Editing Virginia (section)

==Politics==
{{Main|Politics of Virginia}}
[[File:Shad Planking.jpg|thumb|Mirroring Virginia's political transition, the annual [[Shad Planking]] event in [[Wakefield, Virginia|Wakefield]] has evolved from a vestige of the [[Byrd Organization|Byrd era]] into a regular stop for many state campaigns.<ref name=shad>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/shad-planking-venerable-va-political-confab-tries-to-reel-in-new-crowd/2016/04/23/41f540de-07e7-11e6-b283-e79d81c63c1b_story.html |title= Shad Planking, a venerable Va. political confab, tries to reel in a new crowd |newspaper= The Washington Post |first= Laura |last= Vozzella |date= April 23, 2016 |access-date= February 21, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190222042224/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/shad-planking-venerable-va-political-confab-tries-to-reel-in-new-crowd/2016/04/23/41f540de-07e7-11e6-b283-e79d81c63c1b_story.html |archive-date= February 22, 2019 |url-status= live}}</ref>|alt=People stroll in a wooded area decorated with American flags.]]

Over the past century, Virginia has shifted politically from being a largely rural, conservative, [[Solid South|Southern bloc]] member to a state that is more urbanized, pluralistic, and politically moderate, as both greater enfranchisement and demographic shifts have changed the electorate. Up until the 1970s, Virginia was a racially divided one-party state dominated by the [[Byrd Organization]].<ref>{{cite journal|url=https://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst?docId=5001263885|title="Sheep without a Shepherd": The New Deal Faction in the Virginia Democratic Party|first=James R.|last=Sweeney|journal=Presidential Studies Quarterly|volume=29|year=1999|access-date=March 31, 2008|doi=10.1111/1741-5705.00043|page=438|issue=2|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110812002527/http://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst?docId=5001263885|archive-date=August 12, 2011|url-status=live}}</ref> They sought to stymie the political power of Northern Virginia, perpetuate [[Segregation in the United States|segregation]], and successfully restricted voter registration such that between 1905 and 1948 [[voter turnout]] was regularly below ten percent.<ref name=atlantic/><ref>{{cite book |last= Donahue |first=Patricia Farrell |title= Participation, Community, and Public Policy in a Virginia Suburb: Of Our Own Making |publisher= Lexington Books |year= 2017 |pages= 154–56 |isbn= 978-1-4985-2977-8 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=GyE-DwAAQBAJ}}</ref> The organization used [[malapportionment]] to manipulate what areas were over-represented in the [[Virginia General Assembly|General Assembly]] and the U.S. Congress until ordered to end the practice by the 1964 [[Supreme Court of the United States|U.S. Supreme Court]] decision in ''[[Davis v. Mann]]'' and the 1965 [[Virginia Supreme Court]] decision in ''Wilkins v. Davis'' respectively.<ref>{{cite journal |url= https://scholarship.richmond.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2958&context=lawreview |format= PDF |journal= University of Richmond Law Review |volume= 47 |issue= 3 |date= March 1, 2013 |title= A Half-Century of Virginia Redistricting Battles: Shifting from Rural Malapportionment to Voting Rights to Public Participation |first1= Micah |last1= Altman |first2= Michael P. |last2= McDonald |access-date= July 11, 2020}}</ref>

