practices,” defined as whites being subjected to discrimination while non-whites and marginalized groups benefit. Non-compliant institutions have lost federal non-related research contract funding and private universities may lose tax-free status. Sixty colleges have opposed this interference with higher education legal entitlements. Additionally, Trump utilized various retaliatory schemes against law firms, publishing and broadcast companies, major corporations and tech companies which ignored his expectations.