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Virginians will head to the polls Tuesday for the 2026 primary elections, nearly two months later than usual after this year’s congressional redistricting referendum and the uncertainty over which map would govern the races delayed the state’s traditional June nomination contest. 

More than 30 candidates are competing in the GOP primary for U.S. Senate and in seven of Virginia’s 11 congressional districts.

Republican voters will choose a nominee to challenge Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, while contested congressional primaries will unfold in the 1st, 2nd, 5th, 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th districts. Several incumbents are also seeking renomination without opposition. 

Polls are open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m., and anyone in line by the cutoff will be allowed to cast a ballot. Voters can verify their polling place and registration status through the Virginia Department of Elections voter portal. 

An acceptable form of identification is required to vote. That includes a driver’s license, passport, voter confirmation document, utility bill or bank statement. Voters without identification may sign an identity confirmation statement or cast a provisional ballot. 

Because Virginia does not register voters by party, voters in localities holding both Democratic and Republican primaries may choose either party’s ballot, but they cannot participate in both. 

Here’s a look at the contests and the candidates on the ballot across Virginia. 

U.S. Senate

Three Republicans are seeking their party’s nomination to challenge Warner, the Democratic incumbent who is running for a fourth term. 

A Northern Virginia business owner and former public accountant for several federal agencies and the White House, Kim Farington has centered her campaign on inflation, government spending and border security. 

Retired U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Bert Mizusawa, a former Pentagon official, is highlighting his military and national security experience while focusing on defense readiness, energy and foreign policy. 

Running as a political outsider, David Williams — a businessman, U.S. Navy veteran and former federal employee — is promising to cut taxes and reduce the size of the federal government. 

Warner does not face a primary opponent. Virginia has not elected a Republican to the U.S. Senate since John Warner, no relation to the incumbent, won his final term in 2002. 

1st District

Seven Democrats are competing for the chance to challenge Republican U.S. Rep. Rob Wittman of Westmoreland, who has represented the 1st Congressional District since 2007, making it Virginia’s largest congressional primary field. 

The district stretches around Richmond, taking in parts of Chesterfield, Hanover and Henrico counties before extending east through the Williamsburg area and the Northern Neck. 

On the ballot are U.S. Army veteran Elizabeth Dempsey Beggs, Virginia Poverty Law Center attorney Salaam Bhatti, environmental advocate Tim Cywinski, U.S. Navy veteran and energy lobbyist Jason Knapp, healthcare attorney Ericka Kopp, longtime Henrico County Commonwealth’s Attorney Shannon Taylor and U.S. Army veteran and business lawyer Mel Tull. 

While the candidates have largely focused on affordability, healthcare and opposition to the Trump administration, they have drawn distinctions over whether Democrats should nominate a progressive or a moderate candidate to take on Wittman. 

2nd District

Four Democrats are competing for the chance to take on Republican U.S. Rep. Jen Kiggans of Virginia Beach in one of Virginia’s most competitive congressional districts. Anchored in Hampton Roads, the district includes Virginia Beach, the Eastern Shore and parts of Chesapeake, Suffolk, Franklin, Southampton and Isle of Wight counties. 

Former U.S. Rep. Elaine Luria, a retired U.S. Navy commander who represented the district for two years before losing to Kiggans in 2022, is seeking a rematch. Also on the Democratic ballot are physician Nila Devanath, who has focused her campaign on healthcare and reproductive rights; Bill Fleming, a physicist, veteran and Virginia Beach director with the Soil and Water Conservation District; and Patrick Mosolf, a former U.S. Agency for International Development employee.

Kiggans, a former U.S. Navy helicopter pilot and state senator, faces no opposition for the Republican nomination. 

5th District

Both parties have contested primaries in the sprawling 5th District, which spans from Charlottesville and the Richmond exurbs south through Lynchburg and Danville. 

U.S. Rep. John McGuire, R-Goochland, a former U.S. Navy SEAL and state lawmaker serving his first term, is being challenged by Marine veteran and business owner Melanie Lucero. 

On the Democratic side, three candidates are seeking the nomination. Tom Perriello represented the district from 2009 to 2011 before serving in the Obama and Biden administrations. Suzanne Krzyzanowski is a physician and cancer researcher, while Robert Tracinski is a political commentator and former Republican-turned-Democrat. 

Although the district leans Republican, Democrats argue concerns about affordability and dissatisfaction with McGuire have made the race more competitive. 

7th District

Three Republicans are seeking the nomination to challenge first-term U.S. Rep. Eugene Vindman, D-Woodbridge, in the Democratic-leaning 7th District, which stretches from Prince William County through Fredericksburg and into Stafford, Sportsylvania and neighboring rural communities. 

Entrepreneur and business executive Philip Harding has emphasized his private-sector experience while calling for a smaller federal bureaucracy. Entrepreneur and educator Douglas Ollivant has focused on job creation, domestic manufacturing, energy production and election security. 

Pastor and construction company owner Rick Smithers has made affordability the centerpiece of his campaign, advocating lower federal spending, fewer regulations and a pause on new data center development until local infrastructure catches up.

Vindman, a retired U.S. Army officer, is unopposed for the Democratic nomination after winning the seat by 3 percentage points in 2024. 

8th District

Six-term Democratic U.S. Rep. Don Beyer of Alexandria faces four primary contenders in the heavily Democratic 8th District, which includes Alexandria, Arlington, Falls Church and part of Fairfax County. 

Among them is Michael Duffin, a former U.S. State Department employee laid off during federal workforce cuts who has centered his campaign on restoring federal jobs. Former Alexandria City Councilman and U.S. Department of Labor attorney Mo Seifeldein is running as an anti-establishment candidate. 

Marine veteran and former CIA officer Adam Dunigan has emphasized government ethics and generational change, while Stafford County teacher Lorena Bruner has called for a more aggressive Democratic response to President Donald Trump. 

GOP candidate Tony Sabio faces no primary opponent. 

9th District

Three Democrats are seeking the nomination to challenge longtime Republican U.S. Rep. Morgan Griffith of Salem in the deeply conservative 9th District. The seat covers much of Southwest Virginia, including Bristol, Abingdon, Blacksburg, Christiansburg, Wytheville and communities along the Kentucky, Tennessee and West Virginia lines. 

Retired United Methodist pastor and attorney Douglas Crockett, who has roots in Wythe County, is running as a progressive while calling for efforts to ease political divisions. Software developer Adam Murphy, whose background includes the insurance, finance, manufacturing and aerospace industries, has focused on working-class economic issues, corporate power and technology policy.

Bedford County farmer and small business owner Joy Powers brings a background in agricultural development, foster care advocacy and leadership of the Bedford County Fair.

Griffith, first elected in 2010, faces no opposition for the Republican nomination. 

10th District

Republicans have a three-way primary to determine who will challenge first-term Democratic U.S. Rep. Suhas Subramanyam of Loudoun. The Northern Virginia district includes Loudoun, Fauquier and Rappahannock counties, the cities of Manassas and Manassas Park, and parts of Fairfax and Prince William counties. 

Retired U.S. Airforce Col. Dave Beckwith, a former deputy assistant secretary of defense, has built his campaign on national security and government management. Fairfax County teacher Julie Perry, who previously ran for the state Senate, is emphasizing education, federal spending and opposition to diversity programs in public schools. Anthony Suttles, whose background is in national security and economics, is the third Republican candidate in the race.

The district has leaned Democratic since the party flipped it in 2018 after former U.S. Rep. Barbara Comstock’s retirement. Subramanyam won the seat in 2024 and is unopposed for the Democratic nomination.   

A Northern Virginia court in June rejected social media efforts to damage the reputation of a teacher and parent, awarding them more than $1 million in combined damages.

Robert Rigby Jr., a longtime educator and advocate for LGBTQ+ students, said after the leader of conservative political action committee Virginia Project posted unfounded accusations that he was a child sex predator online, his students’ interest in the Latin course he teaches wavered. 

“When rumors started spreading that kids didn’t even take my class because these things were being said … that’s always every teacher’s fear,” Rigby said. “It’s always every gay teacher’s fear.” 

The students’ reaction emphasized that the remarks weren’t simply harsh opinions, Rigby said, but false statements that carry consequential weight.

Across the country, social media campaigns targeting educators have been on the rise, including in Roanoke County and South Carolina, amid contentious school board politics that test the legal boundaries of free speech and defamation.

Rigby and the other plaintiff, Vanessa Hall, who are both active in Fairfax County Public Schools committees and advocacy, alleged that defendant David Gordon, founder of the Virginia Project, used his X account to publish false and malicious statements that damaged their personal and professional reputations.

The case

Virginia’s anti-SLAPP law was central to the case, highlighting the legal limits of false speech, the civil liability it can create, and the policy gaps it exposes for people — including teachers — when the legal requirements are met.

Jason Zellman, the attorney who represented Hall and Rigby, said that Virginia has laws that protect opinions and silence criticism with the anti-SLAPP defense. Still, he says, accusatory public statements must have a factual basis. 

“And in this case… we had very declarative, actual statements that these individuals were child sex predators. They were part of a ‘grooming gang.’ They were part of a ‘child abduction scheme,’” Zellman said, quoting Gordon’s claims. “There was no qualifying language, and more importantly, there was no evidence at all, zero, to back up any of these statements.” 

In their complaints, Rigby also alleged Gordon labeled him and Hall as “notorious child sex perverts” with “free run of FCPS.”

Hall said Gordon mischaracterized her as an “employed crazy person with zero qualifications” who was given inappropriate access to children. The claims that she was involved in sexual crimes against children disturbed her the most, she said. 

“As a parent, as a Girl Scout leader, as a Sunday school teacher, as an advocate for children’s safety, that is frankly the worst thing you could say about anyone,” Hall said.

A year after the complaints were filed, juries in both cases ruled in favor of Hall and Rigby, awarding $700,000 and $350,000, respectively. 

Zellman said he is preparing for an expected appeal by Gordon.

Policy reform

Rigby and Hall’s case drew attention to the state’s policy gaps concerning defamation, especially around punitive damages and fee recovery.

Zellman and Hall argued that Virginia’s legal framework still tilts unfairly against defamed teachers because the state’s anti-SLAPP law can require plaintiffs to pay the other side’s legal bills if they lose. 

The state’s punitive damages cap was set at $350,000 in the late 1980s in such cases, and standards on jury award limits, even for egregious cases, haven’t been updated since then. 

“It just doesn’t seem appropriate,” Hall said.

Zellman added that if the court had instead found the statements made by Gordon and the Virginia Project were an expression of opinion, didn’t rise to the level of defamation, or were speech protected by the First Amendment, they could become liable for the defendant’s costs and attorneys’ fees.

“What I think is a shortcoming in the law is that … there’s not a similar reciprocal provision that if Robert and Vanessa prevail, as they did in this case, that they get their attorneys’ fees and costs reimbursed,” Zellman said. “And I do think it would provide both an incentive and caution for any party … that you have to be pretty sure about your position.”

The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality released its 117-page legislative report on the state’s groundwater supply east of Interstate 95 this week, which revealed significant levels of strain on the eastern aquifers that could put clean drinking water at risk.