Enforcement of federal civil rights legislation passed in the mid-1960s helped overturn the state's [[Jim Crow laws]] that effectively [[disfranchisement|disenfranchised]] African Americans.<ref name=promiseprejudice>{{cite journal|title=Promise and prejudice: Wise County, Virginia and the Great Migration, 1910–1920|first=Michael H.|last=Burchett|journal=The Journal of Negro History|volume=82|issue=3|date=Summer 1997|doi=10.2307/2717675|jstor=2717675|pages=312–327|s2cid=141153760}}</ref> The [[Voting Rights Act of 1965]] made Virginia one of nine states that were required to receive federal approval for changes to voting laws, until the system for including states was [[Shelby County v. Holder|struck down in 2013]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://richmond.com/news/local/government-politics/voting-rights-ruling-leaves-virginia-in-limbo/article_267260ae-6220-5df1-b7b5-3814189734c7.html |title= Voting rights ruling leaves Virginia in 'limbo' |first1= Markus |last1= Schmidt |first2= Michael |last2= Martz |newspaper= The Richmond Times-Dispatch |date= June 26, 2013 |access-date= May 13, 2021}}</ref> The [[Voting Rights Act of Virginia]] was passed in 2021, requiring preclearance from the [[Attorney General of Virginia|state Attorney General]] for local election changes that could result in disenfranchisement, including closing or moving polling sites.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/31/us/virginia-voting-rights.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211228/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/31/us/virginia-voting-rights.html |archive-date=December 28, 2021 |url-access=limited |title= Virginia's governor announces his support for a sweeping voting rights bill |newspaper= The New York Times |first= Nick |last= Corasaniti |date= March 31, 2021 |access-date= March 31, 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Though many Jim Crow provisions were removed in Virginia's 1971 constitution, a lifetime [[Felony disenfranchisement in Virginia|ban on voting for felony convictions]] was unchanged, and by 2016, up to twenty percent of African Americans in Virginia were disenfranchised because of prior felonies.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-04-22/virginia-governor-terry-mcauliffe-ends-the-state-s-lifetime-voting-ban-for-former-felony-offenders |title= Restoring Voting Rights to Former Felony Offenders |newspaper= Bloomberg |first= Brentin |last= Mock |date= April 22, 2016 |access-date= May 13, 2021}}</ref> That year, Governor [[Terry McAuliffe]] ended the lifetime ban and individually restored voting rights to over 200,000&nbsp;ex-felons.<ref name=atlantic>{{cite news |url= https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/04/virginia-felon-disenfranchisement/480072/ |title= The Racist Roots of Virginia's Felon Disenfranchisement |newspaper= The Atlantic |first= Matt |last= Ford |date= April 27, 2016 |access-date= May 13, 2021}}</ref> Virginia moved from being ranked as the second most difficult state to vote in 2016, to the twelfth easiest in 2020.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=J. Pomante II |first1=Michael |last2=Li |first2=Quan |title=Cost of Voting in the American States: 2020 |journal=Election Law Journal: Rules, Politics, and Policy |date=December 15, 2020 |volume=19 |issue=4 |pages=503–509 |doi=10.1089/elj.2020.0666 |s2cid=225139517 |doi-access=free}}</ref>

While urban and expanding suburban areas, including much of [[Northern Virginia]], form the modern [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]] [[base (politics)|base]], rural southern and western areas moved to support the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]] in response to its "[[southern strategy]]" starting around 1970.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Activists and Partisan Realignment in the United States|first1=Gary|last1=Miller|first2=Norman|last2=Schofield|journal=The American Political Science Review|volume=97|issue=2|date=May 2003|pages=245–260|jstor=3118207|doi=10.1017/s0003055403000650|doi-broken-date=November 1, 2024 |s2cid=12885628}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/political_commentary/commentary_by_geoffrey_skelley/the_new_dominion_virginia_s_ever_changing_electoral_map|title=The New Dominion: Virginia's Ever-Changing Electoral Map |first= Geoffrey |last= Skelley |date= July 13, 2017 |website= Rasmussen Reports |access-date= July 30, 2020}}</ref> Rural Democratic support has nevertheless persisted in union-influenced [[Roanoke, Virginia|Roanoke]], college towns such as [[Charlottesville, Virginia|Charlottesville]] and [[Blacksburg, Virginia|Blacksburg]], and the southeastern [[Black Belt in the American South|Black Belt Region]].<ref>{{cite journal|title=African American Legislative Politics in Virginia|first1=Michael L.|last1=Clemons|first2=Charles E.|last2=Jones|journal=[[Journal of Black Studies]]|volume=30|issue=6, Special Issue: African American State Legislative Politics|date=July 2000|pages=744–767|doi=10.1177/002193470003000603|jstor=2645922|s2cid=144038985}}</ref> African Americans are the most reliable bloc of Democratic voters,<ref name=promiseprejudice/> but educational attainment and gender have also become strong indicators of political alignment, with the majority of women in Virginia supporting Democratic presidential candidates since 1980.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://news.virginia.edu/content/what-exit-polls-are-telling-us |title=  What the Exit Polls Are Telling Us |first1= Jennifer |last1= Lawless |first2= Paul |last2= Freedman |website= UVAToday |date= November 6, 2020 |access-date= May 19, 2021}}</ref> International immigration and domestic migration into Virginia have also increased the proportion of eligible voters born outside the state from 44% in 1980 to 55% in 2019.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/09/us/virginia-elections-democrats-republicans.html |title= How Voters Turned Virginia From Deep Red to Solid Blue |first1= Sabrina |last1= Tavernise |first2= Robert |last2= Gebeloff |newspaper= The New York Times |date= November 9, 2019 |access-date= May 7, 2020}}</ref>

