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Virginia Beach, Virginia
| Virginia Beach, Virginia | |
 | |
| General information | |
Mayor of Virginia Beach
Bob Dyer | |
| Last mayoral election: | 2024 |
| Next mayoral election: | 2028 |
| Last city council election: | 2024 |
| Next city council election: | 2026 |
| City council seats: | 11[1] |
| City website | |
| Composition data | |
| Population: | 459,470 |
| Race: | White 60.7% African American 18.6% Asian 7.5% Native American 0.4% Pacific Islander 0.2% Multiple 9.6% |
| Ethnicity: | Hispanic or Latino origin 8.8% |
| Median household income: | $90,685 |
| High school graduation rate: | 94.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 40.4% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 census and 2023 ACS data. Percentages are rounded to the nearest 0.1%. | |
| Related Virginia Beach offices | |
| Virginia Congressional Delegation Virginia State Legislature Virginia state executive offices | |
Virginia Beach is an independent city located in Virginia. It is considered a county-equivalent. The city's population was 459,470 as of 2020, according to the United States Census Bureau.
Virginia Beach and Princess Anne County combined governments in 1963.[2]
Click on the links below to learn more about the city's...
- Mayor
- City council
- Other elected officials
- Elections
- Census information
- Budget
- Contact information
- Ballot measures
City government
- See also: Council-manager government
The city of Virginia Beach utilizes a council-manager system. In this form of municipal government, an elected city council, which includes the mayor and serves as the city's primary legislative body, appoints an executive called a city manager to oversee day-to-day municipal operations and implement the council's policy and legislative initiatives.[3][4]
Mayor
The mayor is a member of the city council. He or she presides over council meetings and official city ceremonies. The mayor also represents the city on the state, national, and international levels.[3] The current Mayor of Virginia Beach is Bob Dyer (nonpartisan). Dyer assumed office in 2018.
City manager
The city manager is the city's chief executive. The responsibilities of the city manager include overseeing the city's day-to-day operations, planning and implementing the city's operating budget, and appointing departmental directors and other senior-level positions.[4][5]
City council
The Virginia Beach City Council is the city's primary legislative body. It is responsible for approving and adopting the city budget, levying taxes, and making or amending city laws, policies, and ordinances.[3]
The city council consists of 11 members including the mayor. Members of the city council serve four-year, staggered terms.[6]
The widget below automatically displays information about city council meetings. The topic list contains a sampling of keywords that Voterheads, a local government monitoring service, found in each meeting agenda. Click the meeting link to see more info and the full agenda:
Virginia Dare Soil and Water Conservation District Board
Other elected officials
Mayoral partisanship
Virginia Beach has a Republican mayor. As of September 2025, 66 mayors in the largest 100 cities by population are affiliated with the Democratic Party, 23 are affiliated with the Republican Party, one is affiliated with the Libertarian Party, three are independents, five identify as nonpartisan or unaffiliated, and two mayors' affiliations are unknown. Click here for a list of the 100 largest cities' mayors and their partisan affiliations.
Mayoral elections are officially nonpartisan in most of the nation's largest cities. However, many officeholders are affiliated with political parties. Ballotpedia uses one or more of the following sources to identify each officeholder's partisan affiliation: (1) direct communication from the officeholder, (2) current or previous candidacy for partisan office, or (3) identification of partisan affiliation by multiple media outlets.
Elections
2025
The city of Virginia Beach, Virginia, is holding general elections for commissioner of revenue, commonwealth's attorney, sheriff, and treasurer on November 4, 2025. A primary was scheduled for June 17, 2025. The filing deadline for primary candidates was April 3, 2025, and the filing deadline for independent and minor party candidates was June 17, 2025.
2024
The city of Virginia Beach, Virginia, held general elections for mayor and city council and a special election for sheriff on November 5, 2024. A special primary for sheriff was scheduled for June 18, 2024. The filing deadline for the primary was April 4, 2024, and the filing deadline for the general election was June 18, 2024.
Virginia Beach also held a special election for City Council District 1 on January 9, 2024. The filing deadline for this election was November 13, 2023.
2023
The city of Virginia Beach, Virginia, held general elections for soil and water conservation on November 7, 2023. The filing deadline for this election was August 18, 2023.