“Groundwater supply east of I-95 is constrained, and current projections indicate declining availability in the near future,” the report states.

It’s unlikely that the aquifers could handle any new major industrial water withdrawals without risking water availability, the probe found, risks of saltwater intrusions and other challenges that could impact clean water are growing.

On Thursday, state Sens. Russet Perry, D-Loudoun, and Richard Stuart, R-King George, sent a letter to Gov. Abigail Spanberger, asking her to convene a special session to consider and pass policies to rein in water use in the Virginia Coastal Plain aquifer system.

The region contains nine aquifers east of I-95 and on the Eastern Shore.

The report stems from a 2024 joint legislative resolution to study the groundwater supply of the state’s eastern half and is the most comprehensive study to date on the coastal aquifer system. 

The report was supposed to be released on the first day of the year but had been withheld until recently — a particular pain point the senators highlighted in their missive to Spanberger.

“Legislators did not receive it until the third week of July, months after the legislative session adjourned and the new biennial budget took effect,” Perry and Stuart wrote. “Had the General Assembly reviewed these findings when the law required, it is safe to say the outcome of several legislative and budget decisions would have been different.” 

The report provides specific recommendations for lawmakers and the governor, the senators said, which “should be thoughtfully considered during a special session.”

The recommendations outlined in the report include updating the 1992 Groundwater Management Act by codifying DEQ’s ability to deny groundwater withdrawal permit applications if they would lower aquifer levels past a certain threshold. 

The report also suggests mandating that localities’ comprehensive plans limit growth based on groundwater availability.

“The risks detailed in this report are too dire to ask Virginians to wait another year, and the timing of the report’s release makes immediate action necessary,” the senators said.

The report also analyzed how data centers may impact groundwater. 

While many data centers use surface water, there isn’t enough data to get the full scope of their water use. 

The report also analyzed potential permits for the water needs of a data center’s evaporative cooling system. “It appears unlikely that a data center with evaporative cooling technology (or any comparable water user) would find a reliable, sufficient groundwater supply,” the report found.

The coastal aquifers aren’t lawmakers’ only water concern. 

This year the General Assembly funded a study of groundwater in western Loudoun and northern Fauquier counties where there are signs of strain. 

The Potomac and the Rappahannock Rivers were recently rated as the most endangered waterways in the country.

“Our Commonwealth now has incredibly clear evidence of a serious threat to one of its most essential resources. We respectfully ask that you call the General Assembly into special session so we can respond with the urgency these findings demand,” the senators urged in their letter.

Perry and Stuart’s letter follows one sent to Spanberger by Sen. David Suetterlein, R-Roanoke County, and Del. Joe McNamara, R-Roanoke County, last week. In that communication, the lawmakers asked the governor to call the General Assembly into session to more thoroughly scrutinize the proposed $67 billion Dominion Energy-NextEra Energy merger. 

Gov. Abigail Spanberger has restored voting and other civil rights to more than 60,000 Virginians since taking office in January, reversing the more restrictive restoration process adopted by her predecessor and reopening voting access for thousands of people with past felony convictions, her administration said Friday. 

The 66,085 Virginians whose rights have been restored may now vote, serve on juries, run for public office and become notaries public. The announcement comes about seven weeks before early voting begins for the 2026 midterm elections, which include a constitutional referendum that could largely remove Virginia governors from the restoration process. 

“The right to vote is foundational to who we are as Americans. As a member of Congress, as a candidate for governor, and in the months since I took office, I have heard from many Virginians who have shared their personal stories of redemption with me — and heartfelt reflections of the moment their voting rights were restored by previous governors,” Spanberger said in a statement. 

Virginia is one of just three states whose constitutions permanently disenfranchise people convicted of felonies unless the governor restores their rights. The state constitution gives governors broad discretion over both eligibility and the restoration process. 

Governors of both parties streamlined the process over the decade before former Gov. Glenn Youngkin took office in 2022. 

Republican Gov. Bob McDonnell began expanding restorations, a policy later accelerated by Democratic Govs. Terry McAuliffe and Ralph Northam. McAuliffe restored the rights to more than 173,000 people during his term, while Northam restored the rights to more than 126,000. 

But in 2016, the Supreme Court of Virginia struck down executive orders from McAuliffe that sought to broadly restore civil rights to approximately 206,000 people who had completed their prison sentences and supervised release. The court ruled that governors must consider each case individually rather than issue blanket restorations. 

Youngkin later eliminated the state’s streamlined process, requiring people with felony convictions to apply individually to regain their rights. 

Although his administration said every application would receive an individualized review, Democrats and voting rights advocates criticized the pace of restorations and the lack of publicly disclosed criteria. 

Spanberger’s administration said it has restored both the application review process and proactive outreach to identify eligible Virginians. Officials also removed questions added during the Youngkin era that they described as “unnecessary.”

Secretary of the Commonwealth Candi Mundon King said her office reviews every restoration individually while working with law enforcement agencies to verify eligibility. 

“Today is an important day for the commonwealth and the more than 66,000 Virginians who now have their voting rights restored — in many cases, after waiting multiple years for a fair review,” Mundon King said in a statement. 

“Over the past six months, our work has been guided by Governor Spanberger’s deep belief that Virginians who served their time deserve their civil rights. That is why our team reviews every individual who has their voting rights restored, working with our law enforcement partners to make sure we get it right.”

Meanwhile, thousands of voter registration applications from Virginians with certain past felony convictions remained pending as of June while the state worked to comply with a federal court order changing its registration process.

It was not immediately clear how many of those applicants, if any, are included in the 66,085 rights restorations announced Friday.

The referendum set to go before voters Nov. 3 would amend the state Constitution to automatically restore voting rights to people convicted of felonies once they are released from incarceration, largely removing governors from the restoration process. 

The amendment cleared the General Assembly in two consecutive sessions, separated by the 2025 legislative election as required for constitutional changes. Lawmakers approved it for a second time during the 2026 legislative session, and Spanberger signed legislation in February, placing it and other proposed amendments on the November ballot. 

Similar proposals have surfaced repeatedly over the decades, although Virginia voters rejected one in 1982 by 63% to 37%. That measure would have allowed for civil rights to be restored under new rules established in state law. 

But more recent polling has shown greater support for a more sweeping change. A 2025 Christopher Newport University survey found that 63% of registered voters supported or strongly supported automatically restoring voting rights to people who have completed their prison sentences. 

Civil rights advocates have also emphasized the origin of Virginia’s felony disenfranchisement provision, which dates back to the state’s 1901-02 constitutional convention, where white political leaders adopted voting rights restrictions intended to suppress Black political participation.

“This fall, voters can cast their ballots for Virginia to no longer strip so many of our neighbors of their fundamental rights — a shameful relic of our Jim Crow past,” Spanberger said Friday. “I hope Virginians will join me in voting yes.”

Early voting begins Sept. 18, with Election Day set for Nov. 3. 

State Sen. Louise Lucas, the powerful Portsmouth Democrat, used $300,000 in campaign funds to contribute to her legal defense fund and hire a law firm following an FBI raid in May on her businesses in Portsmouth. That’s a sizable amount.

 What The Virginian-Pilot article should have noted higher in the story was that Lucas was allowed to do this — since the payments occurred before July 1. That’s when a new state law prohibiting personal use of campaign funds took effect.

 The feds haven’t charged Lucas with any crime, though she remains under a cloud. The senator must pay to defend herself during the ongoing probe. She didn’t respond to my email and voicemail questions.

 A spokesperson with the Norfolk FBI office told me this week that, following U.S. Department of Justice policy, “the FBI does not confirm or deny the existence of an investigation, nor does it provide updates.”

 The lack of details, however, increases speculation the investigation is politically motivated, even though it reportedly began during the Biden administration. The former president is a Democrat, too.

 Virginia officials finally released a report on data centers last week, something they had withheld for more than six months. The Associated Press noted declines are likely to occur in an aquifer in the eastern region because of population growth and industrial use. Environmental scientists produced the report.

The commonwealth deserves the condemnation and scrutiny it’s getting over the issue of data centers, especially because of their impact on water and other resources. 

Are state leaders favoring the industry at the expense of residents? Many Virginians think so, in part since Northern Virginia is home to the world’s largest concentration of data centers. My commentary colleague Ivy Main has covered the controversy closely over the past several years.

As more details are released about a fatal car crash in Chesapeake, it’s amazing other people weren’t injured — or worse. Synclair Tyrone Mayes, 19, a Navy sailor, faces involuntary manslaughter charges in the death of landscaper Guadalupe Rivera, 60, who was working along the sidewalk on May 29 when the accident happened.

 Authorities say Mayes is now free on bond and can’t drive; the city’s top prosecutor, Matthew Hamel, told me his office opposed bond. Law enforcement officials say Mayes was traveling faster than 90 mph when his car first collided with an SUV and then struck and killed Rivera. The speed limit along that four-lane road is just 35 mph. No one else was seriously injured.

The initial collision dislodged the engine of the SUV and hurled it dozens of feet. I travel through that section of the city frequently, and I wrote about the case in June.

 Mayes’ attorney didn’t respond to my questions about his client. A preliminary hearing is scheduled Sept. 16.

 Who knew the state was home to such preferred, inexpensive lodging when parents spirit away their children for some fun? USA Today just ranked the Rochambeau Roadside Inn in Williamsburg as the No. 1 affordable family vacation stay. It topped the list of nine preferred places around the country to hit the pillows, relax and save a few bucks.

 The inn has 22 rooms and dates to 1954. The 6,000-acre Massanutten Resort in the Shenandoah Valley came in third on the list.

U.S. Sen. Mark Warner says if he wins in November, it will be his last term in the Senate. He’s been in the office since 2009 and is currently serving his third term in the chamber. The Democrat is 71 now and would be 78 by the end of a fourth, six-year term.

 Warner recently told a crowd in Staunton it’s time for younger people to have a chance for the office, but “I sure as hell was not going to quit while Donald Trump was sitting down the street,” The Virginian-Pilot reported. I wrote a few weeks ago that too many politicians at the local, state and federal levels don’t know when to quit. Was Warner heeding my advice?

“The senator assures me that the decision was based on a variety of factors, not a single well-timed column,” Warner spokeswoman Ruthanne Thongkai responded by email. “Though he appreciates you giving yourself that much credit!”

 President Donald Trump seems determined for Republicans to take it on the chin during the midterm elections this fall (except for touting his disingenuous SAVE America Act legislation, making it harder for people, including Republicans, to vote). 

You might not care a whit about the country’s war in Iran, or whether Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu snookered Trump into joining this war of choice.

 You do care about $4-a-gallon gas. Prices have risen dramatically since the war started Feb. 28. Virginia households have paid $573 more for gas since the war began, a recent congressional report found. It said Virginians have paid $1.8 billion more for gas since February.

 If you’re like me, you cringe every time you go to the pumps, and you think seriously whether you really need to get behind the wheel. 

The situation is especially galling since Trump, during the 2024 election campaign against Kamala Harris, had the temerity to say she would get the United States into World War III if she were elected president. 

The irony is probably lost on the current chief executive.

