2023 Virginia legislative session
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| 2023 Virginia legislative session |
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| General information |
| Session start: January 11, 2023 Session end: February 25, 2023 |
| Leadership |
| Senate President Winsome Earle-Sears (R) House Speaker |
| Elections |
| Next Election: November 7, 2023 Last Election: November 2, 2021 |
| Previous legislative sessions |
| 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018 |
| Other 2023 legislative sessions |
In 2023, the Virginia State Legislature was scheduled to convene on January 11, 2023, and adjourn on February 25, 2023.
Virginia did not hold elections for state legislators in 2022. At the start of the 2023 session, Democrats had a 22-18 majority in the Senate, and Republicans had a 52-48 majority in the House. Republicans controlled the governorship, creating a divided government with no state government trifecta. At the start of the 2023 session, Virginia was one of 23 state legislatures where neither party had a veto-proof supermajority in both chambers.
Leadership in 2023
Virginia State Senate
- Senate president: Winsome Earle-Sears (R)
- Majority leader: Dick Saslaw (D)
- Minority leader: Thomas Norment Jr. (R)
Virginia House of Delegates
- Speaker of the House: C. Todd Gilbert (R)
- Majority leader: Terry Kilgore (R)
- Minority leader: Eileen Filler-Corn (D)
Partisan control in 2023
- See also: State government trifectas
Virginia was one of 11 divided governments where neither party had state government trifectas at the start of 2023 legislative sessions. A state government trifecta occurs when one political party holds the governor's office, a majority in the state Senate, and a majority in the state House. For more information about state government trifectas, click here.
Virginia was also one of 23 state legislatures where neither party had a veto-proof supermajority in both chambers. Veto overrides occur when a legislature votes to reverse a veto issued by an executive such as a governor or the president. If one party has a majority in a state legislature that is large enough to override a gubernatorial veto without any votes from members of the minority party, it is called a veto-proof majority or, sometimes, a supermajority. To read more about veto-proof supermajorities in state legislatures, click here.
The following tables show the partisan breakdown of the Virginia State Legislature in the 2023 legislative session.
Virginia State Senate
| Party | As of January 2023 | |
|---|---|---|
| Democratic Party | 22 | |
| Republican Party | 18 | |
| Total | 40 | |
Virginia House of Delegates
| Party | As of January 2023 | |
|---|---|---|
| Democratic Party | 48 | |
| Republican Party | 52 | |
| Total | 100 | |
Regular session
The list below shows up to 25 pieces of legislation in the 2023 legislative session that most recently passed both chambers of the legislature, were signed by the governor, or were approved by the legislature in a veto override. If no bills are displayed below, no legislation met these criteria in 2023. This information is provided by BillTrack50.
Standing legislative committees
A standing committee of a state legislature is a committee that exists on a more-or-less permanent basis, from legislative session to session, that considers and refines legislative bills that fall under the committee's subject matter.
At the beginning of the 2023 legislative session, there were 26 standing committees in Virginia's state government, including 12 state Senate committees and 14 state House committees.
Senate committees
- Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources Committee
- Commerce and Labor Committee
- Education and Health Committee
- General Laws and Technology Committee
- Judiciary Committee
- Local Government Committee
- Rehabilitation and Social Services Committee
- Senate Courts of Justice Committee
- Senate Finance Committee
- Senate Privileges and Elections Committee
- Senate Rules Committee
- Senate Transportation Committee
House committees
- Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources Committee
- Appropriations Committee
- Counties, Cities and Towns Committee
- Education Committee
- General Laws Committee
- Health, Welfare and Institutions Committee
- House Courts of Justice Committee
- House Finance Committee
- House Privileges and Elections Committee
- House Rules Committee
- House Transportation Committee
- Labor and Commerce Committee
- Public Safety Committee
- Science and Technology Committee
Legislatively referred constitutional amendments
In every state but Delaware, voter approval is required to enact a constitutional amendment. In each state, the legislature has a process for referring constitutional amendments before voters. In 18 states, initiated constitutional amendments can be put on the ballot through a signature petition drive. There are also many other types of statewide measures.
The methods by which the Virginia Constitution can be amended:
The Virginia Constitution can be amended through two different paths—a legislative process, and a constitutional convention. Virginia does not feature the power of initiative for either initiated constitutional amendments or initiated state statutes.
Legislature
A simple majority vote is required during two successive legislative sessions for the Virginia General Assembly to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot. That amounts to a minimum of 51 votes in the Virginia House of Delegates and 21 votes in the Virginia State Senate, assuming no vacancies. Amendments do not require the governor's signature to be referred to the ballot.
