Virginia Arena Deal Nixed from the State Budget

Youngkin Speaking

Despite Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s best efforts to promote the $2 billion entertainment district deal he announced in December, the General Assembly isn’t buying it.

The House of Delegates and state Senate released their negotiated proposed budget on Thursday, and it didn’t include funding for the “Glenn Dome.”

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Virginia Police Benevolent Association Urges State Lawmakers to Oppose Legalization of Skill Games

Rich Goszka, a staff representative with the Southern States Police Benevolent Association, sent a letter to Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin and members of the Virginia General Assembly urging the opposition of any attempts that aim to legalize skill games.

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Shenandoah Civil War Park Potential New Home for Confederate Memorial

Confederate Monument

A Confederate memorial was removed this week from Arlington National Cemetery and could be relocated to the New Market Battlefield State Historical Park in the Shenandoah Valley if Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin gets his way.

The park is operated by the Virginia Museum of the Civil War, which is run by the Virginia Military Institute, one of the commonwealth’s 15 public universities and the oldest state-supported military college in the U.S.

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Commentary: Forget the Media Doomsaying — the GOP Will Be Ok

Congress Building

If you follow politics and didn’t know that voters in Charleston, South Carolina, elected the city’s first Republican mayor in almost a century and a half, you can be forgiven. A lot of people missed it because, while it was covered, the legacy media failed, unsurprisingly, to recognize it for the landmark it is.

The scant attention paid to the outcome of that race compared to, say, the GOP’s failure to take over the Virginia Legislature is a discordant note that throws off an otherwise harmonious national narrative that has the Republican Party hopelessly divided and unable to win elections now that Bidenomics is working.

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No Current Republican Frontrunners for 2025’s Virginia Gubernatorial Contest

With an early declaration from Democrat Rep. Abigail Spanberger that she will be running for governor in 2025 and Virginia’s one-term policy preventing Gov. Glenn Youngkin from running consecutively, Republicans can only speculate who their candidates will be.

Spanberger has said she declared early due to next year’s congressional races in which her seat will be reelected. She wanted to give interested parties time to prepare a strong campaign to keep District 7 blue.

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The Battle for Virginia: Youngkin, Obama Struggle for Control of Old Dominion

The future of the Commonwealth of Virginia hangs in the balance as Democrats, backed by former President Barack Obama, are desperate to stop Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin from winning the state government trifecta, control of both chambers of the General Assembly in addition to governor’s office—all coming to a head on the November 7 Election Day.

“I’m calling to remind you that today is Election Day in Virginia. The people we elect in the State Senate and House of Delegates will make decisions that affect your everyday life. Now’s the time to make our voices heard,” said Obama in one of the robocalls he recorded for Virginia Democrats to target some 100,000 Democratic voters.

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Battle for Virginia: Youngkin Touts GOP Early Voting Success

Virginia’s Republican governor touted how the commonwealth’s Republican voters are shattering records set in 2021 and 2023 in early voting before the commonwealth’s November 7 Election Day, when all 140 seats in both chambers of the General Assembly are up for grabs.

“There was a lot of people who voted early and across the state. We’ve seen an uptick in early voting and absentee ballot, and particularly in our battleground districts, we’ve seen a really good movement,” said Governor Glenn Youngkin, speaking to Fox News Digital on Friday.

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Youngkin ‘Fires’ Eventbrite After App Cancels Riley Gaines, Promotes Hamas

The Republican governor of Virginia directed his political organization and official staff to stop using the Eventbrite app after the company dumped a speaking engagement by superstar swimmer and feminist Riley Gaines — all the while, they promoted events supporting Hamas and its October 7 attacks on the Jewish State.

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Youngkin ‘Fires’ Eventbrite After App Cancels Riley Gaines, Promotes Hamas

The Republican governor of Virginia directed his political organization and official staff to stop using the Eventbrite app after the company dumped a speaking engagement by superstar swimmer and feminist Riley Gaines—all the while, they promoted events supporting Hamas and its October 7 attacks on the Jewish State.

“As governor, I have told our political committee that we will no longer use Eventbrite. The governor’s office is no longer using Eventbrite,” said Governor Glenn Youngkin on the October 30 edition of the Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show.

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The Battle for Virginia: Youngkin Blasts Pro-Hamas College Students

The Republican governor of Virginia told the host of “Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo” he wants answers regarding why someone is teaching college students to support Hamas—not Israel—after the October 7 attacks on the Jewish State.

“The bottom line is I question what’s being taught on these college campuses. If we have students that don’t fully understand the brutality of a terrorist group,” said Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who is limited to one term.

