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Fairfax casino bill appears to be dead, following subcommittee vote
A bill that would have given Fairfax County the right to hold a casino referendum is likely dead for the 2025 session, after passing a vote last week in the Virginia State Senate. Senate Bill 982, introduced by Democratic Sen. Scott Surovell, was passed by for the day — in other words, not passed along […]
Fairfax casino legislation passes in Va. Senate
A bill to allow Fairfax County residents to hold a casino referendum passed in a Virginia State Senate vote Tuesday. The measure will next go before the Virginia House of Delegates for consideration. Senate Bill 982, introduced by Sen. Scott Surovell, D-Fairfax, passed in a 24-16 vote in the Senate, along bipartisan lines, with some […]
Fairfax casino bill moves forward in Va. Senate
A Virginia State Senate bill that could bring a casino to Tysons won a vote in the Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday, pushing it forward to a full Senate vote later in the Virginia General Assembly session. If passed by the state legislature and signed by Gov. Glenn Youngkin, Fairfax County voters would have the […]
Va. will hold 2 special elections to fill empty state Senate seats
Updated Nov. 10 Two Virginia State Senate seats are now open, with the election of state Sens. John McGuire, R-Goochland, and Suhas Subramanyam, D-Loudoun, to the U.S. House of Representatives this week, so the state will hold special elections to fill those seats in districts 10 and 32 ahead of the Virginia General Assembly’s new […]
Senate Dems criticize Youngkin’s budget amendments
Virginia Senate Democrats had a lot of criticism Tuesday for Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s proposed reworking of the state’s 2024-26 budget but held back on saying whether they would vote yea or nay on his 233 amendments. Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell, D-Fairfax, said late Tuesday afternoon that he and fellow legislators had not had time […]
Democrats sweep Va. General Assembly
Updated Nov. 8 Democrats regained control of the Virginia Senate and the House of Delegates in Tuesday’s elections, likely putting a damper on Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s legislative agenda and potential 2024 presidential aspirations. As of 11:45 p.m. Tuesday, according to the Virginia Public Access Project, Democrats won 21 out of 40 seats in the […]
Government | Politics 2023: SCOTT A. SUROVELL
A Democrat representing parts of Fairfax, Prince William and Stafford counties, Surovell is one of several state senators who could land top leadership roles in next year’s General Assembly. A trial lawyer with degrees from the University of Virginia and James Madison University, Surovell won election to the House of Delegates in 2009 and then […]
Government | Politics 2023: MAMIE E. LOCKE
Locke was the Atlanta Historical Society’s archivist in 1981, when she was asked to interview for a political science teaching position at Hampton University, where 42 years later she is a professor emeritus. She served as vice mayor and mayor of Hampton before her election to the state Senate in 2004. As many of her […]
Government | Politics 2023: L. LOUISE LUCAS
The undisputed queen of snarky Virginia political tweets, with 90,400 Twitter/X followers, Lucas delights in poking at Gov. Glenn Youngkin. In June, she pulled off a nailbiter primary victory against longtime Democratic Sen. Lionel Spruill. Although she’s expected to win the general election, she has bigger fish to fry as Democrats aim this fall to […]
Government | Politics 2023: RYAN McDOUGLE
Following the retirement of veteran Republican Sen. Tommy Norment, McDougle could be the next majority or minority leader of the state Senate, depending on how party control swings after this fall’s election. Chairman of the Virginia Senate Republican Caucus, McDougle is in the new guard of legislative leaders poised to take the place of retiring […]
Morrissey’s Petersburg casino bill fails in Senate Finance
Updated Friday, Feb. 3 With an 7-8 no vote Thursday evening, the Virginia Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee killed state Sen. Joe Morrissey’s measure to bring a casino referendum to Petersburg‘s ballots this fall. A similar bill in the House of Delegates, however, is still alive. A few days after receiving support from the Senate […]
Gloves off
Although many political observers doubt there will be much legislation of major significance passed by the split legislature this year, Sen. Joe Morrissey, D-Petersburg, is gambling on a productive 2023. As one of a slight Democratic majority in the Virginia Senate, the only state body currently under the party’s control, Morrissey is in an enviable […]