Every four years, Virginia law requires the governor’s administration to develop a new energy plan outlining the commonwealth’s energy needs and how the state intends to meet its power generation goals.

Chief Energy Officer Josephus Allmond, Secretary of Commerce and Trade Carrie Chenery and Department of Energy representatives have been hosting invite-only stakeholder meetings across the state to gather input on how the administration can shape its policies and how Virginia can meet its net-zero clean energy mark.

“It’s really just designed to basically provide a 10-year roadmap looking at how we’re going to hit the 2045 net zero (goals) across all sectors,” Allmond said.

A public meeting will be held in Petersburg on Aug. 3 at the public library at 5:30 pm. Comments submitted at the meeting, along with responses gathered through an online survey, will be considered as the administration drafts the plan.

“But our energy future should not — must not — just be written in Richmond,” Gov. Abigail Spanberger said in a news release. “I want to hear from Virginians across every corner of the commonwealth, and I encourage everyone who pays an energy bill in Virginia to make their voice heard.” 

In addition to public input, the governor’s plan is developed in consultation with the State Corporation Commission, the Department of Environmental Quality and other state agencies.

Spanberger is aiming to address high energy costs as demand for power continues to grow across the commonwealth. She has touted an “all of the above” energy strategy that includes renewable sources such as solar and wind, while also expressing interest in small modular reactors and maintaining fossil fuel sources when needed. 

To offset carbon emissions from natural gas generation, Spanberger pushed for and secured Virginia’s return to the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, a multi-state carbon allowance auction.

Unlike the Integrated Resource Plan that utilities must submit to the SCC outlining how they intend to build enough infrastructure to meet projected demand, the governor’s plan offers more flexibility in determining how to achieve the net-zero target established in state law, Allmond said.

Under the Virginia Clean Economy Act, the state’s major utilities are also mandated to retire their carbon-emitting power sources by 2050, with some exceptions to maintain grid reliability.

“The IRP is not strictly on getting to net zero by 2045. There’s still work arounds in the Clean Economy Act, and so they’ve been relying on that reliability exception,” Allmond said. “That doesn’t really exist here, and so, this is really showing ways to get to net zero.”

The final report on the 2026 energy plan will be released Oct. 1.

• “Northern Virginia Republicans vie to take on US Sen. Mark Warner.” — WTOP

• “New study lists Virginia Beach as America’s safest large city.” — WAVY

• “Crops and solar power? Virginia farms are ripe for the combo.” — WHRO

• “Danville’s Black history center is ‘without walls’ for now, but it will soon welcome visitors and researchers.” — Cardinal News

• “How Virginia health officials test beach water for bacteria.” — 13newsnow

WASHINGTON — Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. pledged during his confirmation hearing to do everything in his “power to put the health of America back on track.”

Kennedy testified that when he worked as a lawyer he “learned that human health and environmental health are intertwined and inseparable.” He referred to the Make America Healthy Again agenda as “one of the most powerful and transcendent movements I’ve ever seen.”

“The nation is ready for change and recognizes that this is a unique inflection moment,” Kennedy said.

Less than two years into his tenure at the helm of the department responsible for the health of millions of Americans, a string of outbreaks has repeatedly made headlines. Public health experts interviewed by States Newsroom said the upswing is the result of several factors, but that Kennedy’s decision to cut back the country’s safety net while spreading misinformation about vaccines has aggravated the problem. 

“We track serious infectious diseases, and over the last year and a half, the number of diseases we’ve had to put on the list has quadrupled,” said Jennifer B. Nuzzo, director of the Pandemic Center and professor of epidemiology at Brown University.

Old diseases like measles have surged to the highest level in decades after vaccine misinformation left entire communities vulnerable to a virus once eradicated in the United States.

Americans learned about an unfamiliar strain of hantavirus after cruise ship passengers were moved to a quarantine facility in Nebraska and public health officials raced to contact trace those who left the ship before the illness was detected.

Cases of West Nile virus reached the highest level seen in more than two decades as mosquitoes spread that virus as well as several others. Monthly emergency room visits for tick bites spiked in April to their highest level since 2017. And the cyclospora parasite sickened thousands as public health officials struggled to determine the cause.

Disease spread among animals, which could easily become a human health problem if not properly contained, has also cropped up, some more unexpected than others. 

Bird flu continued to decimate poultry flocks and wreak havoc on dairy herds as well as some people, raising concerns about the possibility it would evolve into something more problematic. And New World screwworm reemerged in cattle after more than half a century without a case in this country. 

HHS and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention did not agree to interview requests or to send a statement on the cause of the myriad of disease outbreaks. 

Outbreaks growing

Environmental changes like deforestation, people moving into new places that used to belong to wildlife and climate change have all contributed to more disease spread among people. But those factors have been exacerbated by cuts and other policy changes put in place during this administration, Nuzzo said. 

“We don’t have the protections against these outbreaks in place at the level that we used to, which allows them to continue,” she said. “We had bad measles before, but we managed to stop them before we got to the point where we’d lose measles elimination status. We’re going to lose measles elimination status this year.”

The CDC has tried to keep track of it all but the agency has experienced both staffing and funding cuts under Kennedy’s leadership. 

Complicating matters, the CDC had a Senate-confirmed director for just 29 days after Susan Monarez was fired for refusing to pre-approve vaccine recommendations or fire career officials for no reason. 

“Most of the activity for public health exists at the state and local level,” Nuzzo explained. “But the CDC is really important for not just providing funding to those state and local health officials, but also to nudge them. To say, ‘Yes, this is worth prioritizing. Or pay closer attention to this now, because what we see in one place might be happening in another place.’ 

“And the more we can collectively learn and act, the more likely it is to be able to stop it in its tracks.”

In addition to hollowing out certain domestic programs, the administration has cut how the U.S. government monitors and responds to disease outbreaks overseas, which are typically just one airplane flight away. That includes how U.S. officials have handled the outbreak of Ebola caused by the Bundibugyo virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. 

“The fact that we didn’t hear about this outbreak publicly until nearly 200 cases were identified means that normal checks and balances just weren’t happening,” Nuzzo said. “So that’s the kind of thing where when we contract our overseas presence and our overseas assistance, we lose a protection. 

“Now, do I think Bundibugyo is going to come here? It could. Is it going to spread? No. It’s not going to spread in the same way like a COVID would.”

States stuck with the burden

American Public Health Association CEO Dr. Georges C. Benjamin said public health officials faced severe burnout and “left in droves” following the global coronavirus pandemic.

That has left public health departments to track more disease circulating in their communities with less staff and funding. 

“If you’re in a local or state health department, the same people dealing with measles are the same people that are going to deal with cyclospora, are going to be the same people if you have a Legionella outbreak,” Benjamin said. 

Those challenges were compounded by efforts under the Trump administration to shift more of the responsibility for preventing and containing outbreaks to state governments “without adequate planning,” he said. 

“Half of both state and local health department budgets are from federal dollars. Some whole programs are almost 100% federally funded. Most immunization programs are pretty much federally funded,” Benjamin said. “So when the feds abruptly decide not to fund something, the money just goes out the door. And you just can’t fill that hole overnight.”

The situation doesn’t seem likely to change anytime soon, he said, possibly leading more people to suffer from vaccine-preventable illnesses as well as those that spread from animals to people or from person to person.

“If we don’t pay attention to this, we’re going to be spending more money on the healthcare side of the ledger for people who will be sicker at a higher cost, because we’re not paying attention to the prevention side of the house,” Benjamin said. “I mean, we have the knowledge and tools to mitigate a lot of this stuff. We really do. And the challenge I think we have here is that as a society we’re pretty good at dealing with emergency stuff, but very poor at prevention.”

More infectious diseases expected

Dr. Amesh A. Adalja, senior scholar at Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, said there has been progress in recent years on some vaccine-preventable diseases even as there’s been backsliding in others. 

“Now we have RSV vaccines for the elderly, we have RSV vaccines for pregnant women and monoclonal antibodies for babies to protect them against RSV,” he said. 

The American Lung Association writes on its website that respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, “is a common virus that you have undoubtedly been sick with before.” But that it “has the potential to make you really sick.”

Measles, however, isn’t becoming less common as doctors and other healthcare professionals struggle against an undercurrent of misinformation about vaccine safety, including from Kennedy, as they’re trying to treat all the other illnesses circulating. 

“In measles, it’s less about public health burnout, rather, it’s more about the anti-vaccine movement making inroads,” Adalja said. “For cyclospora, that’s always been a threat. We always get cases every year. But the fact that the malaria and parasite division in CDC has basically been gutted does play a role.” 

Overall, he said, the infectious disease trend in the United States has become worse since the coronavirus pandemic. And that’s not likely to change in the near future. 

“If you’re saying, ‘How resilient is the U.S. or should we expect more infectious disease problems in the United States?’ I would say yes,” Adalja said. “But it’s not clear which ones they would be. I definitely would think the vaccine-preventable diseases, the control of them is going to slip. And it’s not just going to be measles.”

Then there are the bugs

Director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota Michael T. Osterholm said on his podcast the El Nino weather pattern that leads to warmer temperatures in some parts of the country and heavier rainfall in others can be a “perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes.”

“We talked about the El Nino in previous episodes in the context of hantavirus but it can actually play a large role in disease transmission for a number of viruses, West Nile included,” Osterholm said.

That could be one of the reasons the CDC reported in early July it observed “the earliest start to the West Nile virus (WNV) season in the United States with the highest number of human disease cases reported by this time of year since 2004.”

Osterholm said that is likely “a really major underestimation of the true number of infections.”

“Approximately 20% of West Nile infections in humans are symptomatic and less than 1% result in the severe neurologic symptoms for which testing would typically be sought by medical providers,” he said. “I say that not to undermine the public health importance of West Nile, but to highlight that this virus is likely much more widespread than our surveillance data might suggest.” 

Ticks are also leading to more illness among Americans, including Lyme disease and Alpha-gal syndrome.

That second condition, caused by the Lone Star tick, can cause people to become allergic to red meat that contains Alpha-gal sugar. This includes beef, pork, lamb, venison, goat and rabbit, he said. 

Michigan Department of Health and Human Services Public Information Officer Lynn Sutfin wrote in a statement that even though “infectious disease threats have been trending up in general, there are several practices and issues that are contributing to the increased awareness of outbreaks.” 

“Outbreak definitions, modernized reporting, investigative capacity, improved diagnostics, genetic sequencing and even declining vaccination rates are all having an impact on disease spread and information about their spread,” Sutfin wrote. “Globally, additional considerations like climate change, antibiotic overuse, modern travel, industrialization and deforestation also need to be considered.”

Virginia is creating an enforcement unit to oversee the rapidly expanding market for vaping products, hemp-derived intoxicants, THC and kratom, consolidating several regulatory responsibilities within the attorney general’s office. 

Attorney General Jay Jones announced the Regulated Products Enforcement Unit on Thursday, saying it will handle civil enforcement, retail compliance, product directories and public education as new intoxicating products continue to enter the market. 

Inspectors assigned to the unit will monitor retailers, conduct compliance checks and coordinate enforcement with the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority and other state agencies. The office will also be able to pursue civil penalties and other legal action against manufacturers, distributors and retailers accused of violating state law. 

