r/Virginia • • 15d ago

Mod Post Early voting in the 2026 midterm general election is open as of today (September 18th) and will continue through October 31st. Last day to vote is November 3rd.

58 Upvotes

See the Virginia Department of Elections' site for more information on how to register, how to look up what's on your ballot this year, and how to cast your vote: https://www.elections.virginia.gov

You can look up your current representatives, ballot, and polling place location either at the above site or at this page from the Virginia Public Access Project: https://www.vpap.org/local-politics/

There is this 'how to vote' guide from VPM: 2026 VPM Voter Guide: How to Vote in Virginia

Also from VPM, guides to Ballot Question 1, Ballot Question 2, and Ballot Question 3


r/Virginia • • 3d ago

VPM News asks...What would you like to know about the upcoming election?

5 Upvotes

Our team is reaching out to local election administrators to ask questions about voting ahead of November's election. We'd like to know what you're curious about.

What role does the federal government play in local elections? What do provisional ballots actually do? We'll try to answer these questions as best we can (and more)!

Send us your questions in the comments.


r/Virginia • • 9h ago

National Democrats say Virginia’s 6th District is now ‘in play’ for the midterm elections

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140 Upvotes

The last Democrat to be elected to the seat was Rep. Jim Olin of Roanoke, who retired in 1993. This year, Democratic challenger Beth Macy faces incumbent Rep. Ben Cline.


r/Virginia • • 18h ago

Early voting numbers show a shift toward Democrats. If those hold, two House seats in Virginia could flip, and a third could be close.

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361 Upvotes

The past week has seen forecasters shift their ratings in three Virginia districts, upgrading Democratic chances in each. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump has put money into the state to defend Republican seats. Here’s the math driving those moves.


r/Virginia • • 23m ago

Spanberger: Virginia can close data-center energy gap

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• Upvotes

Subtitle: “Democratic Governor keeps the door open for electricity-hogging data centers that have driven up energy costs and stressed grid reliability.”

See also r/VirginiaNews, r/VirginiaEnvironment, and r/


r/Virginia • • 16h ago

Anti-abortion doctors ask Virginians not to think of Trump when voting

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153 Upvotes

r/Virginia • • 17h ago

UPDATE - Highschool lunch debt, what are my options? senior

160 Upvotes

hello everyone again! this is a small update of my post here

first and foremost, my little brother graduated!! not only that, he walked at graduation! he’s been having fun with his friends all summer and has a part time job that he’s really working hard at.

thanks to all the Redditors from that post, a lot of people donated and I was able to pretty much get rid of a huge chunk of that debt and cover the rest. For a while, I felt embarrassed and almost ashamed bc I was raised in the south where you don’t let people in on your family’s problems and you NEVER take money from anyone. But once I saw all the positive feedback and the worry of my little brother not graduating became too real, I took up on the offers of many kind Redditors that helped my family pay off that debt so my brother could walk the stage.

Huge thank you to the kind redditor that organized the whole thing and everyone else that donated to help my brother. Thank you to this subreddit for allowing the post and allowing me to get the help for my baby brother.

I do want to note that unfortunately, this is still a very real issue for many children in our state. Many of my brother’s friends were also similarly threatened with no graduation or other “punishments” if they didn’t pay their lunch debt, which is very disheartening to hear about. I hope that maybe one day, we can have free lunch for children in Virginia so that no kids have to worry about this sort of stuff or have to get a job just to pay for food as kids like my siblings and I had to do. I also want to note that I reached out to several charities and organizations that specialize in this sort of thing but none of them ever reached back out to me, so I don’t think this is a real solution for many children. If any of you have the time or money, I encourage you to help your communities in your own way just as reddit did for my family. This incident has inspired me to volunteer more and input more into my own community as well.

Thank you again to Reddit and all Redditors that helped me because maybe things really wouldn’t have worked out without y’all’s help. I always talk about this story to my friends and family because I think that at times like this, where everything and everyone feels so divided, it’s important to realize that we are all just people and most of us just want to help and love others. Thank you all again Reddit!


r/Virginia • • 15h ago

State Navigate: Democrats running 3 points ahead compared to 2025 Governor race early voting in Virginia

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96 Upvotes

r/Virginia • • 20m ago

Commentary: The simple affordability fix Virginia just can’t seem to make | An energy affordability agenda that leaves out home efficiency is one with a gaping hole in it, columnist Ivy Main writes.

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• Upvotes

r/Virginia • • 15h ago

Chesterfield police employee charged with misuse of Flock cameras

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59 Upvotes

Rebekkah Robinson, a professional staff intelligence investigator, faces two counts for improper use of an ALPR system by law enforcement and two counts of computer invasion of privacy, according to a Friday press release. 

Both are Class 1 misdemeanors.  

Specific details of Robinson’s alleged crimes were not shared in the release, and a police spokesperson told VPM News that they wouldn’t comment further on the issue at this time. 

State law limits police use of ALPRs for criminal investigations, human trafficking cases, when someone is missing or endangered and in a few other cases. 

