OPEN SEAT PROFILE: HD 85 IN VIRGINIA BEACH

House District 85 became an open seat when freshman Del. Cheryl Turpin (D-Virginia Beach) opted to run for the State Senate. This was one of the 25 House Districts redrawn as part of a redistricting lawsuit. The result: HD85 became slightly more favorable to Democrats. VPAP provides maps and charts that explore the district's demographics, voter engagement and partisan tendencies in recent statewide elections.

NORTHAM RETURNS TO POLITICAL CAMPAIGN SCENE MONTHS AFTER BLACKFACE SCANDAL

Gov. Ralph Northam is launching an earnest return to the political campaign scene with a new digital ad and events with more than a dozen Democratic candidates scheduled between now and Election Day. Northam had all but stopped politicking in the aftermath of the blackface scandal that shook his administration Feb. 1, halting all fundraising and political events months ahead of the state’s pivotal Nov. 5 elections.

NORTHAM KICKS OFF STATEWIDE INVESTMENT PROGRAM AT DARDEN EVENT

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam joined business people, investors, financiers and government officials in Charlottesville on Tuesday to kick off Opportunity Virginia, a statewide initiative to bring economic development into distressed and disadvantaged communities.

NORFOLK CAN MOVE CONFEDERATE MONUMENT, VIRGINIA ATTORNEY GENERAL SAYS

Norfolk’s top prosecutor and the state’s attorney general don’t believe a state law that forbids the removal of war memorials applies to Norfolk’s Confederate monument — seemingly giving the city the green light to move the statue.

VIRGINIA IS STILL STUDYING CASINOS. BUT TWO COMMUNITIES ARE ABOUT TO VOTE ON MINIATURE VERSIONS.

At a strip-mall Italian restaurant, the visiting businesspeople laid out a spread of chicken wings and potato skins, arranged their piles of bumper stickers and settled in to greet the locals. On a laptop, video testimonials from New Kent County officials played to a mostly empty room, singing the praises of the new gambling venture run by Colonial Downs Group that they said brought jobs and tax revenue.

TECHNICAL CHANGES TO STATE BUDGET CALL FOR NEARLY $300M MORE ANNUALLY TO VIRGINIA SCHOOLS

A week after Virginia’s public education governing board said it would cost nearly $1 billion more per year to give students the education they need, lawmakers are now looking at a bill of about $300 million on top of that. Technical changes to the state’s education budget total $595.7 million over the next two years, the Senate Finance Committee learned Tuesday.

VIRGINIA’S SPENDING ON SCHOOLS EXPECTED TO RISE BY $596 MILLION OVER TWO YEARS

One of the two big immovable objects in Virginia’s budget — the every-two-years update to public school costs — looks like it will be a lot bigger this year. The state’s payments to local school boards will rise by $596 million over the next two years, assistant superintendent of public instruction Kent Dickey told the Senate Finance Committee Tuesday.

REPUBLICAN SENATOR’S CHALLENGER HAS FOCUSED ON GUN CONTROL — BUT NOW SAYS SHE MAY DROP OUT

A Republican state senator is facing a general election challenge for the first time in a decade in a district that’s considered strongly favorable to the incumbent. Sen. John Cosgrove has held the seat in the 14th Senate District since 2014. He was a delegate for a decade prior to that and served on the City Council in Chesapeake, where he lives.

POLITICAL NEWCOMER HOPES FOR UPSET

Rebecca Raveson may not have much money, but she believes her background, coupled with not having ties to anyone, will bring its own set of advantages that will help the Democrat on Election Day. Raveson, who is semi-retired and living in Suffolk, is taking on Chesapeake Republican John Cosgrove for the Senate District 14 seat

BUSINESS OWNER CHALLENGES ENVIRONMENT-FOCUSED SENATOR IN NORFOLK, EASTERN SHORE DISTRICT

A Democratic state senator who’s spent nearly 15 years in the General Assembly representing the rural Eastern Shore and urban Norfolk is facing a challenge from a Republican who wants to bring her experience as a small business owner to Richmond. Sen. Lynwood Lewis, 57, is a lawyer and moderate Democrat who has championed legislation to address sea level rise in the 6th Senate District, which encompasses the Eastern Shore, Chic’s Beach, half of Norfolk and Mathews County.