“New intoxicating products and substances enter the market every single day, many of which include dangerous or illegal ingredients and are deceptively packaged, labeled, and marketed to consumers,” Jones said in a statement. “Many of these products even target children, causing irreparable harm to their lives and their futures.” 

Thursday’s announcement follows several years of legislative efforts to tighten oversight of products commonly sold in vape shops, convenience stores and other retailers. 

Virginia’s vapor product law generally prohibits the sale of liquid nicotine and nicotine vapor products unless they appear in a directory maintained by the attorney general’s office. Manufacturers must submit certifications and other documentation demonstrating their products comply with state and federal requirements. 

Responsibility for reviewing those applications will now fall to the new enforcement unit, which will determine whether products will qualify for sale, monitor changes in their federal regulatory status and work with retailers to explain the rules while removing unauthorized products from the market. 

Lawmakers expanded that framework this year through the Vape Enforcement Act, sponsored by Del. Patrick Hope, D-Arlington, and Sens. Adam Ebbin, D-Alexandria, and Schuyler VanValkenburg, D-Henrico. 

The measure gave Virginia additional authority and resources to inspect retailers and crack down on unauthorized products and sales to people younger than 21. 

“For far too long, too many vape shops have been ignoring the law, selling illegal and dangerous products to Virginians, and taking advantage of gaps in the law to sell vapes to kids. That ends now,” VanValkenburg said in a statement. “The General Assembly took action to pass the Vape Enforcement Act, and the AG’s new unit is ready to move against businesses that repeatedly disregard the law.”

Another law approved this year imposed new restrictions on kratom, a supplement that is sold as an energy booster, mood lifter, pain reliever and remedy for opioid withdrawal. It prohibits sales to anyone younger than 21, requires ingredient labeling and mandates that products be stored behind a counter or in a locked display case. 

It also bans synthetic and semisynthetic kratom compounds, products intended for vaping or injection and packaging or marketing deemed attractive to children. In addition, the law limits the amount of 7-hydroxymitragynine, commonly known as 7-OH, that kratom products may contain. 

Derived from a tree native to Southeast Asia, kratom can produce stimulant-like effects at lower doses and opioid-like effects at higher doses. Concentrated or synthetically produced 7-OH products have drawn increasing scrutiny from state and federal regulators. 

Jones said most businesses want to comply with the law but argued that the growing number of intoxicating products on the market requires a more focused enforcement effort. 

“We know that most businesses, retailers, manufacturers, and distributors want to follow the rules, and Virginians want to know what they are consuming,” Jones said. “This new unit will educate Virginians and ensure strong accountability for bad actors who violate the law and put our communities at risk.”

The attorney general’s office has not yet announced staffing levels or a separate operating budget for the new unit.

Virginia has struggled at times to enforce existing restrictions on hemp-derived products. In 2024, the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services found violations at 82% of the retailers it inspected. Some THC-infused drinks and other products exceeding Virginia’s potency limits also remained available online and in some stores. 

Other states have also expanded enforcement in recent years as regulators try to keep up with products that often fall between traditional tobacco, cannabis and controlled-substance laws. 

Pennsylvania established an electronic nicotine delivery system directory under a 2025 law that is administered by the state’s attorney general’s office. Products not included in the directory may be seized beginning in October. 

California has combined education, inspections and enforcement in campaigns targeting illegal hemp and kratom products. State officials there said investigators visited more than 4,500 businesses during one kratom enforcement effort and identified 61 violations. An earlier crackdown on hemp products produced a compliance rate of more than 99% of businesses licensed by the state’s alcohol regulators. 

Alabama took a more aggressive approach in June, executing 83 search warrants and seizing nearly 123,000 doses of kratom products during a statewide operation led by the attorney general and state law enforcement officials. 

Several states have also coordinated enforcement against unauthorized vaping products. 

Last year, a coalition of 25 attorneys general urged the online marketplace Shopify to stop providing services to websites selling illegal vaping products. Virginia, under then-Attorney General Jason Miyares, did not join the effort. At the time, federal regulators had authorized only 39 e-cigarette products even as unauthorized disposable services continued to dominate much of the market. 

Beyond enforcement, Virginia’s new unit will also work with advocates, medical professionals and public health organizations to identify emerging products and develop prevention strategies. 

“The Regulated Products Enforcement Unit is a critical component of Attorney General Jones’ commitment to keeping Virginians safe,” said Helen Hardiman, deputy attorney general of public advocacy.

“Through investigation, enforcement, and programmatic work, this unit will ensure that consumers are well informed and protected from harmful products and that bad actors will be held accountable.”  

As U.S. Rep. Don Beyer, D-Alexandria, seeks his seventh term, the prominent Democrat is facing four primary opponents who say it’s time for their Northern Virginia district to have fresh representation in Congress. 

The 8th Congressional District’s Democratic primary represents a fissure between the party’s candidates and voters, who are united in a mission to wrest control of Congress from Republicans, block President Donald Trump’s priorities and make life more affordable for citizens — but disagree on how to achieve those goals.

Democrats challenge Beyer in Va.’s 8th Congressional District, marred by federal layoffs

The Democratic Party has hit unprecedented lows in popularity since former Vice President Kamala Harris’ loss in 2024, according to Pew Research Center. Trump is also less popular than ever with a 34% approval rating. 

As primary day approaches on Aug. 4, one politics expert said results in the 8th District, a Democratic stronghold anchored in Northern Virginia, could serve as a bellwether for what the party’s voters might go for this fall, in 2028 and beyond. 

Dunigan, Seifeldein and Duffin run against the ‘establishment’ 

Beyer’s opposition is split between four opponents: former CIA case officer Adam Dunigan, former Alexandria city councilman and Department of Labor attorney Mo Seifeldein, former State Department employee Michael Duffin and Stafford County school teacher Lorena Bruner.

Seifelden said Beyer has been too “passive” against Trump and does not understand the daily struggles families are going through. 

Beyer is one of the richest members of Congress with an estimated net worth of over $120 million. Seifelden, on the other hand, came to Virginia as a refugee from war-torn Sudan and worked at McDonald’s to make ends meet.

Seifelden has repeatedly criticized the Democratic “establishment,” most recently calling out the state party, which typically remains neutral during primaries, for allegedly campaigning for Beyer. Seifelden has pushed for his party to move in a more progressive, innovative direction. 

“We need someone who’s going to lead the party and make sure it’s actually an incubator for new ideas,” Seifelden said in an interview.

Duffin juxtaposed his experience cleaning cars as a teenager to Beyer’s car dealership business that is the source of his wealth. He does not see Beyer as someone who truly represents him.

Duffin worries that Beyer, 76, will keep running for reelection and eventually hand his seat over to a political ally, without a competitive primary. 

Duffin pointed to last year’s special election in Virginia’s 11th District, in which the late U.S. Rep. Gerry Connolly’s seat was won by his former chief of staff, Rep. James Walkinshaw.

Democrats retake Connolly’s seat in Virginia’s 11th Congressional District special election

“The person who has the connection to (Beyer) will be the heir apparent, and they will accept a bunch of corporate PAC money, and they’ll build this juggernaut of a campaign war chest that will make it hard for anyone else to defeat them,” Duffin said.

Dunigan has made Beyer’s age a point of critique, and in a July 1 candidate forum decried establishment Democrats for refusing to make way for the younger generation. 

“As long as you have somebody in office who’s pushing 80 years old and has more money than God, every kid who’s graduating college right now and can’t find a job is going to look up and give up on the system,” Dunnigan said in an interview.

‘Corporate PAC money’

Bruner has focused on beating back Trump. But Seifelden, Duffin and Dunigan have attacked Beyer for taking “corporate PAC money” and trading stocks while in Congress.

Seifeldein mentioned Beyer taking $5,000 this cycle from HCA Healthcare, which opposes the  single-payer health care proposal Medicare for All. 

Dunigan noted that Beyer regularly accepts thousands of dollars from defense contractors like Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman, both of which have offices in the 8th District.

Dunigan, Seifeldein and Duffin have raised $247,639, $156,987 and $35,184 this cycle respectively — figures dwarfed compared to Beyer’s $2,086,519, according to the latest campaign finance reports. Bruner has not reported her campaign finances. 

Beyer has pushed back against his opponents’ criticisms, flatly rejecting the idea that the way he votes in Congress is influenced by who gives him money. 

While he supports reforming campaign finance laws and banning Congressional stock trading, Beyer said that as long as the government cannot restrict corporate funding in politics, refusing to take certain donations would put Democrats at disadvantage. 

“It’s insane to unilaterally disarm,” Beyer said.

Beyer also argued that disallowing corporate PAC money would also bar money from unions and other advocacy groups, as they are all regulated the same way. 

Beyer said he uses nearly all of his campaign money, with the exception of paying his staff, to support other Democrats.

“Only Nancy Pelosi has raised and given away more money in the last 11 years than I have, of all the Democrats in the House,” Beyer said. 

“By the way, an awful lot of people out there who don’t accept PAC money are perfectly happy to accept my $14,000 every two years, much of which is PAC money,” he continued. 

Beyer defends his experience, legislative priorities

Beyer said what’s missing from his opponents’ critiques is an understanding that “the ability to get things done (in Congress) is based on the quality of relationships, and relationships don’t happen” instantly. 

His decade of relationship-building and legislating at the federal level equips him to advance solutions to key issues, Beyer added.

While Beyer’s opponents are running on ideas like Medicare for All and abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the six-term congressman’s top priorities include nuclear energy production, bolstering mental health resources and regulating artificial intelligence. 

Beyer does not plan to stay for a “30-year career,” but he is eager to help Democrats take back control of Congress this November.

“I have this bundle of things that are just ready to get votes on the House floor and to pass, and I certainly wouldn’t want to walk away without trying to make sure that we get them done,” Beyer said. 

Being able to tackle long-term issues that will impact people for generations, Beyer added, is the “most fulfilling” job he has ever had. 

“I don’t think the seat belongs to me,” Beyer said. “I don’t think I deserve the seat. I work really hard at it, but I do think it’s my responsibility to compete for it every two years.”

‘The Democratic Party is a community’

Most of Beyer’s opponents have criticized the direction of the Democratic Party and its national leadership, but Beyer believes his camp is serving as effective opposition to the Trump administration.

Seifelden in particular said he would not vote for Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-New York, to be the next speaker of the House, as he has “failed” to support progressive policies and candidates for Congress. 

Beyer said Jeffries has effectively communicated how “extreme” the Republican Party has become under Trump and contrasted his style with that of Republicans’ highest leaders. 

“He’s done a very good job of holding the 213 to 215 of us together,” Beyer said. “Poor Mike Johnson has been abysmal at holding his team together. There’s constant chaos.”

The 2028 presidential election will define a new standard for the party, Beyer predicted. He named former Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-New York, and Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Georgia, as prominent communicators and likely contenders. 

Beyer himself was an early endorser of Buttigieg for president in 2020.

A recent informal straw poll conducted by Arlington Democrats — an area which makes up nearly one-third of the 8th District — showed Ocasio-Cortez and Buttigieg having the most support among presidential hopefuls. 

