November 6th Newsletter

As I write this letter, election officials across the country are diligently working to count the remaining ballots to determine the results of this election. While we are accustomed to knowing most of the results by election night, we must be patient and allow time for officials to make sure that every vote cast was counted. The outcome of this election is in the hands of the American people, and we must ensure that everyone who casts an eligible ballot has their voice heard.

I spent election day visiting many polling locations in the 73rd district. After months of only being able to connect with constituents by phone banking and Zoom calls, it was wonderful to see so many of you in person at the polls! We have seen record levels of turnout across the country, and in Virginia turnout has reached over 70 percent with almost 4.4 million votes counted!

Two things also impressed me while I was at the polls. First, our poll workers were out in force early (they arrived at their polling location before 5:00 am) and often (they stayed at their precinct well into the evening). Given COVID concerns, we were fortunate to have an adequate number of poll workers willing to ensure a safe and secure voting process. Second, I met so many first time voters, and I joined the poll workers in applauding after each new voter completed scanning in their ballot. One of those first time voters was Kennedy, a Sudanese immigrant who became eligible to vote this year. And he took his new civic enthusiasm even further by serving as a poll worker!

 Thanks to legislation we passed in the General Assembly, voting in Virginia is more convenient than ever before. In 2016, our Commonwealth was ranked 49 out of 50 states on ease of voting — this year we jumped to 12th in the country. However, there is still a lot of work to be done to improve our election system for all Virginians. We have an election every year in Virginia, and my legislative colleagues and I are ready to get to work to ensure all of our elections are safe, secure, and accessible.

I will continue to keep you informed with relevant, accurate information via Twitter, Facebook, and my website. Please email my office at delrwillett@house.virginia.gov or call us at 804-698-1173 if you have any questions or need assistance.

Sincerely,
Rodney

Poll greeting on Election Day in the 73rd District

New Information

Virginia Election Results

While many races across the country and in Virginia are still tabulating final vote numbers, the majority of Virginia votes are in and we have a good picture of the results for some of our elections and referendums. In Virginia, election workers were able to report the results of all election day votes, early in-person votes, and a large number of mail-in ballots on election night. Counties will continue to accept ballots postmarked by election day until Friday, November 5th at 12:00 pm. We can expect a report of the remaining ballots on Friday afternoon.

There has been some confusion amongst voters looking to verify that their vote was counted. This information is available on the Department of Elections website, however this data is sent to the Department by local electoral boards in the days following the election. Please do not be alarmed if your vote from this election has not yet shown up in their system, this is a normal part of the process, and all of our election officials and volunteers are working diligently to ensure all eligible votes are counted in a timely manner. 

All election information on the following results have been gathered from the Department of Elections website and are not a reflection of the final vote counts. Results will be final when certified by the State Board of Elections on November 16th.

• VA 7th Congressional District — Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger has declared victory in her re-election campaign against Delegate Nick Freitas (HD-30). While more votes will be reported on Friday afternoon, the Congresswoman leads in the vote count 50.45% to 29.39, a margin of almost 5,000 votes. In a speech on Wednesday night, Spanberger thanked Delegate Freitas for a hard-fought campaign and committed to working across the aisle to deliver results for our district. Delegate Freitas announced on Wednesday night that he would wait until all votes were tallied to make a statement on the race. See the official results online here.

• Amendment 1 —Virginia voters have approved the Constitutional Amendment to establish a redistricting commission of eight members of the General Assembly and eight citizens of the Commonwealth. The commission is tasked with drawing Virginia’s congressional and state legislative district maps that will then be approved or rejected by the General Assembly. If the commission fails to produce a map, the Virginia Supreme Court will draw the maps. Governor Northam has amended the budget this week to add language outlining how the commission process will be conducted. You can read a full description of Amendment 1 online here, and see the official referendum results online here.

• Amendment 2 — The Constitutional Amendment exempting veterans who have been permanently disabled in connection to their military service from paying personal property tax on their cars or pick-up truck has passed with overwhelming support. See the official results online here.

Re-Employing Virginia Scholarships

Last week, Governor Northam announced that Virginia is allocating $30 million in federal CARES Act funding to help Virginians whose employment has been impacted by the COVID-19 crisis pursue workforce training in a high-demand field. The new Re-Employing Virginians (REV) initiative will provide scholarships to eligible individuals to enroll in a workforce or community college program in five essential industries, including health care, information technology, skilled trades, public safety, and early childhood education.

REV will provide one-time scholarships of $3,000 to register in a qualifying full-time workforce program and $1,500 to register part-time or in a short-term, noncredit training program. The Virginia Community College System (VCCS) and Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads Local Workforce Development Areas will administer the CARES Act funding for the REV initiative, with $27 million allocated to VCCS for statewide programs and $3 million for the two workforce areas. Together, Hampton Roads and Northern Virginia have experienced nearly 50 percent of all the initial and continuing unemployment claims.

In the REV initiative announcement, Secretary of Education Atif Qarni noted that “More than 70 percent of Virginians who have filed for unemployment have some college or less.” The goal of the REV Initiative is to increase educational opportunities for individuals whose employment has been impacted by COVID-19 so that our workforce will be more resilient and better educated, helping our economy come back even stronger than before.

To apply, check your eligibility online here, and contact your local community college to apply before the December 14th enrollment deadline. The funding for this program will expire on December 14th; all interested individuals should apply as early as possible.

Maryland, North Carolina, and Virginia Wind Energy Partnership

The governors of Maryland, North Carolina, and Virginia announced a three-state collaboration to advance offshore wind projects in the region and promote the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic United States as a hub for offshore wind energy and industry.

The Southeast and Mid-Atlantic Regional Transformative Partnership for Offshore Wind Energy Resources (SMART-POWER) will provide a framework for the three states to cooperatively promote, develop, and expand offshore wind energy and the accompanying industry supply chain and workforce. 

Offshore wind development is a growing field with the potential to bring new jobs to Virginia and drive economic growth while reducing emissions of greenhouse gases. This partnership will enable our states to work together and take advantage of our deepwater ports, transportation infrastructure, research institutions, and highly skilled workforce to grow wind development in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic region. You can read more information on the agreement online here.
 

Henrico County Leaf Collection

Henrico County will begin providing annual leaf-collection services Monday, Nov. 9, with both free and paid options available for county residents.

Free collection of bagged leaves is scheduled through Feb. 13. Crews will work week to week in five zones. Residents are encouraged to place their leaf bags at the curb or road’s edge on the Sunday of the assigned pickup week; crews will begin collection at 7 a.m. Monday. You can see the pickup schedule online here, and a map of each zone here. If you live outside of an automatic pick-up zone, you order a free pickup of bagged leaves by calling (804) 727-8770. 

Henrico also will offer vacuum leaf collection from Nov. 9 through Dec. 30 and from Feb. 22 through March 31. Residents can order the $30 service by calling (804) 501-4275.

Additional information is available online at the Henrico Department of Utilities website.