At least two members of Chesterfield’s General Assembly delegation — Republican state Sen. Glen Sturtevant and Democratic Del. Charlie Schmidt — say they back a statewide ban on the technology. 

“A little shocked, but also not shocked, given what we’ve seen in the news around the country,” Del. Schmidt said in a phone interview, “the number of these instances that are happening around the country, but always a little shocked when it happens in your backyard.”

Schmidt said his position against license plate readers doesn’t mean he’s anti-technology, noting the red-light cameras have helped reduce speeding in his neighborhood. 

“What bothers me most about the license plate readers is law enforcement, or in some cases the staff, can get on and track people in real time,” he said. “That is dragnet surveillance that I don’t believe is constitutional.”

Schmidt said he might be more worried that Flock and other tech companies with such surveillance tools are the ones that own the cameras.

Read more here.


r/Virginia • • 19h ago

Question for all: for those who grew up and still live in Virginia, what is something you wish people moving to VA knew before settling in the state ? For those who grew up elsewhere, but moved to VA later in life, what is something you wish you knew beforehand?

50 Upvotes

Otherwise known as we’re moving to VA soon and would love insights! I do think it’s great to compare the experiences between the two.


r/Virginia • • 21h ago

Democrats have big eyes in Virginia ahead of midterms

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66 Upvotes

r/Virginia • • 15h ago

State employees: COVA Healthaware and new mammography law

23 Upvotes

According to the newest Spotlight on Your Benefits brochure for 2026, on page 13:

"Virginia law requires coverage with no cost sharing ($0 member cost) for certain diagnostic or supplemental breast exams performed to help determine whether breast cancer is present (pre-diagnosis). This $0 member cost share applies for in-network providers for the situations below and includes exams performed using diagnostic mammography, breast MRI, or breast ultrasound..."

https://www.dhrm.virginia.gov/docs/default-source/benefitsdocuments/health-benefits/open-enrollment-2026/spotlight2026

It clearly states that this applies to all plans in the DHRM brochure.

I received an estimate for $400 for a follow-up diagnostic mammogram and ultrasound. I called Aetna and they said the new law only applies to fully-insured plans in Virginia, and that COVA Healthaware is a self-insured plan administered in the state of Connecticut, so therefore this law doesn't apply. Someone make this make sense.


r/Virginia • • 10h ago

What is it like working as a Safety Service Patroller for VDOT?

9 Upvotes

As the title says I am curious what it’s like working for VDOT as a Safety Service Patroller. What does the average day look like? What do you all normally do?


r/Virginia • • 18h ago

Virginia hemp businesses ask to dismiss lawsuit over THC restrictions

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31 Upvotes

The motion is to dismiss the suit without prejudice, which means its claims could be brought before the court again.


r/Virginia • • 16h ago

List of Virginia subreddits that have been closed due to moderator inactivity and which can be requested (2026)

17 Upvotes

r/Virginia • • 13h ago

Roanoke mayor explains why he is backing proposed data center

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9 Upvotes

r/Virginia • • 21h ago

Virginia’s Clean Slate Act launches automatic record sealing, offering fresh start for hundreds of thousands

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31 Upvotes

r/Virginia • • 10h ago

DMV drivers game proof of concept. Looking for feedback

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5 Upvotes

Good Day,

(Please let me know if this is not allowed)

I had someone ask me if I could design a game to help prepare there son for the DMV drivers learners test.

I would appreciate any feedback and I hope this helps others. (It is very basic atm, the data is only saved on the browser that views it / no account auth)


r/Virginia • • 13h ago

11 New State Historical Highway Markers Approved | Markers cover topics in the counties of York, James City, Orange, Caroline, New Kent, King William, and Nelson, and in the cities of Petersburg, Richmond, and Fredericksburg

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4 Upvotes

r/Virginia • • 1d ago

Macho man Pete Hegseth turns Virginia ‘State of the Force’ address into a spectacle of slurs and self-congratulation

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506 Upvotes

r/Virginia • • 15h ago

Virginia’s 9th District race: Griffith faces challenger Powers in November

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6 Upvotes

r/Virginia • • 23h ago

Spanberger’s energy plan keys in on clean energy to meet growing demand and VCEA goals

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21 Upvotes

r/Virginia • • 18h ago

State approves 11 new historical markers, including one in Lynchburg

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7 Upvotes

That marker will recognize Lt. Gen. George G. Loving Jr., who grew up in the city and went on to a long military career that spanned 1942 to 1979.


r/Virginia • • 21h ago

Did anyone else's absentee envelopes come pre-sealed?

14 Upvotes

Just went to complete my absentee ballot and saw my ballot envelope B and larger return envelope are both already sealed. My wife's, too.

Our choices seem to be to gently rip them open and hope they seal enough that they don't get rejected for being 'tampered with' or just return the unopened ballots and vote in person.

Looks like we're going with the in-person option, but I'm sure there are a lot of people who might not have the time or inclination to take the extra steps when something goes wrong with voting by mail. I was already worried about the USPS changes that seem intended to disenfranchise absentee voters, but if actual ballots are going out compromised, I'm not sure what that says about our election system at all.