Special Election Today — “A Special Election for Member, Senate of Virginia 39th District will be held on February 10, 2026 to fill the vacancy of Adam Ebbin. Only registered voters of Virginia Senate District 39 are eligible to vote in this special election. The Senate of Virginia 39th District roughly covers Pentagon City, Crystal City, Aurora Highlands, and east Arlington Ridge.” [Arlington County]

Other Va. Elections — “The final makeup of Virginia’s state legislature is still unknown three months after the general election as a slew of appointments by Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D) triggers a domino effect of special races across the commonwealth.” [Washington Post]

WaPo Layoffs Bigger Than Thought — “News reports about the layoffs, including this one from the New York Times, generally agreed that about one-third of the Post’s newsroom would be eliminated by the layoffs. However, an accounting by the Washington-Baltimore Newspaper Guild, the union that represents Post journalists, finds that the paper’s management eliminated closer to half of the journalists it used to employ.” [Washingtonian]

Gun Dealers Blast Bills — “Firearms dealers at a Northern Virginia gun show said a slew of proposed state gun laws could force them out of business, while attendees and event organizers accused lawmakers of trying to trample their Second Amendment rights… General Assembly Republicans and trade associations representing sport hunters said the legislation effectively bans all modern firearms from being sold in the commonwealth.” [Washington Times]

Local Chocolate Shops — “Chocolates make perfect Valentine’s Day gifts. And it’s always a sweeter deal when you support local businesses. So, this Valentine’s Day, consider gifting handcrafted sweets from these Northern Virginia chocolate shops.” [N. Va. Magazine]

The Cold, Quantified — “DC just had their coldest half-month period (16 days) in THIRTY-TWO years! Accounting for missing data…since the day before our snow/sleet event (January 24th) though yesterday (February 8th) the average temperature at DCA was 23.1°F. This passes the Christmas-New Years cold outbreak of 2017-18 and moves us just behind 1994 in recent history.” [Mike Thomas/X]

Warmup Coming — “The next few days will see a good deal of sun, with temperatures rising to the mid-40s, with a good deal of sun — generally still below average, at 47 for a high on Feb. 9 in D.C. It’ll be somewhat chillier for a time late week but more typical instead of memorable. Then it’s 40s until a storm chance detailed below. Next week, the weather could turn legitimately warmer than average.” [CWG/X]

It’s Tuesday — Expect partly sunny skies today, a high near 48, and a south wind at 3-7 mph. Tuesday night will be mostly cloudy with a low around 35. The south wind will increase to 7-9 mph before turning northwest after midnight. [NWS]