By MEAGAN FLYNN, ANTONIO OLIVO AND LAURA VOZZELLA, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month) Voters stood in line for up to four hours in the Northern Virginia suburbs on Friday to cast ballots in a bitterly contested presidential election, turning out in force on the first day of early voting to take advantage of a new state law making it easier to cast absentee ballots. In heavily Democratic Fairfax County, the state's largest jurisdiction, the wait had stretched to four hours — and hundreds of voters — by midday, officials said.
By COY FERRELL, Fauquier Times Come to exercise a civic duty. Stay for the free pen. Throughout Virginia, absentee balloting began Friday for the 2020 general election. By 10:20 a.m., 136 county residents had cast their ballots in person at the Fauquier County registrar's office in Warrenton. And, thanks to the pandemic, each voter got to keep the pen they used to fill in their ballot – along with the usual "I voted" sticker.
By SABRINA MORENO, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month) Hispanics are four times more likely to have traces of a prior COVID-19 infection than the average Virginian, according to a Virginia Department of Health study released Friday. Roughly 2.4% of the 4,675 people tested — all adults who live in Virginia — were positive for COVID-19 antibodies, a sign they'd been infected since the virus arrived in the state in March. Among Hispanics in the test group, 10.2% had antibodies.
By ERIC KOLENICH, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month) Enrollment of the new freshman class at Virginia Commonwealth University has declined, but it hasn't sunk as low as university leaders feared it might. There are 3,835 new undergraduate freshmen this semester, a 14% decline from a year ago. Tomikia LeGrande, VCU vice president for strategy, enrollment management and student success, told the school's board of visitors on Friday that high school graduates were more likely to choose colleges close to home, smaller colleges and more rural ones.
By DANIEL BERTI, Prince William Times The Prince William-Manassas Regional Jail will no longer notify U.S. Immigration and Customs and Enforcement about the release of people detained at the jail for misdemeanors but will hold those charged with felonies for up to two hours past their release times if immigration officials have lodged detainers against them. That was the compromise the jail board devised Wednesday when its members voted unanimously to direct jail staff to stop notifying ICE of the release of inmates charged with low level crimes.
By MARK BOWES, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month) Three dozen Virginians were temporarily or permanently barred from possessing firearms and/or had their guns confiscated during the first two months of the state's new "Red Flag" law, which prohibits residents from keeping or purchasing a gun if authorities can establish they would be a danger to themselves or others.
By GREGORY S. SCHNEIDER, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month) The United Daughters of the Confederacy still meet across the hall from the bedroom where Jefferson Davis spent the last nights of the Civil War. On a marble-topped table, Davis composed his final proclamation as rebel president, urging Southerners to keep up the fight. But the world that once revolved around these quiet rooms in the Sutherlin Mansion is changing. The Full Report 46 articles, 24 publications The Virginia Public Access Project No-excuse early voting debuted in Virginia on Friday with 27,202 people casting ballots. Friday also was the day when local voting officials mailed out 848,000 ballots to Virginia residents who have applied to vote by mail. VPAP's new early voting dashboard compares early voting this year with November 2016. The visual -- which will be updated each morning -- also breaks down activity by congressional district.
The Virginia Public Access Project Our COVID-19 dashboard makes it easy to track the latest available data for tests performed, infections, deaths and hospital capacity. There's a filter for each city and county, plus an exclusive per-capita ZIP Code map. Updated each morning around 10:30 a.m. By PETER DUJARDIN, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month) A bill that would have opened up past police investigative records to the public died Friday when a state Senate committee referred it for further review. The measure would have ended police and prosecutors' longstanding practice of shielding nearly all their files from the public — be they incident reports from last week or case files that haven't been looked at in decades.
By AMY FRIEDENBERGER, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month) A state Senate panel halted a bill from Del. Chris Hurst, D-Montgomery, that would have opened past police investigative files to the public. The Democratic-controlled Senate General Laws and Technology Committee voted 14-0 Friday to block House Bill 5090 and send it to the Virginia Freedom of Information Act Council with the goal being to come up with a reworked bill for the regular session beginning in January 2021. By DOMINICK MASTRANGELO, The Hill President Trump on Friday voiced optimism about his electoral prospects in Virginia come November while seeking to shore up his base with an attack against Gov. Ralph Northam (D), calling him "crazy." Trump launched the attack on the Democratic governor as early in-person voting began in the Commonwealth on Friday, with photos showing lines snaking around polling sites.
