Numerous pieces of legislation from Arlington lawmakers are officially set to become law following final approval from Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D).
Among the approximately 1,200 bills passed out of the 2026 session, legislation on elections, eviction prevention, tourism improvement districts and the minimum wage all came by way of state senators and delegates representing Arlington. Most signed bills will take effect on July 1, 2026, unless otherwise specified.
A bill seeking to permit by-right multifamily development in commercial zones was defeated in the Virginia Senate yesterday (Thursday) despite limitations proposed by Arlington’s state Sen. Barbara Favola (D-40).
The Senate voted 17-22 on HB 816 by Del. Dan Helmer (D-10). The House did not vote on the companion bill SB 454 by state Sen. Schuyler VanValkenburg (D-16) but referred it back to the House Counties, Cities and Towns committee.
Arlington’s five-member legislative delegation heads into the General Assembly’s home stretch with a large number of its bills still alive.
Among the most successful was Del. Alfonso Lopez (D-3), who got 21 pieces of legislation through the House of Delegates before crossover, the period when bills move to the opposite house for consideration.
Legislators representing Arlington are advancing matching bills to extend elections offices’ deadlines for receiving and counting absentee ballots.
HB 82 and SB 58, introduced by Del. Adele McClure (D-2) and State Sen. Barbara Favola (D-40), respectively, call for moving the deadline from noon to 5 p.m. on the third day after an election.
Northern Virginia Democrats were in high spirits at the inauguration of Gov. Abigail Spanberger this weekend, looking toward new opportunities for a variety of bills held back by the previous administration.
Legislators and political observers expect fewer vetoes and more collaboration with Democratic policymakers — including those in Northern Virginia — under Spanberger, a centrist Democrat who emphasized bipartisan solutions to issues like housing and health care costs on the campaign trail and in her inauguration speech.
Several Democratic policymakers have high hopes for a bill to crack down on assault weapons once Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger takes office.
Legislation to outlaw any sales or transfers of new “assault firearms” passed both chambers in each of the last two legislative sessions, but was vetoed upon reaching the desk of Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin.
A Democrat is taking over for a Republican on the Arlington Electoral Board in the new year.
David Leichtman, a veteran political activist, will succeed electoral board vice chair Richard Samp, a Republican whose term expires Dec. 31.
Funding for Medicaid in Virginia and affordable housing on church-owned property were among Arlington residents’ priorities for state lawmakers at a meeting last week.
The pre-legislative meeting with Sens. Barbara Favola and Adam Ebbin, and Dels. Patrick Hope, Alfonso Lopez and Adele McClure, came ahead of the Virginia General Assembly session scheduled to begin on Jan. 14. Other topics of discussion ranged from expanding ranked-choice voting to an age verification law for pornography sites.
State Sen. Barbara Favola (D) is stepping into a new role as chair of the Senate Education and Health Committee on the other side of a recent battle with cancer.
When the Virginia General Assembly convenes in January, Favola, who announced in May that she had been diagnosed with uterine cancer, will be only two months removed from the end of chemotherapy treatments.
For her efforts in support of Virginia women, children and families, one of Arlington’s state senators has received the Arlington County Bar Foundation’s highest honor.
Sen. Barbara Favola (D-40) was presented with the 35th annual William Winston Award during the foundation’s annual luncheon, held at Washington Golf & Country Club last week.
Elected leaders at the local, state and federal levels used a Veterans Day event in Arlington to press for more support for those who have served and are serving their country, and for their families, as well.
“We need to take care of them,” said Rep. Don Beyer, attending the annual ceremony sponsored by John Lyon Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 3150 and held at the Clarendon War Memorial.
With election season in the rear-view mirror, Arlington’s civic and political leaders are again turning to potential changes in the county’s form of governance.
But while several local organizations have given the concept their blessing, a key state legislator who supported efforts in the 2025 legislative session has said she wants to hold off in 2026.