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The Battle for Virginia: PAC Spends $1.5 Million Backing Pro-Life Candidates

A pro-life political action affiliated with Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America is pouring $1.5 million into Virginia legislative races in the last days before the November 7 election, which will decide what party controls the commonwealth’s General Assembly.

SBA Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser said she backed the effort by Women Speak Out Virginia, which supports House of Delegates and State Senate candidates aligned with Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin’s proposed ban on abortions after 15 weeks—the point when unborn children feel pain.

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Virginia Poll: 57 Percent Percent Approve of Youngkin; Generic Ballot Has Democrats, Republicans Tied at 50 Percent

With less than two weeks before Virginia’s November 7 legislative elections, Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin continues to get high marks from commonwealth voters, as the voters are split evenly between Republicans and Democrats on a generic legislative ballot.

Respondents were asked: “Do you approve or disapprove of Governor Glenn Youngkin’s job performance?” Fifty-seven percent approve of the commonwealth’s helmsman, with 43 percent disapproving, according to a poll conducted by Founders Insight with 969 likely voters October 14 through October 17. The poll carries a 3.91 percentage point margin of error.

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Virginia Voters Split: General Assembly Battle Poll Shows Democrats, Republicans in Virtual Tie

Control of the commonwealth’s General Assembly is up for grabs, with 42 percent of voters choosing Democrats, 41 percent choosing Republicans, according to a poll conducted by the Wason Center for Civic Leadership September 28 through October 11 of 800 likely voters.

The poll carries a 4-percentage point margin of error, putting the battle for the state house at a virtual tie.

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National Democrats Raise $200K for Final Weeks of Battle for Virginia’s General Assembly

The Washington-based Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC), the Democratic Party’s political operation focused on state legislative races, announced Monday a new six-figure investment in Virginia’s off-cycle state house contests—part of the DLCC’s attempt to nationalize the Old Dominion hustings.

“Republican dysfunction has become a hallmark of national politics,” said DLCC Campaign Communications Director Abhi Rahman. “Their refusal to do the basic requirements of government, including choosing a speaker, shows us that this is all a game to them and they don’t care about the people they were elected to represent.

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Back Off: Goochland CA Caudill Tells The Virginia Star He Won’t Kiss Sheriff’s Ring

The Republican Goochland County commonwealth’s attorney running for another four-year term told The Virginia Star his feud with Sheriff Steven N. Creasey has political significance but has not hindered his ability to prosecute crimes in the county.

The trouble started in the 2019 election, said D. Michael Caudill, who faces Creasey’s endorsed candidate, attorney John Lumpkins, in the general election.

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Virginia Gov. Youngkin Makes Closing Argument on Abortion with $1.4 Million Ad Buy

The Spirit of Virginia political action committee run by Virginia’s Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin kicked off a $1.4 million ad buy defending the Republican position on abortion—marking the first serious effort to counter Democrats by any Republican politician since the Supreme Court’s 2022 Dobbs decision, which overturned both the 1973 Roe v. Wade and the 1992 Casey decisions the created the so-called right to an abortion.

The Richmond Times-Dispatch captured the reluctance of Republicans to mention abortion in its article about the ad.

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Virginia School Board Adopts GOP Gov’s Parental Rights Policy After Parents Slap It with Lawsuit

The Virginia Beach School Board approved Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s gender transition notification policy Tuesday after being hit with a lawsuit from parents, according to The Virginia Pilot.

In August, the board voted on the policy but was deadlocked with five votes in favor and five against, effectively stalling the proposal, which prompted several parents to file a lawsuit in September demanding the district protect parental rights. The board took up the issue again this week, however, and voted 9 to 1 in favor of adopting Youngkin’s policy, with one member abstaining, according to The Virginia Pilot.

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Virginia Gov. Youngkin Makes Closing Argument on Abortion with $1.4 Million Ad Buy

The Spirit of Virginia political action committee run by Virginia’s Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin kicked off a $1.4 million ad buy defending the Republican position on abortion — marking the first serious effort to counter Democrats by any Republican politician since the Supreme Court’s 2022 Dobbs decision, which overturned both the 1973 Roe v. Wade and the 1992 Casey decisions that created the so-called right to an abortion.

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Virginia Democrats’ Mega-Donor, Wife Back Cam-Girl Delegate Hopeful with $310K

When the votes are counted in Virginia after the November 7 off-cycle legislative elections, in a big way, it is a referendum on the political effectiveness of a mega-wealthy money manager who has devoted himself to Old Dominion politics—and who is not Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin.

