By ANTONIO OLIVO, MICHAEL BRICE-SADDLER AND ERIN COX, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)
The Washington region prepared for a tense presidential election Tuesday that will also determine the area’s direction on local issues, with Virginia Democrats seeking a greater presence in Congress, D.C. liberals vying to increase their power on the city council and Marylanders deciding whether to legalize sports betting.
By NOAH ROBERTSON, Christian Science Monitor
Like many residents of Main Street in Sperryville, Virginia, Kevin Reid prefers to let his lawn do the talking. Among Halloween inflatables, a “Blue Lives Matter” flag flown on his truck, and wood saws buzzing through a home renovation, Mr. Reid displays three large signs: Trump 2020, Daniel Gade for Senate, and Bob Good for Congress.
By YANN RANAIVO, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)
Sitting at a folding table Monday afternoon in the back room of the Roanoke County election office, Electoral Board Vice Chair Jeff Krasnow stamped the exterior envelope of an absentee ballot with the date received: Nov. 2. One day before Election Day.
By TAFT COGHILL JR., Free Lance-Star (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month)
When Renia Mercer went into the Caroline County General Registrar’s Office, she knew exactly who she was voting for. But Mercer departed perplexed as to why Kanye West’s name was listed as a presidential candidate for Caroline voters despite the Virginia Supreme Court decision Sept. 17 denying his appeal to be listed on the state’s ballot.
By REED WILLIAMS, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month)
Richmond police continued to block traffic from entering Lee Circle on Monday and officers posted signs in the area warning that guns are prohibited, one day after a clash at the circle between a “Trump train” of cars and opposing protesters. City police said after Sunday’s skirmish that they had blocked entrances to the circle along Monument Avenue to most cars and would be monitoring the area. They did not say how long the closure would be in effect, but repeated on Monday that they would notify the community when it is lifted.
By EVA SUROVELL, Cavalier Daily
Masks, midterms and mandatory testing — this is the reality that the more than 200,000 students attending Virginia’s 15 four-year public colleges and universities have faced since returning to school. Despite the possibility of contracting COVID-19, freshmen and upperclassmen alike moved into on and off-campus housing this fall, unsure of what to expect. From Charlottesville to Blacksburg, it has become clear that this fall has been a semester like no other.
By LISA BONOS, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)
In 2016, Marklyn Louis made what seemed like good election night plans. She’d worked with Hillary Clinton’s campaign and helped plan a big watch party at a bar in Virginia Beach. She brought a hot date; everyone was buoyed by Virginia going blue. But once battleground states like Ohio and Florida were called for Donald Trump, the tequila came out and the energy in the room took a nosedive. “It was a really bad way to spend the night,” she recalled. “It was a whole spectacle.” She remembers leaving around midnight, feeling stunned and numb.
The Full Report
52 articles, 29 publications
The Virginia Public Access Project
More than 2.7 million have voted early. The question is how many more will turn out the old-fashioned way on Election Day. We take a step back and consider how voters break down by gender, region and generation. There's also a look at how often those who have been registered since 2016 have voted in the last four cycles.
The Virginia Public Access Project
By the time in-person early voting ended Saturday in Virginia, Republicans appeared to have narrowed the gap in absentee voting, according to party affiliation projections from L2 Political. The data estimates that voters who fit the profile of Democrats still hold an overall 2:1 advantage among early voters whose partisan lean could be projected. This visual also looks at the age and gender of Virginia's 2.7 million early voters.
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.
Associated Press
Three competitive U.S. House races vied for Virginia voters’ attention Tuesday along with the presidential race and a U.S. Senate seat. Much is different this election, thanks in large part to the coronavirus pandemic and new voting laws that made it easier to vote early. More than 2.7 million voters have already cast ballots, which is more than two-thirds of the total overall voter turnout from four years ago in Virginia.
By BILL ATKINSON, Progress Index (Metered paywall - 10 articles a month)
Almost a quarter of the respondents to a Virginia State University online survey feel that Black issues are not adequately addressed by state and local lawmakers, even though African Americans are traditionally the most active voting bloc in elections. Results of the Black Virginia Voters Poll 2020 by VSU's John Mercer Langston Institute for African American Political Leadership showed that just 24% either agreed or strongly agreed that issues pertinent to communities of color were directly addressed by the Virginia General Assembly. They also reported that 25% felt the same way about their locally elected officials.
