Virginia’s primaries on Tuesday saw Ramin Fatehi clinch the Democratic nomination for Commonwealth Attorney in Norfolk, the site of a major showdown over reform in 2019. He is unchallenged in November.
People with felony convictions who aren’t in prison can now vote. State elections could bring further progress or a sharp retreat.
Abolition advocates are celebrating a milestone for racial justice.
DA, sheriff, and mayoral elections will present new openings to upend mass incarceration, from Manhattan and Philadelphia down to Virginia.
Their move breaches expectations of a monolithic law enforcement perspective, which in the past has helped DA associations push a punitive agenda.
New law changes where incarcerated people are counted for redistricting. Advocates vow to push against felony disenfranchisement next year.
Ending the suspension of driver’s licenses over court debt will spare hundreds of thousands each year. Advocates call for more action against fines and fees, especially during COVID-19.
The state will no longer require an excuse when voters request an absentee ballot. Advocates say public authorities need to devote enough resources to facilitate mail-in voting and preserve alternatives.
The reform’s impact will hinge on Virginia’s parole board no longer denying most applications it receives.
A wave of progressive candidates prevailed in elections for prosecutor, overhauling the politics of criminal justice in Virginia and beyond.
In Fairfax and Chesterfield counties, candidates for prosecutor want to reduce the volume of felony convictions. Reform opponents have coalesced against them.
A Maryland prosecutor stops seeking cash bail, Kentucky and Virginia prosecutors limit pot cases, and a Hawaii prosecutor reduces charges for driving offenses.
“I saw families that were torn apart, and I saw the consequences of that,” Jim Hingeley, a candidate running in Albemarle County, Virginia, said in a Q&A.
Competitive elections for prosecutor will shape the prospects of decarceral reforms, from Fairfax to Chesterfield.
Virginia is holding nearly 200 elections for commonwealth’s attorney and elections for sheriff. This page has a masterlist of the candidates whose name will be on the November ballot. Read our statewide primer here. Visit our election portal for more coverage of 2019 races for sheriff and prosecutor
In November, voters get to orient prosecutorial discretion and immigration policy in the second most populous county in Virginia.
This article is part of the Political Report’s coverage of the 2019 local elections. Daniel Nichanian In November, Virginia’s Prince William County will elect its first new prosecutor in 51 years. Mike May is the GOP nominee in the race to replace longtime commonwealth’s attorney Paul Ebert, who is retiring. The jurisdiction also covers the independent […]
Parisa Dehghani-Tafti and Steve Descano oust the chief prosecutors of Arlington and Fairfax counties, overhauling prosecution in Northern Virginia.
Virginians are voting for their prosecutors in Arlington, Fairfax, and Prince William counties.
Amy Ashworth, who is running for prosecutor of Prince William County, discusses declinations, the death penalty, and cash bail.
Tracey Lenox, a candidate for commonwealth’s attorney in Virginia’s Prince Williams County, talks to the Appeal: Political Report.
A candidate for prosecutor in Fairfax County, Virginia, explains his views on criminal justice reform, from charging practices and drugs to the death penalty.
Parisa Dehghani-Tafti, a candidate for prosecutor, explains how she wants to fight mass incarceration in Arlington.