“There’s certain frustration that the Democratic Party is not a corporation that can meet and come out with a new message,” Beyer said. “You know, we are very decentralized. The Democratic Party is a community, like a mosaic of hundreds of thousands of people who care deeply about these issues and are communicating in their own way.”

8th District results will signal how Democrats are shifting, Keena says

Alex Keena, a political science professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, said the 8th District primary contest is reflective of divisions happening within the Democratic Party across the country.

Democrats like Beyer tend to stay in power for a long time with more name recognition and cash on hand, Keena explained, which could cement Beyer as the party’s nominee for his district. 

However, timing is on the challengers’ side, as disarray under Trump has fatigued voters, especially in left-leaning districts, and made them more open to new ideas beyond returning to the status quo.

Age is another factor that could work in the newcomers’ favor, Keena said.

The average American legislator’s age is very advanced when compared to other democracies across the world, according to Keena.

“We have a very old congress,” Keena said. “This is really relevant when you think about all the major issues we’re dealing with like social media, privacy, AI.” 

Keena said corporate money is a real concern Beyer must address. While Democrats have turned to courting Wall Street since the Supreme Court’s Citizens United v. FEC decision, the last 15 years of results have shown more money does not necessarily help them win.

“Democratic voters are realizing that by taking money from corporations and corporate interests, they end up weakening their appeal to the masses because they kind of lose their identity,” Keena said.

Because Virginia Democrats’ failed redistricting attempt shuffled around election dates in the state this year, Keena expects a lower voter turnout, which could put Beyer’s challengers at a disadvantage.

“I think we have to understand that this is not just about this election,” Keena said. “If the challengers can even come close to knocking Beyer off, even if they scare him, this will still send a message about how the party is shifting.”

Early voting in Virginia ends on August 1. Visit the Mercury’s 2026 Voter Guide to learn more about the candidates and issues in Virginia’s key primary races.

The Virginia Department of Education took the next step toward replacing its student assessment system, a move estimated to cost the commonwealth at least $30 million a year, after criticism over delayed results, technology access concerns and frequent changes.

State and federal laws require all students to take state assessments, unless they qualify for a specific exemption, to demonstrate proficiency in specific subjects before graduating. Virginia began modernizing its Standards of Learning assessments (SOLs) in 2022 and this year, lawmakers advanced legislation to continue the effort. 

On Monday, the agency announced it issued a Request for Proposal, or an invitation to compete for a job, to vendors, to develop and modernize the next SOLs assessment ahead of its current vendor’s contract end in 2027. This comes after an administrative delay over carryover funding last fall.

“After years of delay, preparing and releasing this RFP has been a top priority for the department over the last six months,” Superintendent of Public Instruction Jenna Conway said in a statement on Monday. 

She said the agency appreciates all the work from multiple community and education groups and looks forward to a fair and competitive process — the first since 2005 — that delivers a “modernized, high-quality assessment system to support the academic progress of Virginia’s students.”

The criteria for the new assessment reflect recommendations from workgroups of families, teachers, school leaders and experts including Sen. Schuyler VanValkenburg, D-Henrico, and Alan Seibert, a member of the Innovative Assessment Workgroup and former Board of Education member. 

Both said in a statement that the selection of a new assessment system vendor is an opportunity to modernize testing, improve support for students and educators and ensure public funds are used effectively. 

“The General Assembly has made a modernized assessment system a priority, and this RFP will be the foundation for selecting a partner that effectively uses public funds to create assessments that foster high standards, measure vital skills and knowledge, provide actionable information, are transparent, and ensure students reach their full potential,” VanValkenburg said.

Seibert added that “For Virginia to continue supporting excellent teaching and learning in every classroom, the commonwealth’s assessment system must be modernized.”

The agency said in an announcement that the new assessment system will include “more modern, accessible, and rigorous tests,” providing more timely information to educators, principals and families. 

The assessments will include questions aligned with “higher academic standards,” items to evaluate and raise students’ critical thinking skills, and features and accommodations customized specifically for English learners and students with disabilities.

For teachers and families, the assessment will also provide more timely, better-quality information to support student success, according to the announcement. The assessments will also provide practice test items for teachers.

Cost, what’s next

According to the June 3 report to lawmakers, Virginia estimates the new testing system could cost $30 million to $38 million per year, less than the current contract of about $46.5 million per year. 

The final cost is uncertain and could be higher depending on factors like how many students need to retake tests, how much new test material must be created and whether certain alternative assessments are included in the contract, according to the report.

Vendors will have until mid-September to submit proposals for VDOE’s evaluation and selection process, which will follow the commonwealth’s required procurement procedures. The selected vendor and system must be operational for the 2027–28 school year.

Virginia is on track to become the sixth and final early-voting state in the 2028 Democratic presidential nominating calendar under a proposal unveiled last week, a move that could bring presidential candidates, campaign spending and national attention to the commonwealth in the weeks before Super Tuesday. 

The Democratic National Committee’s Rules and Bylaws Committee recommended that Virginia hold its primary on Feb. 29, 2028, one week before voters across much of the country cast ballots on March 7. The full DNC is scheduled to vote on the proposed calendar during its Aug. 13-15 summer meeting. 

South Carolina would open the Democratic nominating process on Jan. 22, followed by Nevada on Feb. 1, New Hampshire on Feb. 8, New Mexico on Feb. 15 and Michigan on Feb. 22. Virginia would become the final early contest before Super Tuesday reshapes the race.

Being sixth in line may not sound influential, but Virginia and Michigan would be the largest states in the proposed early window, meaning an unsettled race could reach the commonwealth with several candidates still competing for momentum heading into March. 

“A lot of states would like to be on this early list, so a lot of states might just envy South Carolina, Virginia and the rest of the people who got the premium nomination calendar tickets,” said Stephen Farnsworth, professor emeritus of political science at the University of Mary Washington. 

Early contests often determine which candidates gain news coverage, attract donors and endorsements, and which struggle to remain competitive, Farnsworth said. 

“The first, second or third contests effectively determine the nominee in many cases,” he said. “Because there is such outsized attention, focused on those early states, by the candidates, the media, and by donors, if you don’t do well early on, there’s not a lot of opportunity for a comeback.”

Farnsworth pointed to the 2020 Democratic primary, when former Vice President Joe Biden stumbled in Iowa and New Hampshire before a commanding victory in South Carolina revived his campaign. Biden then swept Super Tuesday and went on to win the nomination and presidency. 

“If Virginia keeps its place in the line that was proposed, it may matter in some years what Virginians think,” Farnsworth said. 

Months of lobbying preceded Virginia’s selection

To earn a place in the early window, Virginia had to persuade the committee they could test candidates among the voters Democrats need to win a general election while offering an affordable and accessible campaign environment. Each state made a 15-minute presentation in May followed by 30 minutes of questions from panel members. 

Democratic Party of Virginia Chair Lamont Bagby said the bid took months to assemble and included letters of support from Gov. Abigail Spanberger, U.S. Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, Virginia House Speaker Don Scott,  Senate President Pro Tempore Louise Lucas and Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell. 

Bagby presented the proposal alongside former Gov. Terry McAuliffe and former DPVA Chair Susan Swecker. 

“This has been months of campaigning to get us added to the early window,” Bagby said in a phone interview. 

Committee members originally expected to choose four or five states, including at least one from each of the DNC’s four geographic regions. They ultimately expanded the opening calendar to six, citing the strength of the applications and a desire for the best possible early-state lineup.

RBC Committee Co-Chairs Minyon Moore and James Roosevelt Jr. called the proposed lineup “the most diverse calendar Democrats have ever had for an open nominating contest.”

Committee leaders said the six-state lineup would test candidates among Black and Latino, Asian American, Native American, young, union, military and working class voters. Virginia’s advocates made a similar case, highlighting the commonwealth’s mix of urban, suburban and rural communities and its large population of veterans and federal workers. 

Warner called Virginia’s selection a “tremendous vote of confidence” in the commonwealth and its voters. 

“Virginia has earned this moment,” Warner said in a statement. “We are a competitive Southern battleground where campaigns have to do the hard work of listening, organizing, and building broad coalitions in order to win. A candidate who can compete in Virginia can compete anywhere.”

Surovell said the designation gives Virginia a stronger voice in a nominating process that has overlooked the state in the past. 

“I look forward to welcoming presidential candidates to Virginia and to seeing our voters play a decisive role in this historic election cycle,” he said. 

Bagby expects candidates to spend weeks traveling Virginia, seeking endorsements and learning about issues affecting communities across the state. That access, he said, could continue paying dividends if one of those candidates eventually reaches the White House. 

“Virginia voices will be actually heard and considered,” Bagby said. “I think it’s going to be awesome to see Virginia to have an opportunity to really talk to presidential candidates about what they see as critical opportunities for the federal government to impact their lives.”

The influx of campaigns, consultants and national news organizations could also provide an economic boost for the commonwealth. 

“It’s always a financial windfall when the candidates, consultants, and reporters start eating, drinking, and sleeping in an early primary state,” Farnsworth said. 

General Assembly must change primary date

Even if the DNC approves the 2028 calendar next month, Virginia lawmakers would still have to move the state’s presidential primary. 

State law schedules presidential nomination contests for the first Tuesday in March, which falls on March 7 in 2028. The Democratic-controlled General Assembly would have to move the election to Feb. 29, and Spanberger would have to sign the legislation. 

“The General Assembly and the governor are very supportive of moving the date up, so we’ll do that in the regular session next year,” Bagby said. 

Because Virginia does not register voters by party and state law establishes a single presidential primary date, moving the election would also affect Republicans if both parties continue using the state-run primary. Voters may participate in either party’s primary but not both. 

Republican Party of Virginia Chair Jeff Ryer said he sees no downside if the legislature moves the primary to comply with the DNC calendar. He expects Democratic lawmakers and Spanberger to approve the change. 

“It certainly raises Virginia’s prominence in the cycle,” Ryer said in a phone interview. 

Virginia has held February presidential primaries before. John Kerry won the Democratic primary on Feb. 10, 2004, and Barack Obama carried the state’s Feb. 12, 2008, “Potomac Primary,” held jointly with Maryland and Washington, D.C.  

What makes the 2028 proposal different is not the date itself, but Virginia’s place in the calendar. Rather than simply voting early, the commonwealth would receive a protected position in the DNC’s official early window. 

The modern early-state system grew out of reforms following the turbulent 1968 Democratic National Convention, shifting more influence from party leaders to primary voters. 

For decades, Iowa and New Hampshire dominated the opening contests. Democrats expanded the early calendar in 2008 by adding Nevada and South Carolina to give Latino and Black voters a greater voice, and that four-state lineup remained in place through 2020.

The party reshaped the calendar again in 2024, elevating South Carolina to the first contest, removing Iowa after its problem-plagued 2020 caucuses and adding Michigan. The proposed 2028 calendar would expand the opening window to six states by adding Virginia and Michigan. 

DNC Chair Ken Martin called last week’s committee vote “a critical step toward retaking the White House in 2028 by ensuring we have the strongest possible nominee.”