WSLS-TV Early voting started in Virginia on Friday and President Donald Trump has tweeted who he thinks should win one of the state's races. Trump tweeted his endorsement for Virginia's 5th Congressional District Republican candidate Bob Good, along with his opposition towards the current governor, Ralph Northam. The president said Good will be a terrific congressman for Virginia and that he has his "complete and total" endorsement.
By JILL PALERMO, Prince William Times A long line of voters snaked around the back of the Woodbridge DMV Friday morning even before the doors opened at 8:30 a.m. By about 11 a.m., the first 200 local votes had been cast in this year's presidential contest a full 45 days before Election Day. Schelley Hall, of Woodbridge, was at the front of the line. He said he arrived at the DMV at 6:30 a.m. because he was determined to cast his vote for former vice president Joe Biden as soon as possible.
By JIM MCCONNELL, Chesterfield Observer Activity was brisk at the Chesterfield County registrar's office Friday, the first day of in-person absentee voting in advance of the Nov. 3 general election. By 8 a.m., there was already a line of prospective voters waiting outside that stretched the length of the Lori Road office complex, and the registrar's office wasn't scheduled to open for another 30 minutes. "People are really energized," said Susan Beals, chairwoman of Chesterfield County's three-member electoral board.
By LISA VERNON SPARKS, Daily Press (Metered Paywall - 1 article a month) Voters turned out in considerable numbers Friday across Hampton Roads to take advantage of early voting in Virginia. State lawmakers amended rules to allow for in-person, no-excuse early voting to begin 45 days before the Nov. 3 general election. Previously, voters needed a specific reason to cast an absentee ballot. Early voting is scheduled to run through Oct. 31 - but interest was very high on the first day. Pictures of hundreds waiting in a long line to vote, for example, circulated widely on social media.
By JIMMY LAROUE, Suffolk News Herald More than 200 people had voted early in Suffolk through midday Sept. 18 on the first day of in-person absentee voting in Virginia. City Registrar Susan Saunders said 213 people had voted by 12:30 p.m. as they began lining up outside the registrar's office at 440 Market St. about two hours before her office opened at 8:30 a.m. for early voting. By the time it did open, the line had stretched down the sidewalk in front of the building and around the corner.
By JAMES SCOTT BARON, Free Lance-Star (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month) Although the Nov. 3 election is still weeks away, many voters were already at the polls Friday morning. "It's been a very busy morning," said Kellie Acors, Spotsylvania County registrar. "We had a line for a while, but everything has gone smoothly." With Virginia now permitting eligible voters to cast their votes 45 days prior to Election Day, Acors believes Friday's initial burst of voter turnout may have been caused by confusion over the new early voting policy.
By BILL WYATT, Martinsville Bulletin (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month) There are reports of people standing in line for hours on Friday in Northern Virginia to cast an early ballot in this year's election. Martinsville and Henry County have not seen similar long lines, but the registrar offices reported a steady flow all day as of 3 p.m. on Friday. "It's going really good," Martinsville Registrar Cindy Barbour said. "It's been steady today … a really good turnout."
By LAURA VOZZELLA, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month) Barack Obama held the very last rally of his 2008 campaign in Virginia, the longtime Republican stronghold he flipped on his way to the White House. Four years later, Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney made more visits and aired more television ads here than nearly anywhere else. And in 2016, Donald Trump staged rally after rally in the Old Dominion while Hillary Clinton picked a Virginian as her running mate. But Virginia isn't getting the swing-state treatment this time around.