Instead, that man is Micheal Bills, who has given more than $15 million in direct contributions to Democratic candidates.

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Shock Poll Shows Virginia in Play: Trump, Biden Tied at 37 Percent

Nearly a year before the 2024 presidential election, former President Donald J. Trump is running neck-and-neck with the man who replaced him in the White House, Joseph R. Biden Jr., with each with the support of 37 percent of Virginians, according to a poll by the University of Mary Washington’s Center for Leadership and Media Studies of 1,000 of the commonwealth’s adults conducted September 5 through September 11.

“Virginia looks a lot like America as a whole in this survey,” said Professor Stephen J. Farnsworth, the center’s director.

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Purple Commonwealth: Virginia Poll Shows 42 Percent to 42 Percent Split Between Republicans, Democrats

Old Dominion residents go into the commonwealth’s Nov. 7 legislative elections equally split between Democrats and Republicans, with 42 percent of voters telling the University of Mary Washington’s Center for Leadership and Media Studies poll of 1,000 Virginia adults conducted Sept. 5 through Sept. 11.

“Virginia has rapidly returned to its purple state status,” said Stephen J. Farnsworth, professor of political science at the University of Mary Washington, and the center’s director. The poll included 833 registered voters, 771 likely voters, and carries a 3-percentage point margin of error.

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Virginia GOP State Senate Hopeful Emily Brewer Tells John Fredericks Her Adoption Story Blunts Left’s Abortion Narrative

The Republican House Delegate running to represent the State Senate’s 17th District told radio host John Fredericks she counters the Democrats’ pro-abortion messaging with her own adoption story during her Thursday “The John Fredericks Show” appearance.

“I was adopted. It’s something that ever since I’ve been in the House of Delegates in the past six years, I’ve worked on adoption and foster care reform because that’s not just the issue,” said Delegate Emily Brewer, who currently represents the chamber’s 64th District.

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November Elections Will Determine Control of Virginia House

Republicans currently hold a 49-46 majority in the Virginia House, and the Nov. 7, 2023, election will determine control of the state legislature and Virginia’s trifecta status. Virginia’s trifecta status changed from Democratic to divided as a result of the 2021 elections. Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) was elected to succeed term-limited incumbent Ralph Northam (D). Democrats also lost control of the Virginia House. If Republicans maintain control of the House and win the Senate, Virginia would become a Republican trifecta. If Democrats win control of the House or maintain control of the Senate, Virginia would remain a divided government.

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Bannon Blasts McConnell, GOP Donors Teeing Up 47-Day CR for Virginia Gov. Youngkin’s Trump Challenge

The host of “War Room” blasted Senate Republicans for going along with a 47-day continuing resolution that will fund the federal government until November 17 because he said it was part of a behind-the-scenes plot to foist Virginia’s Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin upon voters as the establishment alternative to former President Donald J. Trump.

“I told you this 47 days in the Senate is McConnell and the big money donors exactly linked to Youngkin’s bid to flip the Senate in the Commonwealth of Virginia,” said Stephen K. Bannon to his audience.

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Governors Have ‘Limited Effect’ on State Economy, Says Virginia Economist

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin has recently touted rising employment rates and general fund surpluses, causing some to wonder how much influence governors have over a state’s economy.

A regional economist from the University of Virginia argues that governors have less impact than people might think. 

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Virginia Gov. Youngkin Seeks to Ready Virginia for AI Adoption

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin has issued an Executive Directive requiring the state’s Office of Regulatory Management to develop protocol and guidance for the use of artificial intelligence in the commonwealth, both by the state government and educational institutions.

While lawmakers nationwide are eager to understand AI and respond with appropriate legislation governing its use, Youngkin wants Virginia to move faster.

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Retreat: Youngkin Moves Confederate Memorial Statue from Arlington to VMI

Virginia Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin executed an orderly retreat in his battle to preserve Arlington National Cemetery’s Confederate Memorial, dedicated by President T. Woodrow Wilson in 1914, and the final resting place of nearly 500 Confederate veterans and their loved ones.

The Washington Post reported that the governor found a home for the bronze statue:

The Board of Visitors at VMI unanimously approved a motion Wednesday to accept the statue for placement at the Virginia Museum of the Civil War at New Market Battlefield State Historical Park — owned and operated by the college — north of VMI’s campus in Lexington. The battlefield is a focal point of the school’s history — it was there in 1864 that its cadets joined Confederate forces to successfully push back Union troops. An enormous mural mounted inside the college’s chapel depicts the VMI corps of cadets’ charge across the New Market battlefield.