• “Richmond leads Virginia in 2026 home sales growth.” — Axios

• “Virginia study on groundwater, data centers calls for tighter water regulations.” — VPM

• “Spanberger taps career regulator to lead Virginia energy department.” — E&E News by Politico

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• “Lawsuit against Virginia Beach police chief, former detective, and City of Virginia Beach dismissed.” — 13newsnow

Medicaid waiver slots have increased in Virginia, expanding services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities who have lost school-based special education services. 

Even so, thousands of disabled Virginians are still waiting, because demand continues to outpace available slots.

When people with certain disabilities graduate or reach age 22, they face a “services cliff,” as they lose school support but do not automatically transfer to adult services like in-home supports, personal care, respite for caregivers, or job coaching. Waivers help them live more independently at home and in communities instead of institutions.

On Monday, advocates highlighted the issue at a summit sponsored by Specially Adapted Resource Centers (SPARC) at George Washington University, focused on advancing inclusion for adults with disabilities who have significant support needs. 

There, parents said supervised opportunities can disappear and be replaced by low-quality, unsafe adult programs once their children age out.

“My daughter was attacked … her arm was broken,” said Mark Coles, a Fairfax County father to a daughter who needs one-on-one support.

In another case, Coles said his daughter was left at a bus stop by the company assuming she would get home. 

“That was the last day of her employment with that organization,” he said. 

Eventually, Coles said his family found SPARC, a “safety net” offering social connection, life skills and community outings to disabled people. Still, they are seeking integrated employment support, reflecting how challenging it is for these Virginia families to find services and work opportunities.

For nearly 18 years, Virginia has worked to address the services cliff, after an investigation and settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice. The federal agency and court relaxed oversight as the state made progress.

Judge John Gibney, Jr. and DOJ counsel Kyle Smiddie acknowledged Virginia has made strides to address the services gap but noted substantial work remains, according to a Jan. 15, 2025 hearing transcript.

“What the commonwealth did, and what the consent decree has done, is to reverse a battleship and turn it around so it is going in a different direction,” Gibney said.

He later added that, “(The commonwealth) still has some shortages in terms of hiring or getting people to perform services for families with disabled people.”

The services cliff

Hannah Irsfeld, SPARC board vice president, said when students with disabilities age out of school, they have no guaranteed right to equivalent community or social programs as under IDEA.

Families can wait years, and unless they have private resources, may have to leave work, pay for support for their adult child themselves, or risk their young adult becoming isolated.

She said the biggest problem is that Medicaid was designed to pay for medical care, not for social integration.

“The cliff is falling into an (adult) system that wasn’t designed to meet the social needs of the very population it is attempting to help,” Irsfeld said, “not because anybody’s trying to be mean or trying to screw it up, but because it just wasn’t set up for that; that was an offshoot.”

Background: Virginia’s federal ADA investigation and settlement

In 2008, Virginia was investigated by the DOJ for its compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Olmsted decision. Both laws protect the rights of people with disabilities to live, work and participate in their communities — and prevent them from being unnecessarily separated or excluded because of their disabilities.

Then in 2011, the DOJ found that the commonwealth kept too many people with intellectual or developmental disabilities in institutions when many could have lived in regular community settings with the right support, as required by disability rights law. 

A year later, Virginia settled on an agreement that, in part, required the commonwealth to meet certain obligations, including addressing the services cliff and helping more disabled people transition to adult services in the commonwealth.

Where the state stands now

State data show Virginia closed four of five state-run training centers for adults with disabilities and shifted to community-based services. One center in Chesapeake remains open, downsized and redesigned for those needing intensive support.

In addition, Virginia funded 1,720 new Medicaid waiver slots in fiscal year 2025 and 1,720 in fiscal year 2026, dropping the number of people on the waiting list from about 15,500 to 14,300 as of November 2025, according to data collected by the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services.

Virginia has met about 86% of its 2012 settlement requirements, as of 2024.

In January 2025, the Justice Department and Virginia agreed to end the consent decree, replacing it with a narrower injunction after substantial progress. Some requirements, like crisis services and dental care, remain unmet.

A June consultant report found Virginia achieved compliance with four more conditions of the agreement and sustained compliance with two others, but 10 terms remain “not achieved” and 10 “deferred.”

The report said the commonwealth deserves “commendation for its considerable efforts,” but added “more work remains until the commonwealth can accomplish its unachieved goals.”

Local leaders — including Fairfax County Supervisor Walter Alcorn, who represents one of the wealthiest counties in Virginia h — said the services cliff impacts the entire state. Alcorn said the issue is pervasive and remains unresolved.

“We all have these needs, and they have not been fully addressed anywhere in the commonwealth — or, as far as I’m aware, anywhere in the country,” Alcorn said. “This is a new frontier for inclusion and for conversations about inclusion. Much of this work hasn’t happened, in large part because of the potential costs involved.”

Loudoun County, ground zero of Data Center Alley and home to over 250 of the power-hungry digital warehouse facilities, is considering a pause on all new data center project applications, officials said this week.

“The community has basically been begging us to do something about the unchecked growth of data centers,” County Supervisor Juli Briskman said Thursday. “The communities have been asking us to fight back against these big corporations that have basically been able to run roughshod over the county.”

Briskman asked the board to have county staff draft a plan for what a data center pause would entail. The county is currently revisiting its comprehensive plan zoning ordinances regarding data center permitting and zoning. 

Phase one of the review process concluded in the spring of 2025. Following that review, supervisors removed “by-right” permitting for data centers and moved it to a conditional use permit application that allows for more public input into the process.

In the second phase of the ordinance review, supervisors will examine existing standards for data centers and utility substations in the zoning ordinance, Briskman said. 

From there, they will determine if amendments are necessary to minimize community impacts while ensuring operational functionality. Briskman said they will also “evaluate provisions related to onsite power generation and energy storage, (and) noise parking standards.” 

She suggested data center applications pause while review of potential amendments to the comprehensive plan is underway. This would mean no new applications would be considered for months.

“I decided it was time that we actually just pumped the brakes, listened to the community, and just put a pause on all of it until we can get our arms around some of these other standards that we’ve been working on,” Briskman said.

Loudoun is not the only locality considering this sort of move. 

Leaders in Suffolk are also reviewing their regulations for the industry and are temporarily pausing new applications for data centers while they work through those changes. 

The town of Front Royal is drafting a policy to ban data centers from all of their zoning districts.

The city of Chesapeake voted to delay their review of applications for eight months.

“We should use this pause to ensure that the City’s ordinance ultimately protects communities from toxic air pollution and not accept half-measures that allow the burning of on-site diesel and gas,” Michelle Ueltschi with the Chesapeake Climate Action Fund said in a statement following the city’s vote. 

“This decision can serve as a model for other localities and state lawmakers to hit pause on data center development until proper regulations are put in place to protect communities.” she added.

Localities’ considerations of these changes reflect a desire to slow down the development of data centers and pass meaningful regulations around siting, noise, backup generators, water use, and other concerns that communities across the commonwealth have brought up in public hearings.

Virginia does not have statewide data center siting regulations. It’s up to local governments to make their own ordinances and decisions for individual projects.

The data center industry has contributed an estimated $2.7 billion in state and local tax revenue in 2024, Data Center Coalition representatives said previously. The facilities rake in millions in tax dollars for the localities that house them. 

Loudoun County, for example, has been able to reduce its property taxes because of how much tax revenue they take in from data centers.

“There’s no doubt that we’ve been able to do things like fully fund our schools, put millions of dollars into our housing fund. We built a crisis receiving center for $16 million in two years,” Briskman said.


The risks residents say data centers pose aren’t outweighed by the money, she said. 

”But the problem is that the community is not seeing a balance. They aren’t seeing a balance against what they view as negative impacts of the data center industry.”

Briskman added that the county has “become fiscally over reliant on data centers” and said it is time to diversify the county’s economy.

The Loudoun County Board of Supervisors will take up the motion at the Sept. 15 meeting.

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An independent firm recommended Old Dominion University improve campus safety, threat assessment, emergency response, communications, and institutional processes in a report released Tuesday, after a fatal campus shooting killed an employee and injured multiple students in May.

The report comes as the university prepares to welcome students back to Norfolk on Aug. 24, three months after Lt. Col. Brandon A. Shah died and several students were attacked by Mohamed Bailor Jalloh at Constant Hall, one of the institution’s academic buildings. 

Jalloh, who also died, spent eight years in prison for attempting to aid the Islamic State group before he enrolled at the Hampton Roads college. 

On Tuesday, ODU released the redacted independent report from law firm Cooley LLP on the May 12 shooting. The report concluded that the disaster was “an unpreventable terror attack” by Jalloh against students in the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) receiving military training alongside their regular classes. 

Investigators also determined the institution had no knowledge of Jalloh’s past conviction and was not informed about it by law enforcement or the student’s probation officer.

“We are releasing the full report with only those redactions essential to protect student privacy as part of our commitment to transparency,” said ODU President Brian O. Hemphill, in a statement. 

“Doing so is a fitting way to honor the memory of Lt. Col. Shah, who tragically lost his life, and our students, who were injured and who acted heroically, skillfully and swiftly to prevent even greater harm,” Hemphill continued.

The university said in a statement after the report’s recommendations were published that it will make physical security updates, streamline campus alert systems, expand background checks for readmitted students and enhance threat-assessment staffing and resources.

These actions are a direct result of the report’s findings, officials said.

The firm also recommended that ODU improve coordination and readiness with emergency response partners, create a clearer, more centralized emergency communication system, and build a stronger process for identifying and evaluating potential safety risks after admission or readmission.

Hemphill thanked the law firm for its “attention to detail” and “candor” throughout the investigation and pledged to take action based on the report. 

“The campus community has my complete assurance that we will act quickly to fully implement Cooley’s recommendations as we actively work to make our campus as safe and secure as possible,” he said.

WASHINGTON — Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia, the main long-distance gateway to the nation’s capital, is set to receive a multi-billion-dollar makeover, a White House spokesperson confirmed Wednesday. 

President Donald Trump and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy are expected to announce the project Wednesday afternoon at an event in the Oval Office. The sprawling renovation would preserve the iconic, concave sweeping roof of the airport’s main terminal but would update its interior and rebuild its A, B, C and D concourses, according to CBS News, which first reported the plan late Tuesday. 

It would also eliminate some of the airport’s most recognizable — and controversial — features, including mobile lounges, often referred to as “people movers.” The large, raised bus-like vehicles transport passengers from the main terminal to the D concourse. An expanded AeroTrain, the airport’s underground transportation system, will instead connect passengers to their gates, according to the CBS report.  

Trump seems to have taken a particular interest in the project, having personally reviewed many of the early proposals and offering edits to the plans, CBS reported. He suggested more and closer parking to the airport terminal, and gave suggestions on layout changes and the airport’s overall design. 

He even had design firms create 3-D models of the airport and the various proposals for its renovation so he could better visualize it. Trump had the models brought to the White House several times for his review, according to the report. 

A large investment

If approved, the project would mark one of the largest and most expensive airport renovations in the U.S. Its estimated $22.5 billion price tag is more than half the amount spent on all airport construction globally in 2024, according to the Airport Industry Review. 