By DANIEL BERTI, Fauquier Times Non-partisan newsletter The Cook Political Report has changed its rating for Virginia's 5th Congressional District race between Republican Bob Good and Democrat Cameron Webb from "lean Republican" to "toss-up." The ratings change comes on the heels of an internal poll released this week by the Webb campaign showing Webb down by only 1 point, 46 to 47%, among likely voters. By LAURENCE HAMMACK, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month) A request to raise electricity rates was defended by Appalachian Power Co. and disputed by critics during a five-day hearing before the State Corporation Commission that concluded Friday. The SCC said it will issue a written decision by late November. By KIMBERLY PIERCEALL, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month) Virginia's unemployment rate dropped from 7.9% in July to 6.1% in August, putting it among 41 states to see their rates improve, according to a U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report released Friday. The national unemployment rate fell 1.8 percentage points to 8.4%.
By JOHN REID BLACKWELL, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers) Employers in Virginia added 68,000 jobs in August as some businesses continued to see recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, but employment still remained well below where it was a year ago. Virginia's unemployment rate stood at 6.1% in August, a substantial drop from the 7.9% percent jobless rate reported in July and the 8.1% rate in June, but it was still significantly higher than the 2.7% jobless rate from a year ago in August.
By JOHN REID BLACKWELL, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers) A large, solar energy field is nearing completion in eastern Hanover County, and health insurer Anthem Inc. has agreed to buy power from the project under a 15-year deal. Anthem said Friday it has signed a deal to buy power from SunEnergy1, a Mooresville, N.C.-based developer of solar energy projects that is opening the 182-acre solar power array at 3015 Mechanicsville Turnpike that will provide about 20 megawatts of energy. The solar field is expected to be fully operational later this year.
By RENSS GREENE, Loudoun Now During the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses, schools and social circles have all gone online, which has meant unprecedented demand at the heart of the internet in Ashburn. Loudoun's data centers, already a fast-growing market, have seen a surge of demand as society has scrambled to replace in-person activities with virtual alternatives. Long an important part of the county government's budget, they have also been a bright spot as other sources of local tax revenues have fallen. ...Ultimately, it may be the limited amount of land that caps Loudoun's data center market. By MICHAEL MARTZ, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers) Jeff Southard could see Virginia turning the corner on long-term funding of transportation as he prepared to retire this year after 15 years at the helm of an alliance of companies that build highways and bridges, and produce the asphalt and concrete for the work. The General Assembly had just passed a sweeping transportation package that raised gasoline taxes and made a major commitment to passenger rail and public transit in addition, as well as bond funding for improvements to Interstate 81 in western Virginia.
By SYDNEY LAKE, Virginia Business Gov. Ralph Northam on Friday signed legislation that will bring zero-emission electric buses to Virginia as part of an initiative to change public transportation in Hampton Roads. Legislation sponsored by state Sen. Louise Lucas and Del. Alex Askew creates the first-ever dedicated Hampton Roads Regional Transit Program and Fund, which will be managed by the Hampton Roads Transportation Accountability Commission. By WAYNE EPPS JR., Daily News Record (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month) After a rapid rise in COVID-19 case counts pushed James Madison University to ask students to move home and revert to primarily online classes in early September, the school announced Friday that it will resume in-person instruction Oct. 5....The planned return next month will be accompanied by new rules limiting class sizes to no larger than 50, fewer seats and stricter mask enforcement in dining halls and mandatory prevalence testing of 300 students each week to gauge the spread of the virus.
By SAM WALL, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month) Virginia Tech is implementing mandatory random COVID-19 testing for all undergraduate students starting next week, according to President Tim Sands. The school is increasing its testing by 2,000 per week, with a portion of those going toward testing random undergraduates, according to information Sands sent out Friday afternoon.
By BEN WALLS, Commonwealth Times Through a Presidential Policy Memorandum, President Tim Sands announced mandatory random COVID-19 testing for all on-campus and off-campus undergraduate students residing in Blacksburg Friday. The mandate is effective immediately and remains in effect until rescinded by Sands. Beginning Monday, Sept. 21, an additional 2,000 COVID-19 testing appointments will open throughout the week to accommodate the new mandatory tests.