===State elections===
{{See also|Elections in Virginia|Political party strength in Virginia}}
{{multiple image |align= right |direction= vertical |width= 250px |caption_align= center |footer_align= center
|image1=2023VirginiaStateHouseElection NoInsert.svg
|alt1=A map of Virginia showing the results of the 2023 Virginia House of Delegates election, with Republican districts in red and Democratic districts in blue, with heavier shading showing which changed parties.
|caption1=[[2023 Virginia House of Delegates election]]
|image2=2023 Virginia State Senate election.svg
|caption2=[[2023 Virginia Senate election]]
|alt2=A map of Virginia showing the results of the 2023 Virginia Senate election, with Republican districts in red and Democratic districts in blue, with heavier shading showing which changed parties.
|footer={{legend inline|#f48c84|Republican hold}}&emsp;&emsp;{{legend inline|#92c5de|Democratic hold}}<br />{{legend inline|#ca0120|Republican gain}}&emsp;&emsp;{{legend inline|#0671b0|Democratic gain}}
}}
Because Virginia enacted their post-Civil-War [[Constitution of Virginia|constitution]] in 1870, state elections in Virginia occur in odd-numbered years, with executive department elections occurring in years following U.S. presidential elections and [[Senate of Virginia|State Senate]] elections occurring in the years prior to presidential elections.<ref name=offyear>{{cite news |url= https://wamu.org/story/17/09/13/virginia-hold-elections-off-off-years/ |title= Why Does Virginia Hold Elections In Off-Off Years? |website= WAMU |first= Martin |last= Austermuhle |date= September 13, 2017 |access-date= April 25, 2024}}</ref> [[Virginia House of Delegates|House of Delegates]] elections take place concurrent with each of those elections. National politics often play a role in state election outcomes, and Virginians have elected governors of the party opposite the U.S. president in eleven of the last twelve contests, with only [[Terry McAuliffe]] beating the trend [[Virginia elections, 2013|in 2013]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/2017-elections/inside-data-what-virginia-election-results-mean-18-n820001 |title= Inside the Data: What the Virginia Election Results Mean for '18 |website= NBC News |date= November 12, 2017 |first= Dante |last= Chinni |access-date= November 7, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191119060422/https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/2017-elections/inside-data-what-virginia-election-results-mean-18-n820001 |archive-date= November 19, 2019 |url-status= live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/polls-open-across-virginia-in-hotly-contested-governors-race/2013/11/04/06c6205c-45d2-11e3-bf0c-cebf37c6f484_story.html |title= McAuliffe narrowly wins Va. governor's race |newspaper= The Washington Post |first= Marc |last= Fisher |date= November 6, 2013 |access-date= November 7, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191107191400/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/polls-open-across-virginia-in-hotly-contested-governors-race/2013/11/04/06c6205c-45d2-11e3-bf0c-cebf37c6f484_story.html |archive-date= November 7, 2019 |url-status= live}}</ref>

