David Sherfinski

Allen raises $900,000-plus in 3rd quarter

Senate candidate George Allen, Virginia Republican, raised more than $900,000 during the months of July, August and September, his campaign announced Friday.

October 7, 2011

Cuccinelli criticizes Obama for marriage stance

Virginia Attorney General Kenneth T. Cuccinelli II is strongly criticizing the Obama administration for abandoning its defense of a federal law defining marriage as a union between a man and a woman — the latest in a series of high-profile actions regarding gay marriage from the state's top prosecutor.

October 6, 2011

Virginia’s Cuccinelli talks government with students at D.C. alma mater

Kenneth T. Cuccinelli II received a largely warm - though at times combative - greeting Wednesday at his alma mater, Gonzaga College High School in Washington, D.C., while engaging students on subjects including federalism, the Constitution and his challenge to President Obama's health care overhaul.

October 5, 2011

Transportation key to Va. state Senate races

Candidates running for the Virginia Senate in Loudoun County districts largely agreed at a forum Tuesday on the importance of finding a dedicated stream of revenue for the region's perpetually clogged roads and completing the Dulles Metrorail project — though how to pay for each was another matter.

October 4, 2011

McDonnell tells Va. agencies to prepare for budget reductions

The McDonnell administration is asking Virginia agencies to brace for potential cuts of 2 percent to 6 percent as he begins to prepare his one-and-only full biennial budget.

October 4, 2011

Allen, Kaine hit road to help ‘11 candidates

U.S. Senate candidates George Allen and Tim Kaine are supporting candidates in Virginia's fall elections by hopscotching the commonwealth for campaign appearances - including, notably, a number of events in voter-rich Northern Virginia that could be crucial to their own fortunes next year.

October 3, 2011

Candidates for Virginia state Senate vie for support at forum

Candidates in three of the most competitive and closely-watched 2011 state Senate races in Northern Virginia squared off Sunday, distinguishing themselves on such key issues as taxes, abortion and the potential consequences of Republicans taking full control of state government after Novembers elections.

October 2, 2011

Virginia teachers union presses for K-12 ‘funding priority’

The president of the Virginia Education Association is pressing Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell to make K-12 education a funding priority and to increase teacher salaries as part of the states next biennial budget.

October 2, 2011

96 percent of Virginia schools are fully accredited

Ninety-six percent of Virginia schools are fully accredited by the state Department of Education for 2011-2012 — down 2 percentage points from last year — and the state superintendent is warning of further declines in coming years as Virginia implements more stringent standards for English and math testing.

September 29, 2011

Pennsylvania to pull back Virginia-housed inmates

Pennsylvania officials plan to transfer back to the state about 1,000 inmates they currently pay to have housed in Virginia prisons — a move that could cost Virginia upward of $20 million.

September 29, 2011

Virginia’s ‘deep poverty’ rate up 20 percent since 2007

Virginia is home to four of 10 richest counties in the nation, yet the statewide child poverty rate is at its highest level since 1998 and the number of residents who live in deep poverty has jumped by more than 20 percent since 2007, according to newly released census data.

September 26, 2011

Va. Senate candidate draws heat for small-business legal dispute

A Northern Virginia state Senate candidate who has emerged as a contender in a race that could give Democrats an unlikely victory has come under fire for his record as a small-business owner.

September 25, 2011

Polls find Kaine Senate bid unhurt by Obama slip in Virginia

President Obama's sinking job-approval rating in Virginia is so far having no impact on poll numbers for Senate candidate and close Obama ally Tim Kaine, despite Republican attempts to link the two together as their 2012 campaigns grind into gear.

September 25, 2011

Flooding, quake damage in Virginia to exceed $100M

An earthquake, a hurricane, storms and flooding have caused more than $100 million in damage to Virginia state and local facilities in the past month, with some damages in Northern Virginia still to be calculated.

September 22, 2011

Airports board chairman hits Wolf proposal for overhaul

The chairman of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Board of Directors on Wednesday publicly criticized a measure introduced by a Northern Virginia congressman that would overhaul the board's structure and grant Virginia a majority of its seats.

September 21, 2011

Cuccinelli seeks to expand powers of Medicaid fraud control staff

Virginia Attorney General Kenneth T. Cuccinelli II wants to expand the scope of the state's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit so members can be deputized to serve subpoenas, carry a weapon and wear a badge.

September 20, 2011

Obama’s approval falls to 40 percent of Virginia voters

A new poll shows President Obama's approval rating has dropped in Virginia, a battleground state he won in 2008 and likely will need again to win re-election.

September 15, 2011

Virginia board OKs stiff rules for abortion clinics

The Virginia state Board of Health on Thursday passed new regulations for abortion facilities that critics say are among the most stringent such measures in the country and could result in the shuttering of the majority of the state's abortion providers.