Convention
Amendments to or revisions of the state's constitution can be proposed by a constitutional convention as established in Section 2 of Article XII. A convention can happen if the state's legislature "by a vote of two-thirds of the members elected to each house" calls a convention.
Historical partisan control
The table below depicts the historical trifecta status of Virginia.
Virginia Party Control: 1992-2025
Four years of Democratic trifectas • Four years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.
| Year | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R |
| Senate | D | D | D | D | S | S | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | R | R | D | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D |
| House | D | D | D | D | D | D | S | S | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | R | R | D | D |
Historical Senate control
Between 1994 and 2019, partisan control of the Virginia State Senate fluctuated between the Democratic and Republican parties. The table below shows the partisan history of the Virginia State Senate following every general election from 1991 to 2019. All data from 2006 or earlier comes from Michael Dubin's Party Affiliations in the State Legislatures (McFarland Press, 2007). Data after 2006 was compiled by Ballotpedia staff.
Virginia State Senate election results: 1991-2019
| Party | 91 | 95 | 99 | 03 | 07 | 11 | 15 | 19 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democrats | 22 | 20 | 19 | 16 | 21 | 20 | 19 | 21 |
| Republicans | 18 | 20 | 21 | 24 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 19 |
After the 1991 elections, Democrats held a 22-18 majority. Elections in 1995 and 2011 resulted in the chamber moving to a split 20-20 partisan balance. Both of those elections followed a Democratic majority in the previous cycle and were followed by a Republican majority in the next cycle. The largest change in partisan balance of the state Senate was between 2003 and 2007, when Democrats gained five seats. The 2015 elections resulted in a 21-19 Republican majority. In the 2019 elections, Democrats won a 21-19 majority.
Historical House control
Between 1991 and 2021, partisan control of the Virginia House of Delegates changed three times. As a result of the 1991 elections, Democrats held a 58-41 majority. Republicans gained control of the chamber in 1999 and, by 2015, expanded their majority to 66-34. In the 2017 elections, the chamber's partisan balance swung back toward Democrats as they gained 15 seats and narrowed the Republican majority to 51-49. Democrats gained a 55-45 majority in the 2019 elections. Republicans gained a 52-48 majority in 2021.
The table below shows the partisan history of the Virginia House of Delegates following every general election from 1991 to 2021. All data from 2006 or earlier comes from Michael Dubin's Party Affiliations in the State Legislatures (McFarland Press, 2007). Data after 2006 was compiled by Ballotpedia staff.
Virginia House of Delegates election results: 1991-2021
| Year | '91 | '93 | '95 | '97 | '99 | '01 | '03 | '05 | '07 | '09 | '11 | '13 | '15 | '17 | '19 | '21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democrats | 58 | 52 | 52 | 50 | 47 | 31 | 37 | 39 | 44 | 39 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 49 | 55 | 48 |
| Republicans | 41 | 47 | 47 | 49 | 52 | 67 | 61 | 58 | 54 | 59 | 67 | 67 | 66 | 51 | 45 | 52 |
Republicans began making gains in the state House after the 1997 elections, when they picked up two seats. The chamber moved to a 52-47 Republican majority after the 1999 elections. The largest Republican gains in the state House occurred as a result of the 2001 elections, when the party expanded its majority by 15 seats. Democrats gained 13 seats between 2003 and 2007. In 2011, Republicans gained eight seats, moving the chamber to a 67-32 Republican majority.
In the 2017 elections, Democrats picked up 15 seats and nearly forced a 50-50 split in the chamber. The race for District 94 was an exact tie between Delegate David Yancey (R) and Shelly Simonds (D). A random drawing was held to select the winner and Yancey won.
Two-thirds of members present in both chambers must vote to override a veto. If all members are in attendance, this is 67 of the 100 members in the Virginia House of Delegates and 27 of the 40 members in the Virginia State Senate.
Ballotpedia's Election Administration Legislation Tracker
State election laws are changing. Keeping track of the latest developments in all 50 states can seem like an impossible job.
Here's the solution: Ballotpedia's Election Administration Legislation Tracker.
Ballotpedia's Election Administration Tracker sets the industry standard for ease of use, flexibility, and raw power. But that's just the beginning of what it can do:
- Ballotpedia's election experts provide daily updates on bills and other relevant political developments
- We translate complex bill text into easy-to-understand summaries written in everyday language
- And because it's from Ballotpedia, our Tracker is guaranteed to be neutral, unbiased, and nonpartisan
See also
| Elections | Virginia State Government | State Legislatures | State Politics |
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External links
Footnotes
