Selasa, 15 September 2026

Early Voting Guide, No. 3 for Teachers, and a Military Boxing Match

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2026

Good Morning! On this day in 1862, Stonewall Jackson, the Confederate general and former VMI professor, forced the surrender of roughly 12,500 Union soldiers at Harpers Ferry—the largest capitulation of American troops until Bataan in 1942.

Early voting kicks off in Virginia Friday. We’ve got the details you need to know in Top Stories. Will you vote early? Reply to tell us.

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Early Voting Opens Friday

Virginia’s in-person early voting for the Nov. 3 general election opens Friday and runs through Oct. 31. This year’s midterm ballot features a U.S. Senate contest, all 11 of the state’s U.S. House seats, and a slate of local races.

New for 2026, localities add Sunday voting on Oct. 18 and 25, joining the two Saturdays already offered. The registration deadline is Oct. 23.

No excuse is required to vote early, and any registered voter can cast a ballot at their local registrar’s office. Find the contact information for your city or county’s general registrar’s office here.

Absentee ballots can be returned directly to the general registrar’s office, at designated drop-off locations during the early voting period, at polling locations on Election Day, or by mail, with a postmark no later than Nov. 3 and received by noon, Nov. 6.

Lawmakers Agree on Self-Driving Vehicle Rules

Virginia lawmakers and industry and labor representatives have agreed on the outline of rules for self-driving vehicles, teeing up legislation for the General Assembly’s next session. The proposed framework would cover commercial uses—ride-hailing, delivery, buses and heavy trucks—rather than personal cars.

The group agreed the state should regulate the vehicles but was split over data collection, how much power the Department of Motor Vehicles should have to pull permits, and protections for drivers who could lose work.

Industry representatives warned that without a clear path, companies won’t deploy in Virginia. A drivers’ alliance countered that workers deserve to know what happens when autonomous fleets start taking their trips.

The workgroup’s final report is due to lawmakers by Nov. 1.

VA Ranks Third for Teachers

Virginia is the third-best state in the country to be a teacher, according to a new ranking released Monday.

The Commonwealth trailed only Washington and New York, boosted by the nation’s second-highest income-growth potential for teachers and the sixth-best school systems.

Pay is more middling: the average starting salary of $49,300 ranks 12th and the overall average of $67,678 ranks 18th, though the study notes teachers here tend to see big gains over a career. Tenure kicks in after three years.

A separate Consumer Affairs report placed Virginia’s overall public-education system ninth, down two spots from last year—strong on K-12 outcomes, but weaker on school safety.

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➤ Southwest Virginia: A century-old Virginia law allows legislator-lawyers to postpone court cases while the General Assembly meets, with critics citing a felony case involving Buchanan County Supervisor Trey Adkins in May 2022 that is still unresolved. (More)

➤ Richmond: Virginia Union University pledged to preserve the historic Richmond Community Hospital building and amend its permit to bar demolition, converting the 1930s structure into a community health hub. (More)

➤ Northern Neck: Rep. Rob Wittman, R-Westmoreland, is backing President Trump’s $1.5 trillion defense budget as he runs for an eighth term in the 1st District and seeks to chair the Armed Services Committee. (More)

➤ Yorktown: Four people were pulled from an overturned boat on the York River on Saturday evening, rescued near the Coast Guard Training Center pier around 5:30 p.m. by Abingdon Volunteer Fire & Rescue. (More)

➤ Virginia Beach: The city will rename Beasley Drive as Blackstreet Boulevard, honoring the Grammy-winning R&B group behind No Diggity and its lasting mark on 1990s music. (More)

➤ Portsmouth: Nearly 1,000 runners turned out in the rain Sunday for the 47th annual Elizabeth River Run, crossing the 10K finish line near the Portsmouth Pavilion. (More)

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➤ UVA remained at No. 25 in this week’s AP poll and No. 2 in the Week 3 ACC power rankings after a 59-3 rout of Norfolk State, while Virginia Tech is No. 7 in the ACC following its 44-21 victory over Old Dominion. (See AP Poll and ACC Rankings)

➤ Virginia native Lauren Coughlin dominated at the 2026 Solheim Cup, pairing with Alison Lee for a 6-and-5 foursomes win over Europe’s top duo and improving to 5-0-2 with the event’s highest winning percentage. (More)

➤ No. 11 UVA field hockey blanked JMU 7-0 in Charlottesville on Sunday behind a dominant offensive showing. (More)

➤ Yesterday’s Results: NFL | MLB | Soccer

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➤ Sweet Briar College will sell 400 acres of Bear Mountain in Amherst County to the Monacan Indian Nation, reuniting the peak’s back half with the front that the tribe already owns. The sale, with no development planned, is expected to close in spring 2027. (More)

➤ Virginia Commonwealth University’s board of visitors approved a $1 million base salary for President Michael Rao, who has led the Richmond university since 2009. (More)

➤ Green City Partners, the developer behind the failed GreenCity arena in Henrico County, filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, listing more than $825,000 in liabilities and less than $50,000 in assets, closing out a five-year effort that began in 2020. (More)

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➤ Hundreds of visitors filed through the St. Jude Dream Home in Lynchburg on Sunday for its final open-house day, a fundraiser with ticket sales benefiting the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. (See Photos)

➤ Nearly three in 10 married-couple families with children nationwide live on a single income, and Virginia lands in the middle at 28th, with 26.2% of families—well behind top-ranked Utah's 36.7%. (More)

➤ A Portsmouth Navy veteran and former all-military boxing champion is bringing a West Point vs. Naval Academy boxing event to Williamsburg in December, reviving a tradition that faded decades ago. The event will stream to military bases worldwide. (More)

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