The presidential transition in Washington, along with a surprising presidential pardon, have dominated the headlines.

Jeff Schapiro, political columnist at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Michael Pope recap the week in politics and state government.

Long before COVID-19 hit, Virginia was talking about a nursing shortage. 

The pandemic made it worse, but programs around the state are making progress in drawing new people to the field and keeping those who are already in practice. 

Sandy Hausman has details.

Members of the General Assembly are about to consider legislation aimed at reducing the number of children who are shackled while appearing in court.

Michael Pope has more.

Indigenous Communities throughout the country are reclaiming their languages.

Here in Virginia, eight Tribes are fostering the use of their Powhatan Algonquian language in a cultural renaissance.

Pamela D’Angelo saw the education effort in action at the Rappahannock Indian Tribe Pow Wow this fall.

There were some big reveals in Virginia’s political, climate and financial futures over the last few days.

Jeff Schapiro, political columnist at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Michael Pope recap the week in politics and state government.

In West Virginia’s most remote mountains are two research facilities that analyze radio waves.

Since the 1950s, the federal government has designated parts of Pocahontas and Pendleton Counties as a National Radio Quiet Zone, meaning radio, TV and other communication signals must operate at low power.

Now, ten West Virginia and Virginia counties are asking the government to change these restrictions, to ensure 9-1-1 calls get to emergency responders.

Roxy Todd reports.

Over the weekend, voters in Loudoun County selected candidates for a special election for the Senate seat vacated by Congressman-elect Suhas Subramanyam.

Michael Pope tells us this election will determine control of the Senate.

It’s been one year since Virginia’s Cannabis Control Authority took over regulating the state’s legal medical dispensaries.

Brad Kutner has details on what the state’s patients have to say about the program and what changes members of the authority might like to see. 

While the dust from this month’s election settles, there’s plenty of looking ahead to 2025.

Jeff Schapiro, political columnist at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Michael Pope recap the week in politics and state government.

While many are preparing to celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday, others are preparing for another, more somber event. 

This Sunday, November 17th, families from around the globe will hold vigils and memorials to honor the people lost due to road-related tragedies.

It’s called World Day of Remembrance. And for some Virginians, the day is a reminder to keep fighting for changes in legislation to make the streets safer for everyone.

Ian Stewart has more.

The U.S. has nearly 200 ambassadors in other countries, and when a new president takes office, some of them will likely be replaced. 

One of them is a Virginia man with a remarkable story to tell. 

Sandy Hausman spoke with him and filed this report.

The voting is over while the counting continues and the analysis of what worked and what didn’t is well underway.

Jeff Schapiro, political columnist at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Michael Pope recap the week in politics and state government.

Forty years ago, an American designer and two of his friends hosted a TED talk – the first in a series of lectures about technology, education and design at a conference center in California.  

Beginning in 1990 it became an annual event, and now it’s spreading through a collection of independent programs focused on local and regional people and issues.  

This year, TEDx hosted its first event at a Virginia prison.  Sandy Hausman has details.

Republican candidates may not have won Tuesday’s statewide races in Virginia. 

But Donald Trump’s success at the national level has Virginia Democrats looking for ways to turn the party’s luck around in the future, as Brad Kutner reports.

More than two-thirds of registered voters in Virginia have waited until Election Day to cast their ballots for president, U.S. senator, House members and some local offices.

Joe Staniunas talked to some Roanoke voters who showed up to vote today and found a mixture of anxiety and hope.

Driving a school bus is tough work—early mornings, tight schedules, navigating the roads as well as the ups and downs of the school lives and home lives of dozens of children.

In our Meet Virginia series, Christine Kueter introduces us to one driver who’s been doing it for more than 40 years.

We’re in the final days of the 2024 campaign.

Jeff Schapiro, political columnist at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Michael Pope recap the week in politics and state government.

As the 2024 presidential election nears, fears of voter fraud and voting by noncitizens have dominated national dialogue.

Here in Virginia, Brad Kutner found proof of such claims is rare at best.

Court battles over Virginia election procedures are playing out.

Jeff Schapiro, political columnist at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Michael Pope recap the week in politics and state government.

Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares is a facing malicious prosecution lawsuit following his failed bid to convict an election official of fraud.

Brad Kutner has more from Richmond.

The explosion of data centers in Virginia is creating a surge in demand for power.

Michael Pope reports it’s also impacting how that power is generated.

The lawsuit over Virginia’s voter roll purge, and its potential fallout, are still making headlines.

Jeff Schapiro, political columnist at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Michael Pope recap the week in politics and state government.

When floods swept across Appalachia three weeks ago during Helene, it was one of the worst natural disasters to hit the region in a generation. But flash flooding in the mountains does happen.

One example is the 2016 flood in West Virginia, which killed 23 people and destroyed more than two-thousand homes.

A Virginia Tech professor has been researching what helped communities rebuild after that flood, and why some communities are only now seeing progress.

Roxy Todd reports.

Hurricane Helene damaged about 6% of Virginia’s economy.