According to the White House, the renovation will be financed by airlines that operate out of Dulles and the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, which oversees both Dulles and Reagan National Airport. 

The plan would be topped only by Los Angeles International’s gargantuan, $30 billion capital improvement plan to modernize its terminals and upgrade infrastructure ahead of high-traffic events in the coming years, including the 2028 summer Olympics. 

A new Washington

The Dulles renovation is the latest in a series of projects led by Trump to remake many of Washington’s most iconic landmarks. 

He tore down the White House’s East Wing to make way for a controversial new ballroom. He also drained and painted the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, which then faced algae blooms and peeling paint, and launched a legal battle against a former Olympic athlete over alleged vandalism. 

After installing a new board of trustees in an effort to eradicate what he described as “woke programming,” he also affixed his name to the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts. That decision sparked a lengthy legal challenge and ultimately resulted in a judicial order to remove his name from the building’s exterior. 

Early last year, Rep. Addison McDowell, R-N.C., introduced a resolution in the U.S. House of Representatives to rename the Virginia airport to the “Donald J. Trump International Airport.” That effort did not proceed, but Palm Beach’s airport, which the president routinely flies into on his way to his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, was recently similarly renamed in his honor. 

WASHINGTON — The Trump administration has for more than a year used personal information airline passengers provide to the Transportation Security Administration for immigration enforcement, according to documents obtained by a government watchdog group.

The documents, collected by the government accountability organization American Oversight, show for the first time a formal data-sharing agreement since May 2025 between TSA and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. 

The agreement contradicts congressional testimony from a TSA official who told lawmakers that passenger data was not being collected for the purpose of immigration enforcement. 

American Oversight obtained the records in a federal lawsuit to compel their release through a Freedom of Information Act request. The group posted the documents online Tuesday with a cover letter showing they were obtained July 23.

The New York Times was the first to report on the agreement between TSA and ICE.

As the Trump administration continues its aggressive deportation campaign in the interior of the country, the access to passenger information opens a larger group to immigration enforcement. It is unclear from the documents how many deportations or other immigration enforcement actions the agreement has generated.

Any noncitizen who has an expired visa, is waiting for a legal status renewal or is not authorized to be in the country could have their passenger information handed over to immigration officials, based on the agreement. 

American Oversight Executive Director Chioma Chukwu, said in a statement that the agreement sets “a dangerous precedent with consequences far beyond immigration.”

“Americans provide their personal information to board a plane safely, not to become part of an immigration enforcement system or a government surveillance network,” Chukwu said. “Once the government begins expanding how it uses Americans’ personal information, it raises profound concerns about privacy, civil liberties, and public trust.”

TSA and ICE are both within the Department of Homeland Security. The agreement between the agencies will remain in effect until officials terminate the contract, which will be reviewed every five years to determine if it shall continue, according to the agreement. 

Testimony to Congress

In January, TSA acting Administrator Ha Nguyen McNeil told lawmakers on the U.S. House Homeland Security Committee that the agency shares some information with ICE, but does not “send the information to ICE.”

New York Democratic Rep. Dan Goldman asked McNeill about an agreement with ICE to share information for the purpose of checking if passengers have a deportation order. 

“That is not what is occurring,” she said. “We don’t send the information to ICE, we help ICE check against information.” 

New Jersey Democratic Rep. LaMonica McIver also asked McNeill what passenger information TSA was sharing with ICE.

McNeill did not detail the information TSA shares with ICE, but said her agency was “within our authorities to share information within the Department of Homeland Security to further the national security mission.”

In the newly released documents, TSA cites the 2008 Secure Flight Final Rule as its authority to share data with ICE. The TSA regulation lays out federal procedures for using passenger information for aviation safety.  

David Cummins, President Donald Trump’s pick to be TSA administrator, at a Senate confirmation hearing this month did not detail information that ICE and TSA share when pressed by Michigan Democratic Sen. Gary Peters.

Cummins said he would “try to provide as much as we can within our bounds,” but said he could not commit to sharing details.

TSA and DHS did not respond to States Newsroom’s request for comment. 

In 49 states, the number of people enrolled in Obamacare plans has declined since Congress made coverage more expensive by allowing federal subsidies to expire at the end of last year.

The lone exception was New Mexico, the only state that has used its own money to fully replace the expired aid, according to a new analysis by KFF, a health policy research group.

Late last month, the Trump administration announced that overall participation in the health insurance marketplaces created under Obamacare, officially called the Affordable Care Act, had declined by nearly 3 million people, to about 19.2 million from 21.8 million in 2025. That 2025 figure, the highest ever recorded, was the culmination of six years of steady increases.

In announcing the figures, the Trump administration blamed much of the growth since 2021 — the year former President Joe Biden took office — on “improper, phantom and fraudulent enrollment.” It said the number of people in those categories peaked at 5.6 million last year, and that this year’s decline was the result of its efforts to eliminate enrollees who misstated their income to gain access to free plans.

But KFF connected this year’s decline to the expiration of the enhanced federal subsidies. Designed as a temporary pandemic-era measure, the subsidies were made available by the American Rescue Plan Act in 2021 and later extended through the end of 2025 by the Inflation Reduction Act.

The enhanced subsidies were available to everyone, regardless of income. Additional federal aid provided to some of the lowest-income households entirely eliminated premium payments for some people. Congressional leaders let the subsidies expire on Dec. 31.

Under the Affordable Care Act, each state can either use the federal government’s online insurance marketplace, HealthCare.gov, or operate its own state-run exchange. In states with their own exchanges, including some that used their own money to partially replace the expired federal subsidies, the average enrollment drop was 6%, according to KFF. In states using the federal marketplace, the average decline was 15%.

Enrollment fell the most in Ohio and Oklahoma (32%), Arizona (30%), South Carolina (29%), Indiana (28%), Michigan and Minnesota (27%), and Louisiana and Mississippi (26%).

Enrollment in Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Idaho, Illinois, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Texas was flat or fell by less than 5%. In New Mexico, enrollment grew by 14%.

Justin Lo, a KFF senior researcher who co-authored the report, said in an email that the number of fraudulent enrollees in Obamacare is likely in the “hundreds of thousands,” rather than the millions. Higher estimates, he said, are based on “suspicious patterns that could be explained by fraud or by legitimate factors, the most notable of which is greater subsidies making coverage more affordable.”

“We had a huge growth in the marketplace uptake because a lot of people were seeing that they could now qualify for very cheap plans,” Lo said. “So now, when we’re looking at the loss…it’s people who had marketplace coverage now having to evaluate whether they want to continue it.”

The KFF report examined not just the number of people who enrolled in Obamacare plans this year compared with last year, but also how many maintained that coverage as the year went on. Many people, the group noted, enroll but then end up dropping coverage when they can’t make the first premium payment.

This year, Mississippi had the lowest rate of enrollees maintaining coverage past January, at around 61%, while South Carolina, Louisiana, Indiana and Oklahoma also had rates below 70%. In New Mexico, California, Nevada, Vermont, and Idaho — all states with their own marketplaces — at least 95% of enrollees kept their coverage.

Lo said it’s hard to predict how enrollment figures may look in a year, as some insurers that currently offer plans on the marketplaces “are reassessing their positions and their commitment” to participating.

“So, if insurers are pulling out, people who are seeking marketplace coverage might have fewer choices,” Lo said.

Obamacare insurers are proposing a median premium increase of 14% for 2027, which would be a double-digit hike for the second year in a row, according to a new analysis of preliminary rate filings. Rates should be finalized later this summer.

Stateline reporter Shalina Chatlani can be reached at [email protected].

Just days before the Oregon Legislature in March passed a one-year pause on a popular tax incentive program for data centers, a group called Oregon Connects registered as a nonprofit business in the state. Then the ads started appearing.

“From homes to hospitals to businesses, Oregon’s data centers are unlocking a smarter power grid for our communities,” a female voice reads over a montage that includes a few aerial shots of downtown Portland and the Oregon Coast. “They’re investing billions in clean energy, creating good-paying jobs, driving innovation and building a better energy future.”

The 30-second ads, which feature B-roll of a family cooking together, a nurse and a business owner, are a near-carbon copy of ads playing across TV and social media in at least six other states. They all attempt to counter common critiques of data centers, including their enormous demand for water, energy, land and relatively low levels of job creation compared to the tax breaks they receive to spur economic development. And they end with a similar line: “Oregon’s data centers: committed to paying their costs, so Oregon families don’t.”

Oregon Connects paid for the Oregon ads, while similar promotional campaigns in other states are sponsored by Indiana Connects, Connected Ohio, North Carolina Connects, Pennsylvania Connects, Texas Connects and Virginia Connects.

They’re all part of a network of groups created by the nonprofit Data Center Coalition, an industry group hoping to improve public opinion of data centers as pushback grows. In each of these states, a growing number of local governments and legislatures are considering and passing policies meant to slow data center growth.

The coalition counts among its members leaders from Microsoft, Google, Meta, QTS and Equinix — all companies that collectively have built dozens of data centers in Oregon during the last decade due to the state’s lack of sales tax, generous property tax incentives and relatively inexpensive electricity, saving the companies hundreds of millions a year.

But in recent years, the data center companies have been criticized for driving up regional energy demand, leading Oregon lawmakers and regulators to demand electric utilities create a new customer class for data centers so they don’t contribute to residential electricity costs. There have also been growing calls to revisit the state’s industrial tax incentive programs.

‘Committed to paying’

Oregon Connects filed business registration paperwork with the Oregon Secretary of State’s Office on March 4 as a “social welfare organization that promotes data centers,” the same day that the Oregon House voted to pass a bill that included a one-year moratorium on Standard Enterprise Zone tax abatements for data centers. The tax incentive is the smallest of Oregon’s three major industrial tax breaks, and data center companies building facilities in Hillsboro and Forest Grove have used it.

The bill, sponsored by Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek, originally would have expanded the Standard Enterprise Zone tax program and another, the Longterm Enterprise Zone program, leading to a potential boon for data centers. But Kotek backed down after reporting from The Oregonian/OregonLive revealed that most of the programs’ benefits in recent years have been flowing to data centers, and the top 11 tech-company-owned data centers in Hillsboro will receive an average of $294,000 in property tax breaks for each full-time employee on their payrolls this tax year.

Even with the one-year pause, data centers will this year save $85 million in Oregon property taxes from the Standard Enterprise Zone program, according to reporting in The Oregonian/OregonLive.

Juan Carlos Ordóñez, communications director of the left-leaning nonprofit Oregon Center for Public Policy, criticized the Oregon Connects ad campaign for making it seem like tech companies give more than they get from the state.

“If data centers were truly ‘committed to paying their costs, so Oregon families don’t,’ then they wouldn’t be taking hundreds of millions of dollars in property tax abatements each year,” he said in an email. “Oregonians should be able to see for themselves how much Amazon, Meta and the other owners of data centers actually contribute in taxes, which is why it’s time the state enacted corporate tax transparency.”

Josh Levi, the Data Center Coalition president who registered Oregon Connects, said transparency is the campaign’s purpose.