By KATHERINE KNOTT, Daily Progress (Metered Paywall - 25 articles a month) Fifteen University of Virginia students who live at Balz-Dobie House have tested positive for COVID-19, the university announced Friday. Balz-Dobie is the first cluster of cases at UVa since students moved into on-Grounds housing earlier this month. After UVa identified five cases, officials tested every resident and the results showed another 10 cases at the residence hall.
By EVA SUROVELL, Cavalier Daily All residents of the Echols and Kellogg first-year residence halls will be required to participate in mandatory COVID-19 testing, per an email sent to residents Friday afternoon. There are currently four positive cases of COVID-19 in the Echols dorm and three positive cases in the Kellogg dorm, with wastewater indicators also suggesting a possible infection.
By BILL ATKINSON, Progress Index (Metered paywall - 10 articles a month) Anyone thinking about enrolling in John Tyler Community College or any of its 22 sibling institutions across Virginia for the spring semester better make sure their computers and software are working properly. The Virginia Community College System said Friday it plans to continue a mostly online curriculum for the 2021 spring semester much like what is now going on in the fall semester. Roughly 75% of the courses offered through community colleges now are done remotely, and that trend is expected to be mirrored next term, according to a memo from the VCCS chancellor.
By MALLORY NOE-PAYNE, WVTF This fall, three-quarters of classes at community colleges in Virginia are online. That trend will continue into the spring semester. In a letter to students, the VCCS Chancellor wrote he thinks online classes will continue to be the safest choice for students. "We will continue to follow the science in this matter and take guidance from public health agencies," writes Chancellor Glenn DuBois.
By HUNTER BRITT, VCU Capital News Service Social isolation due to the coronavirus has become a stressor for many college students across Virginia, who report that studying is more difficult and their mental health is suffering. Shane Emory, a senior broadcast journalism major at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, says he is experiencing this firsthand. While the dorms are quieter overall, there is very little opportunity to escape distractions. Emory says that his guitar and television are the top two things that draw him away from work.
By SAM WALL, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month) Radford University is preparing to close its campus Saturday ahead of a student-led protest on racial inequality slated for Saturday afternoon, according to university officials. University spokesman Justin Ward reiterated Friday morning the university's stance from earlier this week that The Bigger Picture March will be for faculty, staff and students only. The event will have a police presence.
By ERIC KOLENICH, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month) The board of visitors for Virginia Commonwealth University voted unanimously Friday to remove from its campus 16 building names, plaques and other symbols that honor supporters of the Confederacy, the latest step in this year's purge of Confederate symbols in the city and across the country. VCU President Michael Rao endorsed the move, saying "VCU rightfully serves all human beings" and "We must be dedicated to the truth."
By MICHAEL E. MILLER AND SARAH PULLIAM BAILEY, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month) For 2½ years, Giancarlo Granda had been telling his family about the generosity of his business partners. The wealthy couple from out of town had taken him under their wing, he said, rewarding the Miami pool attendant's ambition with a stake in a multimillion-dollar real estate project. Now he wanted them to meet. In a trendy Italian restaurant inside the South Beach property where he'd become a part owner, Granda introduced his parents and sister to his unlikely benefactors: Jerry and Becki Falwell. By MURRY LEE, WAVY-TV The Virginia Department of Corrections is offering incentives to inmates who choose to get their influenza shot amid the COVID-19 pandemic. According to a release from VADOC, offenders who elect to get their flu shots between October and December will be given a care package. The care packages include items like snacks and goodies, according to the release.
By SALEEN MARTIN, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month) The Virginia Department of Health reported 1,242 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday, bringing the state's tally to 138,702. At least 2,949 Virginians have died from the virus, up 29 from Thursday.
By MEL LEONOR, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month) A teenager who had tested positive for COVID-19 has died - the first death among people under the age of 19 in Virginia, state officials announced Friday. The teen was a resident of the Southside Health District, which borders North Carolina and includes Brunswick, Halifax and Mecklenburg counties. The state revealed no other details about the identity of the teen, "to protect privacy and out of respect for the patient's family."