That’s according to an update provided Tuesday by the Commonwealth’s Secretary of Finance. 

But as Brad Kutner found out, federal aid is expected to improve the region. 

Despite a rough patch of drought, and the hit the region took from Helene, Virginia is expected to have a good, but not great, fall color season.

Jeff Bossert has more.

With less than a month to go until Election Day, Virginia’s governor is facing a federal lawsuit over removing alleged non-citizens from the voter rolls.

Michael Pope tells us purging the voter rolls has a long and complicated history in Virginia.

Early estimates say Helene cost farmers in the Commonwealth more than $139 million.

This number from the Virginia Cooperative Extension Service is a developing tally and will likely increase in the coming days.

Roxy Todd explains why some farmers are worried for the months ahead.

With early voting underway, there’s a legal challenge to Virginia’s recent purge of voter registrations.

Jeff Schapiro, political columnist at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Michael Pope recap the week in politics and state government.

It’s been almost two weeks since Helene damaged hundreds of homes across Southwest Virginia and took the lives of two people.

Roxy Todd visited Damascus and surrounding communities this week, where it could take more than a year to rebuild washed out roads and fully reopen the Virginia Creeper bicycle trail.

Old furniture can provide more than a place to sit or to store papers.

In this month’s Meet Virginia segment, Christine Kueter introduces us to a Portsmouth man who not only restores those antiques.  He goes in search of the story each one can tell.

After weeks of build-up, the candidates for U. S. Senate finally took the debate stage.

Jeff Schapiro, political columnist at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Michael Pope recap the week in politics and state government.

Republican Hung Cao and Democrat Tim Kaine met for a televised debate Wednesday night.

Michael Pope has the details what will likely be their only debate before Election Day.

Two U.S. Army veterans, Derrick Anderson on the right and Eugene Vindman on the left, squared off over the future of Virginia’s 7th Congressional District Wednesday night.

Brad Kutner has more. 

We’re checking in on the crowded and complicated race for mayor in Virginia’s capitol city as well as the latest round of polling in the Presidential contest.

Jeff Schapiro, political columnist at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Michael Pope recap the week in politics and state government.

A religious counselor in Henrico County asked a state judge Thursday to block Virginia’s ban on conversion therapy for minors.

Brad Kutner has more on the suit and an interview with someone who survived the controversial practice.

Automakers may soon be required to start designing trucks and SUVs with lower front ends to help reduce the number of fatal head-on collisions with pedestrians.

Ian Stewart reports. 

Many Virginians may not know there are seven independent nations in our state that require the same treatment afforded to leaders of other countries.

But the sovereignty of Virginia’s federally-recognized Tribes comes with a steep learning curve, as Pamela D’Angelo reports.

For years, moms who are prescribed medication to treat opioid addiction have heard conflicting advice around breastfeeding. There is growing medical evidence to support that it’s safe.

But as Roxy Todd reports, opinions can be slow to change.

Polls are shedding new light on the 2024 election in Virginia, while one high-profile Republican is getting a head start on 2025.

Jeff Schapiro, political columnist at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Michael Pope recap the week in politics and state government.

The final stretch of the campaign season in Virginia got off to a raucous start.

Jeff Schapiro, political columnist at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Michael Pope recap the week in politics and state government.

Five years ago, some residents of Spotsylvania County were unsuccessfully fought plans for the largest solar array east of the Rocky Mountains. 

Today that facility is generating a different sound and making money for a surprising group of people. 

Sandy Hausman paid a visit to the Spotsylvania Solar Energy Center and has this report.

In our Meet Virginia segment this month, we travel to Richmond, where Chauncie Beaston is fulfilling a pledge made to herself years ago.

Christine Kueter has that story.

Fewer people are quitting their jobs in Virginia.

Michael Pope has the story behind the numbers.

As campaigns kick into high gear this Labor Day weekend, so are efforts to finalize voting procedures in Virginia.

Jeff Schapiro, political columnist at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Michael Pope recap the week in politics and state government.

This weekend, the spouses of the Democratic candidates for president and vice president will be barnstorming Virginia.

Michael Pope has this bit of historical perspective.

The political conventions are now over and the major party field is set for November’s election.

Jeff Schapiro, political columnist at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Michael recap some of the historical moments when Virginia was in the convention spotlight.

The candidates for one of Virginia’s U.S. Senate seats will meet face-to-face.

Jeff Schapiro, political columnist at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Michael Pope recap the week in politics and state government.

Noting that one in five people released from state prison will be back behind bars within three years, Governor Glenn Youngkin is asking state agencies to do more. 

As Sandy Hausman reports, he hopes to ensure former prisoners have what they need to succeed.

While work on the 43-mile, multi-use path known as the Fall Line Trail continues in the Richmond region, another trail in Charlottesville is also in the works.  

It’s one of many car-free trails that could eventually connect to others around Virginia. 

Ian Stewart reports. 

Public bodies that do public business are supposed to make most documents available to the public.

But Michael Pope reports on an example in Northern Virginia where a town government is trying to shield documents related to a data center.