AIDED BY OUT-OF-STATE DONATIONS, VCU ALUMNA OUTRAISES VIRGINIA HOUSE SPEAKER IN 66TH DISTRICT RACE

Political science alumna Sheila Bynum-Coleman outraised Speaker of the House of Delegates Kirk Cox — her opponent in the race for the 66th District — by more than $200,000 last month thanks to large out-of-state donations....Last month, Bynum-Coleman surpassed Cox with out-of-state contributions totaling $344,925. The top two donors were Everytown for Gun Safety, an anti-gun violence group — which donated $126,000 — and Emily’s List, whose mission is to elect pro-choice Democratic women. The group donated $125,000.

CANDIDATES ADDRESS TOP OF VIRGINIA BUILDING ASSOCIATION

Four local candidates for the House of Delegates talked about how they would help the development community during a breakfast hosted by the Top of Virginia Building Association on Tuesday at The George Washington Hotel. All 100 seats in the General Assembly are up for election on Nov. 5. Attending the breakfast were 29th District Del. Chris Collins, R-Frederick County, and Democratic challenger Irina Khanin of Winchester; 33rd District Del. Dave LaRock, R-Hamilton, and 10th District Republican candidate Randy Minchew of Leesburg.

CANDIDATES ACKNOWLEDGE STAYING POWER OF MEDICAID EXPANSION, NEED FOR IMPROVEMENTS

For most local candidates in the House of Delegates 93rd and 96th Districts and the Senate 3rd District, the expansion of Medicaid is here to stay, they acknowledged.

DEMOCRATS JOIN FORCES IN LONGSHOT CAMPAIGN FOR RURAL VIRGINIA

Rural Virginia has voted overwhelmingly Republican in recent decades. This year, a group of Democrats running for the General Assembly are trying to chip away at the GOP’s advantage by joining forces. Attorney Christian Worth’s race for a House of Delegates seat centered in Lexington offers one glimpse into the Democrats’s prospects. She lost to the current GOP delegate, Ronnie Campbell, by almost 20% in December 2018 runoff elections.

KNOCK, KNOCK. IT’S ALEC BALDWIN AT THE FRONT DOOR: VIRGINIA DEMOCRATS IMPORT CELEBRITY FIREPOWER.

If she had known actor Alec Baldwin and a gang of TV cameras were going to show up at her front door Tuesday, Sarah Robinson would have dressed. “I wish I wasn’t in my PJs,” Robinson, 28, said, looking down at her sweatpants and fleece top. Baldwin was in town to stage some political theater for Democratic candidate Amanda Pohl,

ACTOR ALEC BALDWIN RALLIES DEMOCRATS FOR SENATE CANDIDATE AMANDA POHL IN CHESTERFIELD

Kristin Goodlett of Chesterfield County got some visitors at her door Tuesday she did not expect. Waiting outside were actor Alec Baldwin and Democratic state Senate candidate Amanda Pohl, plus a bunch of reporters standing in the yard. “Are you Christine?” asked Baldwin, who plays President Donald Trump on NBC’s “Saturday Night Live.”

ACTOR ALEC BALDWIN ALL-IN FOR VIRGINIA DEMOCRATS

Hollywood heavyweight and political activist Alec Baldwin visited South Stafford on Tuesday to show his support for three local Democratic legislative candidates in the region. Baldwin came to Leeland Station’s Belle Air Clubhouse to encourage nearly 150 enthusiastic guests to get out and vote for Democrats Joshua Cole, Qasim Rashid and Jess Foster.

ACTOR ALEC BALDWIN CAMPAIGNS FOR VIRGINIA DEMOCRATS

The actor known for his mocking impersonations of Republican President Donald Trump on “Saturday Night Live” campaigned Tuesday for Democratic legislative candidates in a Virginia election that is viewed as a warmup to the 2020 presidential contest. Alec Baldwin told Democrats and reporters in suburban Richmond that he believes flipping the Republican-controlled House of Delegates and Senate would benefit residents of Virginia and improve the chances of the state ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment.

WRITE-IN CANDIDATES WITHOUT MUCH ATTENTION ARE LATE ENTRIES IN VIRGINIA STATE RACES

Four write-in candidates, who announced 10 days ago that they will challenge four incumbent Democrats for Alexandria’s General Assembly seats Nov. 5, freely admit that they have no money, no posters, no shared policies and no endorsements. And one is out of the country, vacationing in Europe. But in this overwhelmingly Democratic city, these four Republicans want to make a point.