By ROBBIE HARRIS, WVTF
This year, Virginia is seeing a record number of votes cast before election day. And that’s going to change everything about what we once called, “Election Night.” You know these are unusual times when you see more people voting early than at any time in history. Virginia is one of the states that will count those votes as soon as they come in, but on election DAY, November 3rd, the in-person votes will actually be counted first.
By LAURA OLSON, Virginia Mercury
The U.S. Department of Justice will have staffers on the ground in 44 counties and cities across 18 states on Election Day, monitoring for violations of federal voting-rights laws — fewer states than in 2016. The localities this year are in battlegrounds like Michigan, Ohio, Florida, Georgia, Arizona, North Carolina, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania as well as two Northern Virginia counties.
By GREGORY J. GILLIGAN, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month)
A handful of retailers and businesses in Richmond are boarding up their stores, worried about potential violence on Election Day and beyond. "We're protecting our employees and customers," according to a store manager at the Rainbow apparel shop that boarded up its storefront at the East Broad and North Third streets in downtown Richmond on Monday.
By BILL ATKINSON, Progress Index (Metered paywall - 10 articles a month)
Although she has not heard anything to specifically raise suspicions, Commonwealth's Attorney Tiffany Buckner said Monday that the city has adopted a "contingency plan" to handle any criminal mischief or voter intimidation at the polls Tuesday. Buckner was mum on the exact details of that plan, sharing only that "we are taking measures" to ensure that any issue would be addressed quickly. She said her office has been working with law-enforcement agencies on the plan, and they all were confident in its effectiveness.
By PETE DELEA, Daily News Record (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)
With increased tension leading up today’s presidential election, area police plan to step up patrols at the polls. Both the Harrisonburg Police Department and Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office will be on alert for any problems. “We will have increased resources to monitor polling locations,” HPD Lt. Chris Monahan said. “We don’t anticipate any problems, but we want to be available just in case something comes up.”
By BRAD ZINN AND WILLIAM RAMSEY, News Leader (Metered Paywall - 3 to 4 articles a month)
Will there be any attempts of voter intimidation here in our area Tuesday? Nobody has a crystal ball but local prosecutors seem to feel that things will go smoothly, in these parts anyway.
By RACHEL MAHONEY, News & Advance (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)
A judge dismissed a civil case Monday that was filed late last week by the chairman of the Lynchburg Republican City Committee against the Lynchburg Registrar. The petition, filed Friday in Lynchburg Circuit Court by Eric Harrison, comes after the party raised concerns about the Lynchburg Registrar’s Office preprocessing ballots without a Republican officer of election present. He sought a court order on the registrar to ensure that, and other election provisions, are followed.
ArlNow
Almost two-thirds of active voters in Arlington have already voted. That’s according to the latest totals released by Arlington County’s elections office, following the end of in-person early voting on Saturday. As of Sunday, 104,988 votes had been cast in Arlington, according to the county: 45,108 via mail and 59,880 via in-person early voting. That represents about 63% of active voters, far exceeding the record-breaking, pre-Election Day turnout of the 2016 presidential election, during which 26,947 voted in-person early and about 10,000 cast mail-in ballots.
By RENSS GREENE, Loudoun Now
As of Monday, more than half of registered voters in Loudoun have already cast their ballots, according to the Loudoun County Office of Elections. Loudoun has 282,422 registered voters, according to Loudoun County Registrar Judy Brown. Of those, 89,133 have voted early in-person. A further 61,297 requested and returned mailed ballots, with 11,159 mailed ballots still outstanding.
By DANIEL BERTI, Prince William Times
Voter turnout reached 56% in Prince William County as of Monday, and officials are now expecting turnout to top out at 74% on Election Day – a 3% increase over the 2016 election. So far, 162,614 ballots have been cast in early voting in the county, including early in-person votes and absentee ballots that have been returned by mail or at voting drop boxes. That’s more than three times the early votes cast in the last presidential election in 2016.
By JAMES SCOTT BARON, Free Lance-Star (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month)
For those who prefer traditional voting at the polls on Election Day, your big day is finally here. For thousands who have already voted in Fredericksburg region, the wait to find out who won may take longer than usual. Even the weather is willing to cooperate with those who still haven’t cast a vote, as the forecast for Tuesday calls for partly cloudy skies warming into the low 60s.