2022
The city of Virginia Beach, Virginia, held general elections for city council, including a special election for the District 1 seat, on November 8, 2022. The filing deadline for this election was June 21, 2022.
2021
The city of Virginia Beach, Virginia, held general elections for commissioner of revenue, commonwealth's attorney, sheriff, and treasurer on November 2, 2021. A primary was scheduled for June 8, 2021. The filing deadline for the primary election was March 25, 2021, and the filing deadline for independent and minor party candidates was August 13, 2021.
Before 2021, Virginia Beach voters elected all city council members at large. In March 2021, the U.S. District Court for Eastern Virginia ruled that, by holding at-large city council elections, Virginia Beach had violated the Voting Rights Act of 1965, denying minority voters equal access to the electoral process. The ruling prohibited Virginia Beach from electing city council members on an at-large basis in future elections.[7][8] In December 2021, a federal judge approved a map that established 10 districts for the Virginia Beach City Council, which were in place for the 2022 general election.[9]
An appeals court later vacated the March 2021 decision. The grounds were that the Virginia General Assembly had already passed a law that eliminated the city's at-large voting system in 2021. The new state law permitted the city to elect three seats on the council at large, rather than all of them.[10][11]
2020
The city of Virginia Beach, Virginia, held general elections for mayor and four city council seats on November 3, 2020. The filing deadline for this election was June 9, 2020.
2019
2018
The city of Virginia Beach, Virginia, held general elections for mayor and city council on November 6, 2018. The deadline for candidates to file to run in seven city council races was June 12, 2018. The deadline for candidates to file to run in the special election for mayor and one city council race was August 17, 2018. Click here for more information about the mayoral election.
2017
The city of Virginia Beach, Virginia, held elections for commissioner of revenue, commonwealth attorney, sheriff, and treasurer on November 7, 2017. A primary election took place on June 13, 2017. The filing deadline for candidates who wished to run in the primary was March 30, 2017. The filing deadline for independent candidates was June 13, 2017.
2016
The city of Virginia Beach, Virginia, held elections for mayor and four city council seats on November 8, 2016. Candidates interested in seeking these offices had to file with the city's voter registrar by June 14, 2016.[12][13]
2014
The city of Virginia Beach, Virginia, held elections for city council on November 4, 2014. The filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was June 10, 2014.[14]
Six of Virginia Beach's eleven council seats were up for election. These included two at-large seats and the Districts of Bayside, Beach, Lynnhaven and Princess Anne.
Census information
The table below shows demographic information about the city.
| Demographic Data for Virginia Beach | |
|---|---|
| Virginia Beach | |
| Population | 459,470 |
| Land area (sq mi) | 244 |
| Race and ethnicity** | |
| White | 61.6% |
| Black/African American | 18.9% |
| Asian | 7.3% |
| Native American | 0.2% |
| Pacific Islander | 0.2% |
| Other (single race) | 2.4% |
| Multiple | 9.4% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 8.9% |
| Education | |
| High school graduation rate | 94.7% |
| College graduation rate | 40.4% |
| Income | |
| Median household income | $90,685 |
| Persons below poverty level | 8.4% |
| Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2020). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2018-2023). | |
| **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | |
Budget
The city's budget process operates by fiscal years running from July 1 to June 30 of the next year.[15] The city manager is responsible for drafting a proposed annual budget, while the city council is responsible for revising and adopting the budget after holding a public hearing.[16]
Fiscally standardized cities data
The fiscally standardized cities (FiSC) data below was compiled by the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy to make municipal budgets comparable across cities in the United States.[17]
| “ |
FiSCs are constructed by adding revenues and expenditures of each central city municipal government to a portion of the revenues and expenditures of overlying governments, including counties, independent school districts, and special districts. The allocations to FiSCs are estimates of the revenues collected from and services provided to central city residents and businesses by these overlying independent governments. Thus FiSCs provides a full picture of revenues raised from city residents and businesses and spending on their behalf, whether done by the city government or a separate overlying government.[18] |
” |
| —Lincoln Institute of Land Policy[19] | ||
The tables below show estimated finances within city limits. As such, the revenue and expenses listed may differ from the actual city budget.