By JANE HARPER, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month) A teenager from the state's Southside Health District has become the first child in Virginia to die as a result of COVID-19, health department officials announced Friday. The child was described as a "teen" and an "adolescent" in a news release issued by the Virginia Department of Health. No other details were provided out of respect for the teen's family, the release said.
By LUANNE RIFE, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month) About 2.4% of adult Virginians appear to have had a COVID-19 infection, according to the results of the Virginia Department of Health's serology project. The department partnered with five health systems in all of its health regions to draw blood samples to check for antibodies from outpatients who were willing to participate. About 5,000 Virginians were selected based on regions and demographics, and the samples were collected between June 1 and Aug. 14.
By CATHY DYSON, Free Lance-Star (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month) An outbreak of COVID-19 at a local nursing home has led to the 70th virus-related death in the Fredericksburg area while another cluster of illness, at a correctional facility, has caused a spike in Caroline County cases. The death of a Stafford County man, white and in his 60s, was reported Friday by the Virginia Department of Health. He is one of at least 33 residents of long-term care facilities in the Rappahannock Area Health District who have died from virus complications, according to state data
By LUANNE RIFE, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month) Two dozen environmental services workers at Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital have tested positive for COVID-19. Carilion Clinic said Friday that it is continuing to investigate and trace contacts but that there is no indication any patients were exposed to the coronavirus. By SABRINA MORENO, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers) Sens. Mark Warner, D-Va., Tim Kaine, D-Va., and Patty Murray, D-Wash., wrote to the Department of Homeland Security on Friday requesting an investigation into the decision to transfer 74 immigrants into Farmville's ICE facility so agents could reportedly quell D.C. protests on June 2. The decision served as the catalyst to COVID-19 ravaging the facility, which would go on to have 339 of its detainees test positive for coronavirus.
By BRETT HALL, WAVY-TV The Board of Supervisors chose not to vote on relocating its Confederate monument Thursday night — instead, it voted to appoint a task force to bring recommendations for an ultimate decision. The task force, approved on a 4-1 vote, will be tasked with investigating and locating sites for the potential relocation of the monument as well as the way the monument could be contextualized at its current location. A report would be due to the board Dec. 1. By STAFF REPORT, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month) Two private schools in Richmond required all their ninth- through 12th-graders to attend school virtually Friday after two students who attended a weekend party tested positive for the coronavirus. More than 60 students from all-girl St. Catherine's and all-boy St. Christopher's high schools attended an "unsupervised gathering" last weekend without masks or social distancing.
By TYLER HAMMEL, Daily Progress (Metered Paywall - 25 articles a month) More than a year and a half after renovations began, the Charlottesville Circuit Courthouse has reopened, though its use is limited by the coronavirus pandemic. In January 2019 the circuit courthouse began significant renovations for the first time since the 1960s. The courthouse was relocated to Levy Opera House while renovations were underway. Free Lance-Star Editorial (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month) Kudos to the Virginia Senate's Commerce and Labor Committee for having the good sense to soundly reject, by a bipartisan 14–1 vote, a House substitute bill (HB 5116) that would have required private, but not public, employers to provide workers with "paid quarantine leave." By JEFF E. SCHAPIRO, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers) Ray Pethtel's business was the people's business. Pethtel, who died in Christiansburg this past Saturday at 83, was the first director of a Virginia government agency — created by a somewhat-reluctant legislature in 1973 — that makes sure taxpayers get their money's worth. It does so the old-fashioned way: spotlighting the inner workings of the bureaucracy. Pethtel's agency promoted efficiency, reform, accountability and transparency. By HARRISON GODFREY, published in Free Lance-Star (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month) As a record heat wave struck California in recent weeks, and grid operators were forced to institute rolling blackouts, Free Lance-Star editors jumped too quickly to blame clean energy resources ["A cautionary energy tale from California, Editorial, Aug. 30]. Let's look at the facts. In a letter to the governor, the heads of California's energy agencies have stated point-blank: "Renewable energy did not cause the rotating outages." Instead, a complicated series of system and planning failures, which are detailed in the letter, led to the blackouts. Godfrey is director of Virginia Advanced Energy Economy, a business group focused on growing the advanced energy industry in the commonwealth.
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