By MARK BOWES, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month)
In Chesterfield County, nearly 58 percent of the county’s registered voters have either voted early in person, asked for a ballot by mail or returned it, Chesterfield Registrar Constance Hargrove said during a news briefing Monday about Chesterfield’s election day preparations.
By BILL ATKINSON, Progress Index (Metered paywall - 10 articles a month)
According to the numbers released Monday about early voting across Virginia, between a third and almost half of the Tri-City area's registered voters will have a relatively quiet Election Day. The non-profit Virginia Public Access Project, which tracks government data across the state, said Monday that on average, four out of every 10 registered voters across the Tri-City area have already cast their ballots for Tuesday's election. The information cited by VPAP comes from the state Department of Elections.
By STAFF REPORTS, Suffolk News Herald
More than 30,000 city residents voted early this year — more than five times the number of people who voted prior to Election Day in the 2016 presidential election. In Suffolk, 30,317 of the city’s 67,917 eligible voters have voted — 22,301 who voted in person and another 8,016 who voted by mail as of Nov. 1.
By TYLER HAMMEL, Daily Progress (Metered Paywall - 25 articles a month)
As an unprecedented Election Day arrives, most registered voters in Albemarle County and Charlottesville already have cast their ballots. An estimated 60% of registered voters in the county and 52% in the city either have voted early in person or sent their ballots in via the mail, according to election officials. Traditionally, both localities have seen a turnout of between 75% and 80% of registered voters in presidential election years.
By RALPH BERRIER JR., Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)
The Roanoke City Council commended the city voter registrar’s office for smoothly handling a record number of voters who cast early ballots. Absentee voting began Sept. 18 as a new Virginia law expanded the amount of time people could vote before Election Day and allowed people to vote absentee without giving a reason for voting early.
Fauquier Now
More than half of Fauquier’s registered voters already have cast ballots for Tuesday’s election, according to the county registrar’s office. Voting in person or by mail, 51.4 percent of the county’s 54,374 voters had participated as of Monday morning, Deputy Registrar Diana Dutton said.
By JOSH JANNEY, Winchester Star (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)
Today is Election Day, but about 45% of registered voters in Winchester, Frederick County and Clarke County have already cast their ballots — either by voting early in-person or by absentee ballot, according to local voting officials. Early in-person voting in Virginia began Sept. 18 — 45 days before today’s election — and ended Saturday. In Frederick County, 20,166 people voted early in-person and, as of Monday afternoon, 7,971 absentee ballots had been completed and returned. This means 28,137 of the county’s 64,243 registered voters, or 43%, have already voted.
By JACOB FENSTON, WAMU
Many people who usually spend election day volunteering at polling places will instead be spending the day at home this year, because of the pandemic. One such poll worker is 86-year-old Margaret Sullivan, who lives in a retirement home in Falls Church. “It’s November 1st, and I’ve just finished setting all the clocks back. I’m not sure I wanted another hour of this particular year or month, but we’ve got it,” Margaret said in a voice recording from Sunday, the first day after daylight savings time ended.
By LAURENCE HAMMACK, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is standing by its opinion that tree cutting and stream fording for a massive pipeline will not imperil endangered or threatened species. One week after environmental groups asked the service to stay its biological opinion for the Mountain Valley Pipeline, pending a legal challenge, the agency declined the request on Monday.
By YANN RANAIVO, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)
Rebecca Hobden walked toward the rear of her lab and returned with a ziplock bag of hemp. The crop and its derivatives are what she and her staff analyze on a regular basis at the ECC Test Lab in the Blacksburg Industrial Park. Hobden is the CEO and founder of ECC (East Coast Cannalytics), which first launched more than a year ago out of a sub-leased space at the Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center.
By RICH GRISET, Va Business Magazine
Richmond-based Dominion Energy Inc. proposed a new slate of projects on Monday that would bring nearly 500 megawatts of solar energy to Virginia customers, enough to power around 125,000 homes at peak output. The proposal, which the utility called “its largest slate yet of new solar projects” in a statement, was submitted for approval by the State Corporation Commission and follows the enactment of the Virginia Clean Economy Act, which was signed into law by Gov. Ralph Northam in April.
Chatham Star Tribune
Appalachian Power, which serves western portions of Pittsylvania County, will acquire or contract for 210 megawatts of solar power and 200 MW of wind power over the next five years as part of its long-range plan to meet the targets established by the Virginia Clean Economy Act (VCEA). Passed this year by the General Assembly, the legislation requires the utility to file an annual plan with the State Corporation Commission outlining how it will meet key targets on its way to becoming 100 percent carbon-free by 2050.