CONSERVATIVE POLITICAL CONSULTANT PLEADS TO DIVERTING MONEY

A northern Virginia political consultant has pleaded guilty to diverting tens of thousands of dollars from conservative political action committees and filing false reports to cover it up. Sixty-six-year-old Scott Mackenzie of Arlington was treasurer of multiple PACs, including Conservative StrikeForce and Conservative Majority Fund.

CENSUS DATA: OLDER VIRGINIANS MAINTAIN A SIGNIFICANT INFLUENCE OVER ELECTIONS

According to the Census Bureau, voting age millennials and Gen Xers now outnumber Baby Boomers and older voters in Virginia. But that does not mean they have as much influence. Census numbers also show another interesting trend: People over the age of 45 vote at much higher rates. Quentin Kidd at Christopher Newport University says that gives Baby Boomers a kind of influence that no other generation enjoys.

MCAULIFFE JOINING LAW FIRM’S PRIVACY AND CYBER THINK TANK

Former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe is joining a global law firm’s privacy and cybersecurity think tank. Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP announced Tuesday that McAuliffe will be a global strategy adviser at its Centre for Information Policy Leadership .

IN A FIRST, FDA APPROVES SMOKELESS TOBACCO PRODUCT SOLD BY RICHMOND COMPANY AS 'MODIFIED RISK'

For the first time, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is allowing a tobacco company to advertise one of its products as less harmful than cigarettes. The agency on Tuesday gave approval for the Richmond-based tobacco company Swedish Match North America to sell one of its smokeless tobacco products as “modified risk.” The designation means Swedish Match can market eight versions of its General Snus — a brand of oral, smokeless tobacco sold and consumed in small, tea bag-like pouches

MOST EMPLOYEES OF DUBLIN VOLVO PLANT PART OF TEMPORARY LAYOFF

More than 80% of Volvo’s Dublin plant employees have been temporarily laid off due to a work stoppage by United Auto Workers’ union members, according to a company spokesman. A Mack Trucks power train plant in Hagerstown, Maryland, that supplies engines and transmissions to the Dublin plant is part of the 3,500 UAW-represented employee strikes affecting six plants in three states, according to Volvo spokesman John Mies.

BALLAD FILES APPLICATION TO REOPEN LEE COUNTY HOSPITAL WITH CRITICAL ACCESS DESIGNATION

Ballad Health said Tuesday that it has submitted the paperwork to obtain a critical access hospital designation in order to reopen a hospital in Lee County. The health system said its application is being reviewed by the Virginia Department of Health, and that it expects it to be then forwarded to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid for approval.

EXPRESS LANES COMING TO I-395 IN NORTHERN VIRGINIA NEXT MONTH

The rules for using Interstate 395 in Northern Virginia are about to change. Commuters will soon need to pay or be HOV-3 round-the-clock to ride for free. The 395 Express Lanes Project is set to open sometime in November in the roughly 8-mile stretch from near Edsall Road in Alexandria to the 14th Street Bridge in D.C.

UNIVERSITY PUBLISHES RESULTS FROM 2019 SURVEY ON SEXUAL ASSAULT AND MISCONDUCT

The 2019 Association of American Universities Campus Climate Survey recently published findings on attitudes and experiences toward sexual assault and misconduct of more than 181,000 students from 33 colleges who contributed to the nationwide survey, of which the University was one participating institution. The survey found more students believed that the University would conduct a fair investigation and take reports of misconduct and assault seriously in 2019 than in 2015.

ANOTHER DELAY, COST INCREASE FOR MOUNTAIN VALLEY PIPELINE

The projected cost of building the Mountain Valley Pipeline has gone up by another half a billion dollars. And the expected completion date, most recently slated for mid-2020, has been pushed back to the end of that year. In an announcement Tuesday, Mountain Valley attributed the latest delay and revised cost estimate — now at between $5.3 billion and $5.5 billion— to “various legal and regulatory challenges.”