“Through Oregon Connects, the industry seeks to better explain the role of data centers to the public — including how they operate, why they are important to our daily lives and the 21st-century economy, as well as information about the industry’s responsible usage of water and its commitment to paying for the energy it uses,” he said in an email.

But who exactly is footing the bill for the ads is unclear. Spokespersons for Oregon Connects declined to answer questions about who funds the ads.

The Data Center Coalition had about $4.6 million in operating revenue in 2024, according to its most recent tax filing in November 2025. It spent more than $250,000 on advertising in 2024. Tax-exempt social advocacy organizations are not required to publicly disclose the names or addresses of contributors on annual tax forms.

Federal Communications Commission data shows Virginia Connects, Pennsylvania Connects and North Carolina Connects spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on TV ads in recent months. North Carolina Connects spent nearly $370,000 on more than 740 ads across 189 channels in the past month alone. FCC data does not yet reflect any television spending in Oregon, Ohio or Indiana.

Community and corporate campaigns

Jenni Denekas, a spokesperson for the environmental advocacy group 1000 Friends of Oregon, said the ads are a response to Oregonians organizing and unifying around “very real concerns about data center development.”

The group recently joined a lawsuit with local leaders, businesses and farmers in Hillsboro against the city government over its recent flurry of approvals for tax breaks to data centers that, in some cases, offer them 25 years of back-to-back waivers from paying property taxes.

“If Oregonians were getting such a great deal from data centers, we wouldn’t be seeing so many people expressing concerns about the costs to our communities, including higher energy and water bills to subsidize all the new build-outs required to support this water- and energy-intensive industry,” Denekas said.

On Monday afternoon, the Hillsboro City Council unanimously agreed to a 120-day moratorium on approvals of any new data center and battery energy storage systems in the city.

Dirk Knudsen, a community leader and editor of the Hillsboro Herald community newspaper, has advocated for more transparency around data centers. He said the moratorium was the result of “hundreds of residents coming forward, giving up their evenings and workdays to come and speak their truths.”

That’s the opposite of what he sees from Oregon Connects.

“We are not looking at a spontaneous, homegrown community campaign,” he said. “We are looking at a highly sophisticated, out-of-state public affairs blitz designed to build public consent before Oregonians can fully deliberate the real impacts on our power grid, water resources and tax structure.”

Editor’s note: If you or someone you know needs help, call or text 988, the U.S. suicide and crisis lifeline, or access online chat at 988lifeline.org.

For months, Marie’s 11-year-old daughter wasn’t acting like herself. The fifth grader was often fatigued, sleeping more. She wasn’t eating enough, and spent more time alone.

“She wasn’t really motivated to do things with her friends,” Marie said.

The Chicago girl had been overwhelmed with worry for her father, who was recovering from diabetes complications after a serious infection. She also felt intense pressure at school, aiming for straight As.

“Ever since Dad went to the hospital, it just made it more intense,” she told her mom in a written note. “I don’t know how to feel. I’m having thoughts about hurting myself. I’m tired, and afraid of death.”

Earlier this year, she told her mom she’d tried to cut herself in the bathroom, and said she was hurting herself at school. Stateline is withholding Marie’s full name to protect her daughter’s privacy.

Marie took her to the emergency room. The ER staff tried to transfer the girl to a psychiatric facility, but several refused to take her. Most only served teenagers, while others didn’t accept her insurance plan. The emergency department team finally found a place for her at a child psychiatric facility nearly an hour away.

Marie’s daughter recently finished an intensive outpatient therapy program, and is seeing a therapist regularly. 

“We were able to get her the help that she needed,” Marie said. “But a lot of the times, there’s kids that struggle and unfortunately, do end up taking their life.” 

In the past several years, numerous studies have pointed to a mental health crisis among America’s youth. Much of the attention has focused on teenagers, who have higher suicide rates. 

But preteens are struggling, too.

The number of preteens — ages 8 to 12 — who die by suicide in the United States each year is relatively small. But the total in 2025 was 194 — the most since at least 2001, according to preliminary data from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Since 2008, the rate of preteen suicide has increased by an average of 8.2% annually, according to researchers at the National Institutes of Health. Their analysis, published in 2024, found that Black preteens had the highest overall suicide rate, while girls and Hispanic preteens had the greatest percentage increase. Native American preteens also saw some of the most pronounced increases.

Suicide is complex and is often the result of a combination of factors. Talking with trusted adults and connecting kids with help can aid in prevention, and research shows most who have suicidal thoughts do not carry through with them. Mental health experts and advocates are calling for more mental health check-ins with preteens, earlier screenings and tailored interventions for Native, Black and LGBTQ+ preteens.

Jenny Britton, chief clinical officer at the Washburn Center for Children in Minneapolis, a nonprofit mental health practice, has noticed the long-term trend during her 25-year career.

“I’ve watched the age of kids who struggle with suicidal ideation and suicidality get younger and younger over that time,” she said. “Now, we’re seeing even as young as our 7- and 8-year-olds.”

Last year, the overall suicide rate in Minnesota increased by 4% compared with the year before, according to preliminary state data. But the suicide rate among children ages 10 to 14, the youngest age group included in the state’s report, more than doubled compared with the five years prior, from 2.2 per 100,000 people to 5.8.

Four years ago, when the inpatient mental health unit opened at Children’s Minnesota, a Minneapolis-based health system, providers mostly saw teenagers, said Dr. Prachi “PJ” Striker, a child and adolescent psychiatrist. That’s still true, but over the past year-and-half, the unit has seen more 10- to 12-year-olds who have harmed themselves, attempted suicide or said they’ve considered it.

“(We’re) seeing more of the younger age group coming in,” Striker said. “Depression, anxiety, hopelessness, feeling overwhelmed, suicidal thoughts.”

The American Academy of Pediatrics now recommends that pediatricians start screening all patients starting at age 12 for suicidal thoughts. But for preteens ages 8 to 11, the academy only recommends a suicide screening if the child is coming to the doctor for behavioral health concerns or has a history of suicidal thoughts.

But Striker said screening as early as age 8 can prevent kids from slipping under the radar.

“How do we start identifying kids who are in trouble faster?” Striker said. “Kids are feeling unsupported. They have more alone time. They’re more isolated. People aren’t really picking up on some of the clues of depression as early.”

Stressors

Many mental health experts point to COVID-19 as a major factor that harmed the mental health of kids who are now preteens. 

“You have to remember these kids who are like 10 to 12, their early elementary years were COVID years, and so kindergarten, first grade, second grade were often at home. They didn’t have those normal experiences of going to school, starting to socialize,” Striker said. “They’re going into third, fourth, fifth grade, having been home and quarantined for the first few years of their school lives.”

Thousands of kids lost loved ones to COVID-19, including their parents. Children of color make up a disproportionate number of those whose caregivers were killed by the virus. 

“I was hopeful that as people were able to get back to their friends and school and normalize, that that would get better, but it really hasn’t,” said Dr. Maria Hughes Rahmandar, chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Council on Adolescents and Young Adults and an associate professor of pediatrics at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine. “Preteens and teens are really continuing to struggle with more and more mental health concerns.” 

Experts also point to other stressors for preteens, including social media use, lack of sleep, bullying both online and in person, and policies restricting gender-affirming care for trans kids that have created fear for some LGBTQ+ youth.

Jeremy Pettit, a professor of psychology at Florida International University who specializes in depression, anxiety and suicidal behaviors in children and adolescents, is studying how sleep – and screen time right before bed – relates to kids’ mental health.

“When (sleep is) disrupted, it’s bad for everything – physical health and mental health. The data are pretty clear that our kids are not getting enough sleep at night,” said Pettit, who directs FIU’s Center for Children and Families. 

“We’ve got early school times in most of the country, even though the data, the research is pretty clear, it would be healthier for our kids not to have them go to school at 7 every morning,” he said.

Peter Gray, a researcher and emeritus professor of psychology at Boston College, contends that changes in schooling in recent decades, such as the standardization of curriculum, created “a new source of anxiety and depression on top of everything else.” He also pointed to a trend of less unstructured playtime outside.

“That’s normal childhood,” Gray said of unstructured play. “This is how children learn to take charge of their own lives. It’s how children learn to negotiate differences with other people. It’s how children learn that they can solve their own problems. 

“We have been gradually, over time, taking that away from children,” he said.

Unlike many other child development experts, Gray argues that computers and smartphones have actually helped children by re-creating some of the social networking that used to happen outside. 

But a 2024 analysis by the CDC found that frequent social media use was associated with bullying at school, persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness, and some suicide risk among students. More than 40 states have sued social media companies over mental health concerns among kids.

Other experts say too much exposure to media of all kinds may also be causing kids stress. 

“I think about my childhood in the ’70s and ’80s. I didn’t know all the details of shootings or a bomb going off, or you had to read about it in the newspaper or watch the news,” said Britton, of the Washburn Center for Children. 

“Kids are wrestling with things differently than I wrestled with things. They know more, so they’re thinking about more.”

Talking with kids

Experts say parents, teachers, coaches, clergy — anyone who interacts with kids — shouldn’t fear talking to them about suicide and mental health, especially if they notice withdrawal, sadness or stress.

Jamie Freeny, who was the director of the Center for School Behavioral Health at Mental Health America of Greater Houston until earlier this year, said that more elementary schools have started to ask for suicide prevention training.

“If the elementary schools are asking for it, that lets me know that there’s a reason,” said Freeny, who now works as a mental health consultant. “It’s very, very sad.”

The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention has resources for parents or others who frequently interact with kids, including a toolkit called “Talk Saves Lives” that offers guidelines and tips for steering such conversations.

Lisa Horowitz, a visiting professor of child psychiatry at the University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine and who conducts research for the National Institutes of Health, said many parents tell her they’re afraid to bring the topic up with their kids.

“There’s this myth that if you talk to kids about suicide, you’re going to put the idea in their head,” Horowitz said, adding that research shows talking about it can actually help. 

“If you can detect suicide risk early, like in preteens or even even younger, then you can intervene early, and and then you can prevent a lot of psychiatric disorders that occur in adulthood.” 

Kids may tell their friends and may not necessarily come to their trusted adult first, making proactive conversations important, added Horowitz, who co-authored the study on the annual increase in preteen suicide and has developed screening tools.

“Most parents are surprised by a suicide attempt, and it’s not because they’re a bad parent, and it’s not because they’re not paying attention. It’s because kids keep these thoughts to themselves,” she said. 

“It’s an awkward but critical conversation to start. … So even if you say to a kid, ‘OK, this is really awkward, and I’m not even sure how to ask about this, but I care about your life. So, do you ever think about killing yourself?’”

Britton said even just asking about a change in a child’s mood can help.

“Work hard to figure out how to engage with your kids around really hard topics,” said Britton. “It does something so innate within the human experience if another person can say, ‘Today you looked really sad. Is there anything you want to share with me about that?’”

In Chicago, Marie and her husband have started fundraising for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. As they’ve shared their story, other parents have opened up to them about the struggles of their own preteen kids.

“My husband and I want to be our daughter’s voice,” Marie said. “To help somebody else — even if it’s one person.”

Stateline reporter Nada Hassanein can be reached at [email protected].