After years of legislative battles, vetoes, compromise negotiations, and numerous articles, Virginia finally has a roadmap for legal recreational marijuana sales. The state budget signed into law earlier this week establishes a regulated cannabis marketplace beginning...
Tim Cywinski and I got coffee and a bagel at Abi’s Books and Brews a couple weeks ago. The Iran War had just started, and the weariness was behind both of our eyes. He impressed on me that he had some fresh ideas, a great legacy of accomplishments, and is in need for some publicity for his campaign for United States Congress. Which seat?...
With a major cannabis bill now awaiting Governor Abigail Spanberger’s decision, Virginia hemp retailers, farmers, and small business advocates are urging her to step in before it becomes law. The Cannabis Small Business Association (CSBA) and a coalition of hemp businesses are calling on the governor to use her amendatory authority to revise key...
Two months ago, Adam Dunigan had no public digital footprint. Today, the former Marine and CIA case officer has built a social media following that exploded to more than 180,000 people in just a few weeks, fueled largely by a series of detailed video breakdowns of the growing conflict with Iran. In one viral stretch, Dunigan’s audience jumped...
Virginia lawmakers have approved legislation that would create a legal retail market for recreational cannabis in the Commonwealth, ending years of uncertainty after possession was legalized but sales remained illegal. The bill passed the General Assembly on the final day of the 2026 legislative session, with the House voting 64–32 and the...
A political mailer referencing Jim Crow and the Ku Klux Klan is circulating in Virginia ahead of the April 21 redistricting referendum, prompting criticism from state lawmakers and members of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus. The mailer urges voters to oppose the referendum and return their ballots immediately. One side reads, “Our ancestors...
Virginia voters will head to the polls this spring to decide the future of the state’s redistricting process after the Supreme Court of Virginia confirmed that the April 21 referendum election will move forward as scheduled. The court rejected efforts to block the election, writing that “issuing an injunction to keep Virginians from the polls is...
Democratic candidates across Virginia are pushing back against early involvement by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) in competitive congressional primaries, arguing that national party leaders are shaping races before voters have weighed in. “I'm concerned that the DCCC is tilting the primary by signaling an "approved"...
Editor’s Note: This article is based on reporting by Julianna Brown of Capital News Service, a student-powered newsroom at Virginia Commonwealth University’s Robertson School of Communication. RVA Magazine has edited and expanded the reporting for our audience. For years, Virginia has allowed community service to count toward court fines and...
Virginia’s long-running effort to build a regulated cannabis marketplace has hit a new turning point this legislative session. Since adult possession became legal in 2021, lawmakers and stakeholders have spent years negotiating a retail framework to replace the unlicensed gray market with a structured, licensed system. Much of that work appeared...