CITY FORECASTS CLEARING SKIES FOLLOWING AUDIT

With the city’s year-late audit of its accounts expected by the end of November, City Manager Aretha Ferrell-Benavides explained what needs to happen to have these yearly reports submitted on-time in the future. A Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, or CAFR, is a yearly audit of a city’s accounts, completed b

VIRGINIA BEACH POLICE CORRECT MASS SHOOTING TIMELINE

Virginia Beach Police have corrected and clarified their timeline of the events of the May 31 mass shooting that left 12 people dead and five, including a police officer, injured. The update comes after The Virginian-Pilot scrutinized the timeline presented by police and sent a series of questions about the shooting update they provided the media, families and City Council on Sept. 24, said city spokeswoman Julie Hill in a statement.

PETITION FILED FOR REMOVAL OF SUPERVISORS

The Board of Supervisors has scheduled a 10 a.m. Friday special meeting to consider “the employment of counsel to defend” themselves against a recently filed petition seeking their removal from office, according to a notice sent out by Deputy Clerk of the Board Emily Mounce.

DEMOCRATS PUSH THROUGH VOTE ON MOVING ROANOKE MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS TO NOVEMBER

Democrats on the Roanoke City Council seized control of a discussion about whether to move city elections from May to November, forcing an unscheduled vote late Monday to make the move. While the council still must vote on a formal ordinance to make the change, it would be effective next year — postponing the election currently scheduled for May and adding six months to all incumbents’ terms.

BUSINESS OWNERS HAVE MIXED VIEWS ON PARI-MUTUEL BETTING IN DANVILLE

Nathan Payne is conflicted about whether he supports having a pari-mutuel betting facility in Danville. “I kind of see the advantages of job creation, tax revenue,” Payne, who co-owns Commonwealth Pharmacy of the River City on Craghead Street. “But then I wonder what part of society is frequenting those places. I’m kind of mixed about it.”

A $64 MILLION QUESTION FOR THE ROANOKE AND NEW RIVER VALLEYS IS ACTUALLY $80 MILLION OR MORE

What if we told you that more than 1,200 jobs — virtually all paying well over the local median wage — were coming to the Roanoke and New River valleys? The governor couldn’t get here fast enough to cut that ribbon. Local government leaders would clamor to speak at the announcement and share some of the glory. Remember all the excitement over the Deschutes Brewery? That was supposed to be just 108 workers. By contrast, the 1,268 jobs we’re talking about here seem a much firmer bet.

PENINSULA DELEGATES FACE FAMILIAR CHALLENGERS

Del. David Yancey and Shelly Simonds received more than their fair share of fame the last time their names appeared on the same ballot. Rewind to early 2018 when media from across the world descended upon Richmond where state officials broke a deadlock between the two candidates by picking a name out of a hat.

PROTECTING FREE SPEECH

At least the county’s moving in the right direction. Albemarle County’s Board of Supervisors adopted rules last week that slightly broaden its limits on public use of space at the McIntire Road office building. The new rules allow about 15,000 square feet along the frontage of McIntire Road and Preston Avenue for what county documents refer to as “expressive activity.”

A PATH WITH POTENTIAL

College is a time for exploration. Picking an academic major is a critical piece of the journey. But amid dozens of choices, the decision-making process can be cluttered for some students. What about earlier exposure to career possibilities? We’re pleased to see Virginia leaders, schools and employers join forces to give students a path with potential that starts before college.

POLITIFACT: COX CHARACTERIZATION OF BYNUM-COLEMAN'S SRO STATEMENT "MOSTLY FALSE"

House Speaker Kirk Cox, R-Colonial Heights, has been running a TV ad accusing his opponent, Democrat Sheila Bynum-Coleman, of wanting to remove police from public schools. The ad starts with a narrator saying “Sheila Bynum-Coleman said…” and cuts to a tape of the candidate saying, “We need to get the police out of the schools. Get the police out of the schools.”

CHAFIN, KILGORE, O'QUINN AND PILLION: WHAT AMAZON’S VISIT TO SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA MEANS FOR OUR REGION

Something big happened this week: Amazon visited Southwest Virginia. And it wasn’t just big for the most obvious reason – Amazon. It was big because, for the first time, Southwest Virginia is being seriously included in conversations about how to attract more high-tech investment to Virginia and make sure we have a workforce prepared to fill the jobs that follow.

The writers are all state legislators who represent districts in Southwest Virginia