By NATALIE KOSTELNI, Washington Business Journal (Subscription required for some articles)
Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust has voluntarily filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. In its filing in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, PREIT listed assets of $2.4 billion and total debt of just more than $2 billion. Of its debt, $913 million is an unsecured loan with Wells Fargo, its largest creditor.
By GREGORY J. GILLIGAN, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)
The owner of Southpark Mall in Colonial Heights has filed for federal bankruptcy protection. CBL & Associates Properties Inc. sought Chapter 11 protection from creditors on Sunday, citing how economic pressures from the coronavirus pandemic have affected its tenants and its operations.
By KIMBERLY PIERCEALL, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)
The corporate owners of two Hampton Roads malls — the Greenbrier Mall in Chesapeake and the Patrick Henry Mall in Newport News — have separately filed for bankruptcy protection with the intention of arranging for new financing and extending debt repayment deadlines. Tennessee-based CBL Properties, which owns nearly 100 properties including 65 malls, among them the Greenbrier Mall, had its related CBL & Associates Properties Inc. and other affiliates file for chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization Monday in the Southern District of Texas federal court.
By CASEY FABRIS, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)
CBL Properties, the owner of Roanoke’s Valley View Mall, has filed for bankruptcy. The Chattanooga, Tennessee-based company announced Monday that it had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, which allows for reorganization, in Texas. The company indicates that its shopping centers will continue to operate normally.
By MEGAN WILLIAMS, Daily News Record (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)
Despite a tough start to the school year that saw one university send students home due to a steep increase in COVID-19 cases, area higher education institutions are seeing much fewer instances of the virus and are attributing that to students following protocols. James Madison University students returned from their one-month hiatus on the weekend of Oct. 3, and after adding extra precautions, such as random testing of students, cases have not spiked.
By ZACH ROSENTHAL AND EVA SUROVELL, Cavalier Daily
University President Jim Ryan offered students advice and guidance in dealing with the results of Election Day in a University-wide email Monday afternoon. In his email, Ryan said that it is possible that the outcome of the presidential election — and potentially several congressional races — may not be known for days or even weeks following the closure of the polls, as the United States Postal Service has reported delays in returning mail-in ballots in key swing states.
By LIANNA BROWN, Fourth Estate
In an email to the Mason community on Oct. 19, Provost Mark Ginsberg announced an updated plan for the spring semester, highlighting the elimination of spring break. With the elimination of spring break, the spring semester will begin on Jan. 25, one week later than previously announced. In a separate email, President Gregory Washington explained that the plan for the spring semester also includes a 10 percent increase in in-person classes, increased testing and the expansion of occupancy in residence halls.
By RICHARD CHUMNEY, News & Advance (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)
It may take more than a year, but Liberty University plans to overhaul its leadership. Two months after former president Jerry Falwell Jr. resigned amid a series of escalating scandals, the university Monday announced its board of trustees formally had voted to restructure its “leadership model.”
By STAFF REPORT, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)
The Virginia Department of Health reported Monday that the statewide total for COVID-19 cases is 183,418, an increase of 1,026 from the 182,392 reported Sunday. The 183,418 cases consist of 169,512 confirmed cases and 13,906 probable cases. There are 3,658 COVID-19 deaths in Virginia — 3,402 confirmed and 256 probable. That’s an increase of three from the 3,655 reported Monday.
By RICH GRISET, Va Business Magazine
Virginia recorded an increase of 9,143 COVID-19 cases and 77 deaths last week, according to Virginia Department of Health statistics reported Monday, Nov. 2. The state’s positivity rate climbed from 5% to 5.8%. Virginia’s case numbers are relatively low compared to other states, which have seen positivity rates zoom far above 10% in recent weeks. On Oct. 30, the United States recorded 98,583 new cases, a new daily record.
By ANGELA WOOLSEY, Reston Now
Like many other parts of Virginia and the U.S., Fairfax County is seeing an increase in COVID-19 cases as the weather gets cooler. The county has a rolling seven-day average of 133.9 cases as of Nov. 2, the highest since mid-June when an average of 137 cases was recorded on June 12.