The [[Virginia elections, 2017|2017 state elections]] resulted in Democrats holding the three executive offices, as lieutenant governor [[Ralph Northam]] won [[2017 Virginia gubernatorial election|the race for governor]]. In concurrent [[Virginia House of Delegates elections, 2017|House of Delegates elections]], Democrats flipped fifteen of the Republicans' previous sixteen-seat majority.<ref>{{cite news |last1= Nirappil |first1= Fenit |title= Democrats make significant gains in Virginia legislature; control of House in play |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/democrats-poised-to-make-significant-gains-in-virginia-legislature/2017/11/07/9c2f4d24-c401-11e7-aae0-cb18a8c29c65_story.html |newspaper= The Washington Post |date= November 8, 2017 |access-date= November 7, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190912234942/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/democrats-poised-to-make-significant-gains-in-virginia-legislature/2017/11/07/9c2f4d24-c401-11e7-aae0-cb18a8c29c65_story.html |archive-date= September 12, 2019 |url-status= live}}</ref> Control of the House came down to a tied election in the [[Virginia's 94th House of Delegates district|94th district]], which the Republican won by a drawing of lots, giving the party a slim 51–49 majority in the [[160th Virginia General Assembly|2018–19 legislative sessions]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Moomaw |first1=Graham |title=Del. David E. Yancey wins tiebreaker for key Virginia House of Delegates seat |url=https://www.fredericksburg.com/news/election/del-david-e-yancey-wins-tiebreaker-for-key-virginia-house/article_785a475f-3ad0-5ad7-b7d8-79c051d642a2.html |newspaper= The Free Lance-Star |date=January 4, 2018 |access-date=August 28, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180104175908/http://www.fredericksburg.com/news/election/del-david-e-yancey-wins-tiebreaker-for-key-virginia-house/article_785a475f-3ad0-5ad7-b7d8-79c051d642a2.html |archive-date=January 4, 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref> At this time, Virginia was ranked as having the most [[Gerrymandering in the United States|gerrymandered]] U.S. state legislature, as Republicans controlled the House with only 44.5% of the total vote.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://schwarzeneggerinstitute.com/theworstpartisangerrymanders |title= The worst U.S. State Legislative Partisan Gerrymanders |publisher= USC Schwarzenegger Institute for State and Global Policy |author1-link= Christian R. Grose |first1= Christian R. |last1= Grose |first2= Jordan Carr |last2= Peterson |first3= Matthew |last3= Nelson |first4= Sara |last4= Sadhwani |date= September 5, 2019 |access-date= July 8, 2021 |archive-date= March 8, 2022 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20220308223626/http://schwarzeneggerinstitute.com/theworstpartisangerrymanders |url-status= dead }}</ref> In 2019, [[Bethune-Hill v. Virginia State Bd. of Elections|federal courts found]] that eleven House district lines, including the 94th, were unconstitutionally drawn to discriminate against African Americans.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/court-strikes-down-virginia-house-districts-as-racial-gerrymandering/2018/06/26/4e953752-7993-11e8-80be-6d32e182a3bc_story.html |title= Court strikes down Virginia House districts as racial gerrymandering |newspaper= The Washington Post |first= Rachel |last= Weiner |date= June 26, 2018 |access-date= November 7, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191031145205/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/court-strikes-down-virginia-house-districts-as-racial-gerrymandering/2018/06/26/4e953752-7993-11e8-80be-6d32e182a3bc_story.html |archive-date= October 31, 2019 |url-status= live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.cnn.com/2019/06/17/politics/supreme-court-racial-virginia-gerrymandering-case/index.html | title = Supreme Court hands Democrats a win in Virginia racial gerrymander case | first1 = Ariane | last1 = de Vogue | first2=  Ryan | last2= Nobles | first3= Devan | last3= Cole | date = June 17, 2019 | access-date = June 17, 2019 | work = [[CNN]]}}</ref> Adjusted districts were used in the [[Virginia elections, 2019|2019 elections]], when Democrats won full control of the General Assembly, despite [[2019 Virginia political crisis|a political crisis earlier that year]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/05/us/politics/virginia-elections.html|title=Virginia Election: Democrats Take Full Control of State Government|newspaper=The New York Times|date=November 6, 2019|access-date=March 6, 2019|first=Trip|last=Gabriel}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://qz.com/1743356/fixing-racial-gerrymandering-helped-democrats-take-back-virginia/ |title= Newly redrawn voting districts hand Virginia Democrats a sweeping victory |website= Quartz |first= Annalisa |last= Merelli |date= November 6, 2019 |access-date= November 7, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191107003650/https://qz.com/1743356/fixing-racial-gerrymandering-helped-democrats-take-back-virginia/ |archive-date= November 7, 2019 |url-status= live}}</ref> Voters in 2020 then [[2020 Virginia Question 1|passed a referendum]] to give [[Redistricting in Virginia|control of drawing]] both state and congressional districts to a commission of eight citizens and four legislators from each of the two major parties, rather than the legislature.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/virginia-redistricting-amendment-results/2020/11/02/5d1ef242-19f8-11eb-befb-8864259bd2d8_story.html |title= Virginians approve turning redistricting over to bipartisan commission |newspaper= The Washington Post |first= Rachel |last= Weiner |date= November 4, 2020 |access-date= November 10, 2020}}</ref>

