Monday, November 26, 2012
Virginia cat who ran for Senate is retiring, owners say.
Hank the cat is retiring from politics. In a message on his Facebook page, Hank (via his owners Matthew O'Leary and Anthony Roberts) wrote, "I am taking a break from politics right now because something happened on the campaign trail that I never expected — I began to appreciate the deep understanding of giving to those in need." Through his campaign, Hank raised thousands in donations for pet rescue organizations, Huffington Post DC reported. In his last campaign for the Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Jim Webb (which former Gov. Tim Kaine won), Hank received more than 7,000 write-in votes, his owners said. Keep up with news from Fredericksburg with the Patch email newsletter! Sign up here.
Friday, November 9, 2012
New Virginia senator says first order of business is to work on good solutions to nation's debt.
Tim Kaine (D), Virginia's newly-elected U.S. Senator, says his first order of business will be to lobby for longterm solutions for the country's fiscal situation. Kaine held a press conference in Richmond on Wednesday, one day after he defeated former Virginia governor and senator George Allen (R) in the general election. Kaine, governor of the state from 2006-10, earned 52 percent of the vote to Allen's 48 on Tuesday. Kaine takes over the seat vacated by Sen. Jim Webb (D), who is retiring after one term. Webb defeated Allen in a similarly close Senate race in 2006. “The key for us in public office is to read the message from the electorate,” Kaine told reporters. “They want cooperative government. They are telling us over and over and …
What it was like on the other side of the ballot box.
Everyone has a voting story. Wednesday morning at work, we all shared ours, and then again last night, at a school function, I heard even more. People who waited for hours to vote first thing making sure a Northern Virginia commute wouldn’t prevent them from voting, flat tires and people who breezed right through in the middle of the day. One gentleman told me the story of voting at the Jersey shore, where a hotel became a last-minute voting location and to ensure voter privacy, the staff hastily arranged for an oversized cardboard box to serve as a voting booth looking like the beginnings of a kid’s Halloween costume. Voting is our right and our duty. I have been an elections officer in Prince William County since the Democratic primary …
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Virginia is still too close to call as precinct results roll in.
Update 10:04 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 7 - With all Virginia precincts finally reporting, President Barack Obama received 1,868,191 votes from Virginia voters, according to final but unofficial data from the Virginia State Board of Elections. That's 50.57 percent of the vote. Gov. Mitt Romney received 1,767,692 votes, or 47.85 percent. The three third-party candidates on the ballot received a combined 1.42 percent of votes, and write-in candidates the remainder. The race was too close late Tuesday night, even hours after multiple national news outlets called the race nationally. ------------- Original post, Tuesday, Nov. 6 updated 2 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 7 President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden were re-elected Tuesday night, …
According to Spotsylvania County, voting machines in split Congressional districts at two precincts were not activated properly.
Spotsylvania County reported that two precincts—Summit and Lee Hill (in the Lee Hill District)—the technicians "failed to use both designated cards to activate the machines, thereby directing all machines to utilize a single Congressional ballot" in the split 7th and and 1st districts. "It is important to note that this error will not impact the Presidential vote, the U.S. Senate vote or the ballot questions, but it did affect the option offered to the voters split between the two Congressional districts," said a news release from the county issued by public information officer Kathy Smith. When polls opened at the two precincts at 6 a.m., machines had incorrect Congressional district ballots on them. According to the county release, "…
A photo gallery related to the Novermber 6, 2012, general election in the Fredericksburg area.
Share your voting stories, comments and photos with Fredericksburg Patch in the comments section below, by clicking the "Upload" button on the photo gallery above, on Facebook and/or onTwitter @FburgPatch. Related stories: Live Updates: City of Fredericksburg Heads to the Polls The Fredericksburg Ballot on Nov. 6 Where to Vote in Fredericksburg Absentee Voting Increased in Fredericksburg and Virginia Will Virginia Stay Blue This Presidential Election? Cook, Parker, Wittman Vie for 1st District Seat Speak Out: Who Won the Third Obama-Romney Debate? Note: Come back to Patch after the polls close for updated City of Fredericksburg precinct-by-precinct results.
Residents voted Tuesday for president, senate, house and school board candidates and two proposed Virginia Constitutional amendments.
Democrats led in the polls in the City of Fredericksburg on Tuesday. President Barack Obama received 62.33 percent of the votes to Mitt Romney's 35.52 percent, according to the State Board of Elections. Tim Kaine (D) and Adam Cook (D) also led in their respective races. Precinct-by-precinct results follow: 2012 Presidential Election President Barack Obama carried the City with 62.33 percent of the 11,414 total votes cast, Mitt Romney received 35.52 percent of the vote. The three other candidates -- Virgil Goode (Con), Gary Johnson (Lib) and Jill Stein (Grn) received a combined total of 2 percent. There were 18 (0.16 percent) write-in votes. Ward 1, Precinct 101 Hugh Mercer Elementary School Ward 2, Precinct 201 Dorothy Hart …
Numbers released Monday, Nov. 5, show the increases compared with numbers in 2008.
Absentee voting in the City of Fredericksburg was up about 8.4 percent from 2008, according to numbers released by the Virginia Public Access Project (VPAP) on November 5, 2012. In 2008, the VPAP reports 1,112 City residents cast absentee ballots, compared to 1,206 in 2012. The number of registered voters in the City increased, too. The VPAP reports there were 13,312 registered voters in the city in 2008, compared with 16,463 in 2012. That's an increase of 23.67 percent. Early voting in Virginia was up overall from rates in 2008. VPAP reports that as of Nov. 5, 2012, absentee voting was up about 2 percent in the Commonwealth. Of Virginia's 5.4 million registered voters, 427,987 cast absentee ballots. Check back with Patch throughout the …
Friday, October 26, 2012
Voters will decide on changes to eminent domain law and the General Assembly's veto session scheduling.
In two weeks, Virginians will go to the polls and vote for the man they want in the Oval Office. They’ll also be asked to vote on two amendments to the Virginia Constitution. Question 1: Eminent Domain Law Changes The first amendment, known as Question 1, would prohibit local governments from using eminent domain for economic development and job creation. Instead, the seizure of private land would be strictly for public use, such as parks and school buildings. The amendment also requires full compensation of the owner. State Del. Rob Bell, R-Charlottesville, sponsored the amendment during this year's General Assembly session, attempting to change a 2007 law stating that private property can be taken only when public interest outweighs …
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Candidates discussed the Middle East, defense and more.
With Election Day fast approaching, President Barack Obama and Gov. Mitt Romney faced off in the third and final Presidential Debate Monday night. The debate, hosted by Lynn University in Boca Raton, Fla., focused mainly on foreign policy, including conflicts in the Middle East, the civil war in Syria and the Sept. 11, 2012, killings of four American officials in Libya. Romney congratulated Obama for successfully killing Osama bin Laden, but ultimately questioned his policies on the Middle East, charging that the unrest in Egypt and Libya had created a “rising tide of chaos.” He said America needed an expansive plan to handle the situation. “We can’t kill our way out of this mess,” Romney said. “We’re going to have to put in place a very …
Holman Willis
9:38 am on Thursday, December 13, 2012
For years, Virginia's governors have been seen as statesmen, certainly supporting their party's ideals, but, at least publicly, refraining from the partisan mud-slinging that we have seen from the candidates for office at both the state and federal levels. One governor of Virginia was even heard to say, when asked if he would run for president of the United States, "Why would I want to run for a … more ›