By RANDY ARRINGTON, Page Valley News
The Lord Fairfax Health District reported 909 new cases of COVID-19 during the month of October. That’s the highest level for a single month since May, when the health district saw 980 cases of the coronavirus reported — and it’s nearly a third more cases than the district saw in August (349) and September (349) combined.
By CAT MODLIN-JACKSON, WVTF
On a sunny morning, James Weathers is hanging out at a community center in Harrisonburg before he heads to work. Like many of his friends here, he’s spent months struggling to find a place to live. "You just get discouraged," Weathers admits, "out here like this when you have money and they tell you, ‘affordable housing,’ and they come with you (at) $850. That’s not affordable."
By DANIEL BERTI, Prince William Times
Charges have been dropped against five of the eight people arrested during two days of civil unrest in Manassas in the aftermath of the death of George Floyd, an unarmed African American man killed by a police officer in Minneapolis, Minnesota, that sparked nationwide protests. Of the five individuals whose charges were dropped, four were arrested on the evening of May 30 during a protest at the intersection of Sudley Road and Sudley Manor Drive in Manassas.
ArlNow
Most Arlington Public Schools students will not return to classrooms until 2021. Superintendent Dr. Francisco Durán announced today that the planned “Level 2” return for younger and technical education students “will pause through the remainder of this calendar year.” On the other hand, the “Level 1” return for students with disabilities will proceed as planned this coming Wednesday.
By KENYA HUNTER, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month)
Days after Richmond schools Superintendent Jason Kamras said publicly he was “not optimistic” about returning students to classrooms in the spring, the city School Board on Monday discussed the process for making a decision, anticipated to come Dec. 7.
By WHITTNEY EVANS, WCVE-FM
A Richmond activist is suing 1st District City Council candidate Mike Dickinson for defamation and harassment. The lawsuit also names the users behind anonymous Twitter accounts that posted right-wing and pro-police content. Breanne Armbrust is a long-time social justice advocate and Executive Director of the Neighborhood Resource Center of Greater Fulton. She operates the Twitter account @BreRVA, which is also identified as #SocialJusticeNerd. Armbrust claims Dickinson and others launched a coordinated attack on her using social media.
By RANDY ARRINGTON, Page Valley News
At first, Liz Lewis wasn’t sure what the response would be to the latest program she’s rolling out to the community. Details were still being worked out, and Page County’s director of Economic Development and Tourism wanted to “trickle out” information about help with internet connectivity to test the waters. Now, she knows for sure that a real need is going to soon be met. “This program is on fire right now,” Lewis said on Monday afternoon.
Associated Press
A city in southwestern Virginia is testing its drinking water from the Roanoke River after a coal train derailed into the waterway. The Roanoke Times reports that the train derailed late Friday in Roanoke County near the city of Salem.
By STAFF REPORT, Danville Register & Bee
Danville will get nearly $500,000 in federal money to fight violent crime, the Department of Justice announced Monday. “We cannot simply prosecute our way out of the gang violence problem that persists in Danville and other communities in the Western District of Virginia,” United States Attorney Bubar said in a news release. “These funds will allow the city of Danville to provide critical programming for young people who may be tempted to enter the destructive gang lifestyle.
Roanoke Times Editorial (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)
The most famous election photo of all time was about an embarrassing mistake — the photo of President Harry Truman holding up a copy of the Chicago Daily Tribune that blared DEWEY DEFEATS TRUMAN. That headline serves as a cautionary tale for what we’re about to discuss: How the media goes about “projecting” a winner before all the votes are counted.
Virginian-Pilot Editorial (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)
Finally, Election Day is here. If you’re not one of the many thousands of Virginians who have already voted early in person or by mail, this is your last chance to have a say in matters that are likely to have a great impact on the future — yours, your descendants', your nation’s, the world’s.
Richmond Times-Dispatch Editorial (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month)
In any election year, polling helps identify voters’ candidate preferences and the issues that are driving their choices. We’ve seen wedge issues — political or social concerns that divide segments of society — determine elections in the past. But the coronavirus is different. It is rewriting the core components of how we live today and how we want to live going forward.
By ELLIOTT WARREN, published in Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month)
Janet Howell, D-Fairfax, the chair of the General Assembly’s Senate Finance Committee, has asked whether Virginia would be better off without Virginia Military Institute, stating that, “I’m not sure how important or relevant it is. It seems to me its time has passed.” This proud Virginian and VMI graduate couldn’t disagree more.
Warren of Richmond is a 2016 graduate of Virginia Military Institute.
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