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Virginia State Senator Chase Quits Write-In Campaign Despite Tying Primary Loss to 346 Illegal Votes

The Republican state senator, who calls herself “Trump in heels” and lost the June 20 primary for Virginia’s 12th Senate District, told The Virginia Star her reasons for not launching a write-in campaign in the general election.

“Many of you have asked if I’m organizing a write-in campaign this year in Senate District 12. I’m currently not organizing a write-in campaign,” said State Senator Amanda Chase (R-Chesterfield County), whose district changed since her reelection in 2019. Chase lost to former State Senator Glen Sturtevant.

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Rogue Write-in Campaign Risks Youngkin’s Agenda, Ambitions

A one-time ally of Virginia Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin, and unsuccessful state senate hopeful, told The Virginia Star he is still seething from dirty tricks during the primary campaign, and he is running a write-in campaign against the GOP nominee that threatens to block the governor and GOP’s chance to with control of Old Dominion’s Senate.

“Governor Youngkin can do a lot of things today via his executive authority like Democrats do when they’re in the executive office, but he doesn’t, and he doesn’t because he does not want to rock the boat,” said Republican Matt Strickland, who served as an Army combat medic with multiple kinetic tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.

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Virginia Governor Announces New Education Initiative After Pandemic Learning Loss

Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced his ALL IN VA plan, intended to help Virginia students recover from COVID-19 learning loss and return to higher academic standards, on the heels of the announcement of the Virginia Assessment Results for the 2022-23 school year.

The plan is the latest in a long string of interventions and reforms the governor has made in education during his tenure. 

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Virginia Legislators Pass Budget in Special Session

The Virginia General Assembly met Wednesday in Richmond and voted to finalize the overdue budget deal recently reached by the House and Senate finance committees – but not without a few impassioned speeches from the floor, many over the unique resolution lawmakers were asked to pass.

The assembly passes amendments to the state’s two-year budget every odd year, but this year, the House and Senate continued debating the budget past the July 1 deadline, the start of the fiscal year. Finally, the committees reached a deal, and Gov. Glenn Youngkin called a special session for legislators to codify it. 

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Virginia Gov. Youngkin Calls Special Session to Finalize Budget

Just days after the House and Senate budget committees reached a deal, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin called a General Assembly Special Session for Wednesday, Sept. 6, to pass amendments to the state’s biennial budget. 

Budget negotiations have been fraught with difficulty this year, with the Republican-led House and the Democrat-led Senate unable to compromise on the governor’s proposed tax cuts and other big-ticket items like K-12 education. 

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Virginia AG Issues Opinion Backing Model Policies

Virginia’s Attorney General Jason Miyares issued an opinion this week, arguing that the governor’s model policies comply with federal and state nondiscrimination laws and that “local school boards are required to adopt policies that are consistent with them.”

The opinion comes at the request of Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who has been advocating since the release of the latest version of the Virginia Department of Education’s “Model Policies on Ensuring Privacy, Dignity, and Respect for All Students and Parents in Virginia’s Public Schools” for their adoption — to strong resistance from some districts in the commonwealth.

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Largest Virginia School District Defies Gov. Youngkin’s Guidance on Bathrooms, Pronouns

Virginia’s largest school district announced Tuesday that it will be defying guidance from Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s administration that requires students to use bathrooms on the basis of biological sex, rather than gender identity, according to a press release.

The Virginia Department of Education released a final version of its model policies for the state’s public schools in July that requires teachers to use a student’s biological name and pronouns unless given written permission by a parent to use something else. Fairfax County Public Schools said it does not plan to adopt the state guidance after determining that the district policies are in line with federal and state anti-discrimination laws, according to a press release.

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Virginia High School Sports League Rejects GOP Gov. Youngkin’s Transgender Athlete Policy

The Virginia High School League, which oversees most of the state’s high school sports, says it has no immediate plans to change policies governing transgender athletes, despite Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s new guidelines that call for competition to be among those of the same biological sex. 

Youngkin’s model policies state student-athletes be grouped as such, as opposed to by gender identity, with “reasonable modifications” granted only to the extent required by law.

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Virginia Ends Previous School Transgender Policies, Now Requires Parent OK to Student Pronoun Change

The Virginia Education Department announced new model policies regarding the treatment of transgender students in the state’s public schools in guidance that separates students by biological sex and gives parents the sole authority to change their children’s names and pronouns in school.

The policies, released Tuesday, deliver on a significant campaign promise from Virginia Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin to promote parents’ rights, as the guiding principles of the policies emphasize respecting all students and giving parents priority in making decisions for their children.