In 2021, [[Glenn Youngkin]] became the first Republican to [[2021 Virginia gubernatorial election|win the governor's race]] since 2009,<ref>{{Cite web|title=Republican Youngkin wins Virginia governor's race in blow to Democrats, NBC News projects|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/elections/polls-close-soon-virginia-s-closely-watched-gubernatorial-election-n1283066|access-date=November 3, 2021|website=NBC News|date=November 3, 2021}}</ref> with his party also winning the races for [[2021 Virginia lieutenant gubernatorial election|lieutenant governor]] and [[2021 Virginia Attorney General election|attorney general]] and gaining [[2021 Virginia House of Delegates election|seven seats in the House of Delegates]].<ref>{{Cite news|title=Republican Winsome Sears projected to win lieutenant governor's race|newspaper=Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/virginia-lieutenant-governor/2021/11/02/27f9ed8c-36b3-11ec-91dc-551d44733e2d_story.html|access-date=November 3, 2021|issn=0190-8286}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last1=Seddiq|first2=Grace |last2=Panetta |first1=Oma|title=Republican Jason Miyares defeats two-term Democrat Mark Herring for Virginia attorney general|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/virginia-attorney-general-election-mark-herring-jason-miyares-live-results-2021-11|access-date=November 3, 2021|website=Business Insider}}</ref> Two years later, new legislative maps drawn by [[special master]]s appointed by [[Supreme Court of Virginia|the state supreme court]] led to nine retirements in the state senate and to twenty-five House delegates not seeking re-election. In [[2023 Virginia elections|those elections]], Democrats claimed a slim majority of one seat in both the Senate and the House.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.virginiamercury.com/2023/11/13/virginia-voters-gave-democrats-control-of-the-legislature-what-will-it-mean-for-policy/ |title= Virginia voters gave Democrats control of the legislature. What will it mean for policy? |website= Virginia Mercury |first= Graham |last= Moomaw |date= November 13, 2023 |access-date= November 16, 2023}}</ref>

===Federal elections===
{{See also|United States presidential elections in Virginia}}
[[File:Virginia Presidential Election Results 2024.svg|thumb|[[2024 United States presidential election in Virginia|2024 U.S. presidential election results]] by county in Virginia {{leftlegend|#4389E3|Democratic}}{{leftlegend|#AA0000|Republican}}]]
[[File:Mark Warner and Tim Kaine with students from Mark Twain Middle School 2024.jpg|thumb|[[United States Senate|U.S. Senators]] [[Mark Warner]] and [[Tim Kaine]], both former [[Governor of Virginia|governors]], meet with students on the steps of the [[United States Capitol|U.S. Capitol]].|alt=Two older white men in suits address a group of teenagers assembled on the steps of the [[United States Capitol|U.S. Capitol]]]]
Though Virginia was considered a "[[swing state]]" in the [[2008 United States presidential election|2008 presidential election]],<ref name=purple>{{cite news|url=http://blog.washingtonpost.com/44/2007/10/12/the_purpling_of_america.html |title=Painting America Purple |first=Dan |last=Balz |author-link=Dan Balz |date=October 12, 2007 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |access-date=November 24, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110728022004/https://blog.washingtonpost.com/44/2007/10/12/the_purpling_of_america.html |archive-date=July 28, 2011}}</ref> Virginia's thirteen [[Electoral College (United States)|electoral votes]] were carried in that election and the four since then by Democratic candidates, suggesting the state has shifted to being reliably Democratic in presidential elections. Virginia was the only former Confederate state to vote for the Democrats in the [[2016 United States presidential election in Virginia|2016]] and [[2024 United States presidential election in Virginia|2024]] presidential elections. Virginia had previously voted for Republican presidential candidates in thirteen out of fourteen [[United States presidential election|presidential elections]] from 1952 to 2004, including ten in a row from 1968 to 2004.<ref name=breeze>{{cite news |url= https://www.breezejmu.org/news/former-swing-state-virginia-has-picked-its-color-blue/article_b3ea3c5c-1e09-11eb-91cf-037ceb98986d.html |title= Former swing state Virginia has picked its color — blue |first= Ross |last= Metcalf |newspaper= The Breeze |date= November 3, 2020 |access-date= November 10, 2020}}</ref> Virginia currently holds its presidential [[Open primaries in the United States|open primary]] election on [[Super Tuesday]], the same day as fourteen other states, with [[2024 Virginia Republican presidential primary|the most recent]] held on March 5, 2024.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.richmond.com/news/virginia/virginia-democratic-primary-turnout-highest-on-record-surpassing/article_7ae3a31c-d3f1-5ebe-9aa7-b8c89cbcb138.html |title= Virginia Democratic primary turnout highest on record, surpassing 2008 |first= Mel |last= Leonor |website= The Richmond Times-Dispatch |date= March 3, 2020 |access-date= March 4, 2020}}</ref>

[[List of United States senators from Virginia|Virginia's two U.S. senators]] are in [[Classes of United States senators|classes 1 and 2]]. Virginia has had [[United States congressional delegations from Virginia|eleven U.S. House of Representatives seats]] since 1993, and control of the majority has flipped four times since then, often as part of "[[Wave elections in the United States|wave elections]]". Currently, Democrats hold six seats to Republicans' five.