mark warner

Sen. Mark Warner urges commission to look at voting wait times

Chris Graham

U.S. Sens. Mark Warner (D-VA), Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Chris Coons (D-DE) and Bill Nelson (D-FL) today sent a letter to the chairmen of the Presidential Commission on Election Administration, Robert F. Bauer and Benjamin L. Ginsberg, urging them to take strong steps to address the hours-long election lines that too many voters endured during the 2012 election.

Terry McAuliffe delivers more than 35,000 signatures to State Board of Elections

Chris Graham

Virginia gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe hand delivered 35,746 signatures to the Virginia State Board of Elections to secure his place on the ballot. Former Republican Delegates Vince Callahan, Katherine Waddell, businessman Major Reynolds, and supporters from across Virginia joined McAuliffe to deliver the petitions.

Cuccinelli creates committee to advise on restoration of rights process

Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli today announced the creation of a bipartisan Attorney General’s Rights Restoration Advisory Committee tasked with examining what alternatives may be available within the existing framework of the Constitution of Virginia to restore the civil rights – primarily voting rights – of individuals convicted of certain nonviolent felonies who have completed their sentences and paid all fines and court-ordered restitution.

McDonnell updates state’s response to winter storm

Chris Graham

Gov. Bob McDonnell today updated the Commonwealth’s response to the recent winter storm that struck Virginia, and the impact the storm had on the state. The storm claimed three lives, two due to automobile accidents and one due to a falling tree. At its peak the storm cut electrical service to approximately 370,000 customers, but electric crews continue to make fast progress in restoration efforts with outages now down to less than 100,000 connections. Dominion Virginia Power estimates that 95 percent of its remaining outages will be restored by Friday evening at the latest.

tim kaine

Kaine meets with Pentagon officials to discuss budget issues

U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Armed Services and Budget Committees, today met with top officials at the Pentagon, including Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, Deputy Secretary of Defense Ash Carter and Army Chief of Staff General Ray Odierno, to discuss the impact of sequestration in Virginia. The discussions covered the 90,000 civilian employees at the Department of Defense who will be furloughed, reductions to military base operations across the Commonwealth and delays in training and deployments that could decrease readiness. Kaine also spent time talking with civilian employees at the Pentagon about the effects of announced furloughs.