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Commentary: Can Virginia Republicans Find 500,000 Votes?

Capitol of the Commonwealth of Virginia

Back in November 2019, the Commonwealth of Kentucky was well on its way to being a blue state.

That is, until the state’s Republican leadership saw the trend and decided to do something about it.

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Study: Virginia Ranks No. 2 for Business

Virginia ranked second in the nation in CNBC’s America’s Top States for Business study – up from third in 2022 and scoring first in education.

The survey released Tuesday is likely to be music to Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s ears, as the businessman-turned-politician has often touted the commonwealth’s business-friendly policies.

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Six Regions in Virginia to Receive Economic Development Funding

Economic development organizations throughout the commonwealth are receiving $2.9 million in eight grant awards through Growth and Opportunity for Virginia, an organization that focuses on fostering sustainable regional economic growth in the commonwealth.

“These GO Virginia projects exemplify our commitment to fostering economic growth and creating opportunities across various regions,” said Gov. Glenn Youngkin. “By removing barriers to entrepreneurship, improving industrial sites and increasing the number of Virginia’s shovel-ready sites, we are propelling the growth of targeted industries and clearing pathways for sustainable employment.”

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Pornhub Blocks Its Access in Virginia Due to State’s New Age Verification Law

Pornhub, the adult-content website, has blocked users from the state of Virginia due to its new age verification law that will take effect July 1. 

The law, titled SB 1515 and proposed by Republican state Sen. William M. Stanley Jr., will require sites with pornographic content to verify users in Virginia are at least 18 years old before they allow them to view the content on the website.

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Virginia Gov. Youngkin Signs ‘Historic’ Legislation to Improve Behavioral Health Care Access

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed 24 bills for improving behavioral health care access as part of the governor’s “historic” Right Help, Right Now plan.

The legislation is intended to improve insurance coverage for behavioral health in the commonwealth, while strengthening the behavioral health workforce and easing the strain on public safety.

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Virginia Gov. Youngkin Rails Against ‘Two-Tiered Justice System’ After Trump Indictment

Virginia Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin on Friday fumed over the charges against former President Donald Trump brought special counsel Jack Smith, contending the case signified a stark disparity in the application of justice by the government.

“These charges are unprecedented and it’s a sad day for our country, especially in light of what clearly appears to be a two-tiered justice system where some are selectively prosecuted, and others are not,” the governor tweeted. “Parents in Virginia know firsthand what it’s like to be targeted by politically motivated actions. Regardless of your party, this undermines faith in our judicial system at exactly the time when we should be working to restore that trust.”

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Virginia Department of Education Releases Report on Recommendations to Promote Excellence

The Virginia Department of Education released a report on recommendations for the General Assembly, and the status of the commonwealth’s commitment to promote excellence in education.

Leaders and stakeholders met to evaluate and recommend specific policies and performance standards for public education in the commonwealth.

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Virginia Gov. Youngkin Eliminating Degree Requirement for Many State Jobs

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin is taking historical measures by eliminating degree requirements and preferences for nearly 90% of commonwealth classified positions.

The new “landmark” hiring preferences will provide equal consideration for all qualified applicants and allow state agencies to broaden their recruitment and talent pool.

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Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin to Deploy National Guard Troops to Southern Border

Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin will deploy National Guard troops to the southern border, his office announced Wednesday.

The Virginia governor will send 100 troops to the Texas-Mexico border to address the surge in illegal immigration and drug smuggling that he says is killing five Virginians each day, according to the announcement. Youngkin joins Florida, Tennessee and Nebraska in helping Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott secure the southern border.

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Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin Is ‘Reconsidering’ Running for President in 2024: Report

Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin is reportedly “reconsidering” his decision not to run for president in 2024, according to Axios.

Youngkin was often named as a potential candidate for president, but seemingly closed the door when he announced on May 1 that he wouldn’t run for president “this year.” Republican donors are urging Youngkin to reconsider as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is expected to jump in the race Wednesday and former President Donald Trump continues to dominate in the polls, according to Axios.

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Virginia Gov. Youngkin Finalizes Legislation from Reconvened Session

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin took final action on 17 pieces of legislation pending from the reconvened legislative session, signing 12 and vetoing five.

The legislation ranged from energy to medical marijuana. The governor celebrated the General Assembly voting approving nearly all of his amendments. Youngkin expressed disappointment for a few pieces of legislation rejected by the Assembly – mainly a key piece of energy legislation and the protection of minors regarding social media.

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