Election Day in Arlington (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
The Virginia Supreme Court on Friday struck down a voter-approved Democratic congressional redistricting plan, delivering another major setback to the party in a nationwide battle against Republicans for an edge in this year’s midterm elections.
The court ruled 4-3 that the state’s Democratic-led legislature violated procedural requirements when it placed the constitutional amendment on the ballot to authorize mid-decade redistricting. Voters narrowly approved the amendment on April 21, but the court’s ruling renders the vote’s result meaningless.
8th District congressional candidate Jason Knapp (staff photo by Scott McCaffrey)
The latest Democratic challenger to U.S. Rep. Don Beyer (D-8) says the incumbent deserves credit for a storied political career, but should now exit the political stage to let others step up.
Jason Knapp is one of several challengers taking on the six-term incumbent in the Aug. 4 Democratic primary. A retired U.S. Navy pilot, Knapp kicked off his campaign at Wednesday’s Arlington Democratic Committee meeting, where he said it’s time for Beyer’s long-held congressional seat to change hands.
Demolition of office building continuing along Columbia Pike, near Penrose Square (courtesy John Antonelli)
College Degrees Galore — A viral social post ranked U.S. counties by share of white adults age 25 and older with at least a bachelor’s degree, putting Arlington (88%), Falls Church (86%) and Alexandria (83%) in the top five nationally, behind only Washington, D.C. (93%) and New York (86%). [Siddharth Khurana/X]
Police Memorial Today — The Arlington County Police Department and Sheriff’s Office will hold a ceremony this morning at 8 a.m. honoring the seven Arlington law enforcement officers who died in the line of duty. The event will take place at the Justice Center Plaza (1425 N. Courthouse Road), with a road closure on N. Courthouse Road between 14th Street N. and 15th Street N. from 7–9 a.m. [Arlington County]
New 7th District Contender — Adam Dunigan, a former Marine and CIA case officer, has submitted more than 1,400 petition signatures to compete in the primary for Virginia’s newly redrawn 7th Congressional District. Dunigan’s campaign says it has raised $144,676 from individual donors without accepting money from corporate PACs, special interests or party committees. [Press Release]
Highway Shopping Cart — “Quite the scene on I-395N around 3:00 this morning. A woman pushed a shopping cart right in the middle of the highway from Route 1 up to Boundary Channel. Others driving by tried to intervene until @VSPPIO arrived. A trooper quickly disrupted her journey.” [Dave Statter/X]
Good Company Wins SBA Award — The U.S. Small Business Administration will recognize Ballston-based Good Company Doughnuts & Café as the 2026 Small Business Person of the Year for N. Va. during a ceremony today. The award recognizes co-founders Charles Kachadoorian and Kate Murphy, whose company has expanded from a single Arlington café in 2019 to multiple locations across D.C. and N. Va. [Press Release]
Arlington Foster Parents Honored — Arlington’s Sara Kirwin and Joseph Calizo were named among the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments’ 2026 Foster Parents of the Year. The couple has fostered 15 children in 10 years and currently cares for two teens. [MWCOG]
Falls Church Tax Cut Likely — The Falls Church City Council reached a consensus at Monday’s work session to drop the real estate tax rate by a half-penny, slightly below the recommendation of City Manager Wyatt Shields, who advocated for no change. The largely symbolic reduction will save taxpayers just over $50 on average. The Council is expected to formally adopt the budget Monday night. [Falls Church News-Press]
Spanberger Open to Service Taxes — Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D) said she’ll consider taxing everyday services in the state, including gym memberships, dog walking and streaming services, to raise “revenue that’s necessary.” Proposals to tax such services failed to pass the General Assembly this year, but Spanberger told Richmond’s ABC News affiliate she might sign similar measures in the future. [Washington Times]
Va. Resident on Virus Ship — “The Virginia Department of Health says one Virginia traveler who was aboard a cruise ship hit by a deadly hantavirus outbreak has returned home and is under public health monitoring… The traveler “is currently in good health, not showing any signs of infection,” the department said.” [Fox 5]
It’s Friday — Expect sunny skies today with a high near 71 and west winds of 2–10 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph. Overnight will be mostly cloudy with a low around 54. [NWS]
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Electric-vehicle charging (via Marek Studzinski/Unsplash)
Nearly 48,000 Arlington vehicles will not be charged any car tax this year, an increase of 32% from 2025, based on tax changes made by County Board members during the fiscal 2027 budget process.
For those that will be taxed, some owners will pay less while others — particularly those owning clean-energy vehicles — will pay more.
A man who last month entered pleas in connection with a series of assaults in Reston is facing new charges after an abduction attempt in Pentagon City last night.
The latest incident happened just before 8 p.m. Wednesday on the 1400 block of S. Hayes Street.
A teen boy is facing charges after police say he robbed a tow truck driver of his phone during a fight.