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Historical total revenue and expenditure
To see the historical total revenue or expenditures as a rounded amount in this city, hover over the bars.[17]
Virginia Beach, Virginia, salaries and pensions over $95,000
Below is a map of the nationwide salaries and pensions in this city over $95,000. To search a different ZIP code, enter it in the search bar within the map.
Contact information
Mayor's office
2401 Courthouse Dr.
Virginia Beach, VA 23456
Phone: 757-385-4581
City Clerk's office
2401 Courthouse Dr. Suite 281
Virginia Beach, VA 23456
Phone: 757-385-4303
Click here for city council contact information.
Ballot measures
Virginia Beach is a charter city, and its initiative process follows state law. Click here for details on laws governing local ballot measures in Virginia.[20]
Noteworthy events
2020: Events and activity following the death of George Floyd
During the weekend of May 29-31, 2020, demonstrations and protests took place in cities nationwide, including Virginia Beach, following the death of George Floyd. Events in Virginia Beach, Virginia, took place on Sunday, May 31, 2020.[21] Protests in the larger Hampton Roads area began on Friday, May 29, 2020.[22] No curfews were issued in Virginia Beach over the weekend. The national guard was not deployed.
2015: Study on city's nondiscrimination laws
In July 2015, the Movement Advancement Project described Virginia Beach, Virginia, as a city or county that did not prohibit discrimination in employment on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity via ordinances that apply to public and private employers. At that time, a total of 71 of America's largest 100 cities prohibited private employers from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation, while 69 of those cities also prohibited discrimination based on gender identity. This did not include those jurisdictions that prohibited discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity for government employees.[23]
Nondiscrimination laws can cover a variety of areas, including public employment, private employment, housing, and public accommodations. Such laws may be enacted at the state, county, or city level.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ The mayor is included in this number as one of the city council members.
- ↑ City of Virginia Beach, "Historical Summary," accessed August 26, 2021
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 City of Virginia Beach, "City Council," accessed November 27, 2018
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 City of Virginia Beach, "Form of Government and City Officials," accessed August 25, 2021
- ↑ City of Virginia Beach, "City Manager," accessed October 30, 2014
- ↑ City of Virginia Beach, "City Council Members," accessed January 18, 2023
- ↑ 13 News Now, "Court declares Virginia Beach's at-large city council election system illegal, says it disadvantages minorities," March 31, 2021
- ↑ WAVY.com, "Virginia Beach will appeal ruling in which federal judge found voting system ‘illegal’," May 26, 2021
- ↑ The Virginian-Pilot, "New Virginia Beach voting district map approved after city’s election system declared illegal," December 30, 2021
- ↑ 13 News Now, "Appeals court vacates decision that ruled Virginia Beach's at-large city council election system illegal," July 27, 2022
- ↑ Virginia Pilot, "Virginia Beach Council member criticizes colleagues for excluding several from referendum discussion," August 3, 2022
- ↑ City of Virginia Beach Voter Registrar, "Elected Offices and Terms," accessed August 13, 2015
- ↑ The Virginian-Pilot, "Find out who's running for Virginia Beach mayor and City Council," June 14, 2016
- ↑ Virginia State Board of Elections, "November 4, 2014 Elections Candidacy Requirements For Local Offices," accessed May 15, 2014
- ↑ Municode, "Virginia Beach Code of Ordinances Article VI Division 1 Sec. 2-186," accessed August 28, 2023
- ↑ Municode, "Virginia Beach City Charter Chapter 5," accessed August 28, 2023
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, "Fiscally Standardized Cities database," accessed August 28, 2023
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, "Fiscally Standardized Cities," accessed August 28, 2023
- ↑ Municode, "Code of Ordinances Virginia Beach, Virginia," accessed July 29, 2021
- ↑ WTKR, "Protests continue in Hampton Roads over George Floyd’s death," June 2, 2020
- ↑ WTKR, "Local groups organize protests in Hampton Roads after death of George Floyd," May 29, 2020
- ↑ Movement Advancement Project, "Local Employment Non-Discrimination Ordinances," accessed July 7, 2015
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