Weekly Column: Election Day Earthquake Brings Three Possible Policy Shifts

The following is my column that will appear in the Mt. Vernon Gazette, Springfield Connection, The Mt. Vernon Voice, and the Potomac and Stafford Locals in the week of November 20, 2017.

Election Day Earthquake Brings Three Possible Policy Shifts

Election Day was an electoral earthquake in Virginia politics.  Fourteen seats in the House of Delegates switched from Republican to Democratic members – the largest switch since 1899.  Two have not yet been certified due to irregularities and three are heading to recounts.  We do not know if any party will control the House and probably will not know until late in the day on the first day of session after the dust has settled.

While the new situation in the House of Delegates will create some uncertainty over the next fifty days, it will create some opportunities in Virginia public policy, but not a wholesale change of direction.  The Senate of Virginia is still controlled by the Republican Party and most major committees have significant partisan majorities. 

Notwithstanding, I am hopeful that in the short-term, we might see some changes in a three areas: Medicaid Expansion, Criminal Justice Reform, and Nonpartisan Redistricting.

U.S. 1 Widening Comment Deadline 12/5!

One of my top priorities since I was first elected in 2009 has been the improvement of U.S. 1.

In 2011, former Senator Toddy Puller and I passed legislation authorizing the Route 1 Multimodal Alternative Analysis Study.  VDOT is proposing its first widening which extends from Woodlawn to Costco pursuant to this study and is accepting public comments on their design.

This project will widen U.S. 1 to six lanes, provide a bike and pedestrian trail on both sides of the road, and maintain a median necessary for future Bus Rapid Transit.

VIEW VDOT PRESENTATION HERE

Possible configurations for the intersection of U.S. 1 and

Buckman Road/Old Mt. Vernon Hwy

VDOT is also considering several improvements that require community input such as whether to create "superstreets" that allow fewer left turns and provide better traffic flow (see below), whether to underground telephone, electricity, and cable lines, and whether to mitigate litter and storm water runoff from the road.

PLEASE SUBMIT YOUR COMMENTS TO THIS PROJECT BY USING THIS LINK.

All submitted comments will be forwarded to VDOT.

The U.S. 1 Multimodal Alternatives Analysis Study found that this segment should be served by bus rapid transit to encourage development to support a Metro extension. The bus rapid transit system will provide curb-separated lanes for buses which will run ever 6-10 minutes and carry passengers to and from residential and mixed use areas along U.S. 1 to the Huntington Metro.  

Weekly Column: Let's Grow Early Voting

The following is my column that will appear in the Mt. Vernon Gazette, Springfield Connection, The Mt. Vernon Voice, and the Potomac and Stafford Locals in the week of November 3, 2017.

Let’s Grow Early Voting  

The 2017 Virginia elections once against demonstrated that Virginians are choosing to vote early in larger numbers each election.  

As compared with 2013, early voting in Prince William County was up over 210%, 170% in Fairfax County, and 146% in Stafford County. In 2016, over 120,000 or one in five Fairfax County voters cast their votes early while nearly forty-four percent of Prince William County voters voted early.  

Voting early allows voters to avoid precinct lines, unpredictable weather, job, family or health problems. Voting by mail gives voters more time to complete their ballot in the privacy of their home. Most importantly, it provides the flexibility to allow more people to participate in our democracy.  

Given its popularity, there are more things our government can do to facilitate early voting.