The incident happened early Wednesday morning on 12th Street S. at S. Courthouse Road, near Columbia Pike. Police say a verbal dispute led to an physical alternation and, ultimately, the robbery.
County Board candidate Julie Farnam (staff photo by Scott McCaffrey)
Arlington’s third and final Democratic contender for County Board launched her campaign May 6 with criticism of county political leadership.
“I’m a serious person, and this is a serious job. I’m not just challenging an incumbent — I’m challenging a system,” Julie Farnam said during kickoff remarks Wednesday night (May 6) in front of the Arlington County Democratic Committee.
Protest flyer distributed near Stephen Miller's home (via court filing)
A new court filing alleges that federal investigators may have violated a court order shielding records from the cellphone of an activist who distributed flyers about Stephen Miller in his Arlington neighborhood last year.
The filing was submitted Tuesday by Arlington Commonwealth’s Attorney Parisa Dehghani-Tafti. At more than 80 pages, it formally closes her office’s investigation of activist Barbara Wien without charges.
Train leaving the Ballston Metro station (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)
Ballston Hotel Redo Funded — “The team behind a long-planned development at the Holiday Inn site in Ballston has assembled a $195 million financing stack and could get work underway as soon as this summer.” The shuttered hotel and adjacent office building will be replaced by a 420-unit residential development. [WBJ]
Housing Holds Despite DOGE — “The Northern Virginia housing market is not going to fall off the cliff… What we’re seeing right now is basically price stability, probably through this year,” GMU economist Keith Waters said. Arlington’s median single-family sale price was $1.3 million in 2025, up from $1.29 million the year prior. [Arlington Magazine]
Free Wash for Teachers, Nurses — Mr Wash is offering free exterior car washes to teachers and nurses with valid work IDs at all 11 of its locations through Friday, May 8. [Press Release]
Bike to Work Day Nears — “Bike to Work Day 2026 is coming up on Friday, May 15.” Arlington has five morning and two afternoon pit stops where registered riders can pick up a 2026 T-shirt, giveaways and refreshments. [BikeArlington]
Fairfax Prosecutor Under Federal Probe — “The Trump administration has launched an investigation into the Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office over its handling of cases involving undocumented immigrants as defendants.” Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano serves on a multi-prosecutor task force with Arlington’s Parisa Dehghani-Tafti, who was subpoenaed by a House committee earlier this year. [FFXnow]
Defense CEO Paydays Climb — “Top executive pay at four of Greater Washington’s five largest defense contractors rose in 2025 during the first year of the second Trump administration.” Arlington-based Boeing and RTX both saw their CEO pay packages rise, to $23.5 million and $24.8 million respectively, as Pentagon spending grew 17% year-over-year to $1.01 trillion. [WBJ]
Memorial for Crash Victims — “Alexandria leaders will install a memorial bench next month at Rivergate City Park honoring the 67 people who died in last year’s mid-air collision over the Potomac River.” The memorial includes the bench, newly planted trees and a plaque with the victims’ names. [ALXnow]
F.C. Eyes Affordable Housing — “By a 5-1 vote late Monday night, the Falls Church City Council acted to retain a consultant to begin what will be the Little City’s next arduous voyage into the fretfully-choppy waters of potentially significant affordable housing.” The consultant will help redevelop the four-acre Virginia Village site on S. Maple Avenue. [FCNP]
FBI Raids Sen. Lucas’s Office — “The FBI on Wednesday raided the Portsmouth offices and a cannabis retail business co-owned by state Sen. L. Louise Lucas, the president pro tempore of the Virginia Senate and one of the most powerful Democrats in the state, as part of an ongoing corruption investigation.” Lucas was not arrested. [Washington Post, AP]
It’s Thursday — Expect mostly cloudy skies today with a chance of rain showers after 8 a.m. and a high near 66. Northwest winds will be around 7 mph. Skies clear overnight with a low around 48. [NWS]
There’s more local news to explore. Check out WSHnow, with stories from around the region.
Map showing areas of D.C. and Virginia after retrocession vote of 1846 (via Library of Congress)
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Arlington is set to reach a historic milestone in September — the 180th anniversary of its return from the District of Columbia to Virginia sovereignty.
Rendering of the proposed new Cavalier Club apartment building (via Hord Coplan Macht Fairfax County)
A major development project straddling the Arlington-Fairfax county line on Wilson Blvd took another procedural step forward this week.
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday (May 5) gave the owner of a key Seven Corners residential parcel the ability to more than double units on the site while also adding retail space.
Composite image showing what man whose remains were found might have looked like (via ACPD)
Police have released composite sketches of a man whose remains were found in a vacant Ballston home more than two years ago, hoping the public can help identify him.
The remains were discovered on Feb. 26, 2024 by the new owners of an abandoned property on the 1300 block of N. Taylor Street. The owners came across the remains in the basement during a walkthrough of the recently purchased home. Police were dispatched just before 5 p.m. and immediately launched a death investigation.
