Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Top Stories

Democracy depends on educated votes, part 1

Democracy depends on educated votes, part 1
Getty Images

David Nevins is co-publisher of The Fulcrum and co-founder and board chairman of the Bridge Alliance Education Fund.

Democracy depends on educated voters. Yet too often people don’t vote because they don’t know where candidates stand and are confused about how to find out. The widespread political cynicism, disinformation, and spin that citizens are bombarded with contributes to the lack of information available to voters so they can make reasoned decisions.


To combat this problem a non-partisan group called guides.vote has created voter guides to provide a concise and credible way to compare where candidates stand on critical issues and to make clear why voting matters.

Today, we focus on the state of Virginia and for the next three days we will provide voting guide information for a different state.

Virginia Legislative Elections 2023

All 140 seats in Virginia’s legislature will be up for grabs in November. The Republicans currently control the House of Delegates 51-46; the Democrats control the Senate 22-18. Your votes will determine Virginia’s future. Here’s a look at what both parties have done.

In 2020-2021, the Democrats controlled the governorship and both of the legislatures and were able to pass major legislation, as described below. Beginning in 2022, control became split; the Republicans controlled the House and the governorship, while the Democrats controlled the Senate. Neither party has been able to pass major partisan legislation, but in 2022 passed a nearly unanimous two-year budget with new education spending and almost $4 billion in tax cuts, as well as other bills. Unless otherwise noted, this guide describes mostly party-line votes, or near party-line votes, primarily from the past four years. It also includes some major bills Republicans passed in 2012-2013, the last time they controlled the governorship and both houses of the Assembly.

Sign up for The Fulcrum newsletter

See where your potential elected officials stand on the important issues that affect Virginia:

Abortion

Democrats

Republicans

Climate

Democrats

Republicans

Criminal Justice

Democrats

Republicans

Education

Democrats

Republicans

Gun Laws

Democrats

Republicans

Health Care

Democrats

Republicans

LGBTQ Rights

Democrats

  • Passed a bill that extended existing state non-discrimination protections to LGBTQ people in housing, employment, and public accommodation.
  • Passed a bill that repealed prohibitions on same-sex marriages and civil unions, with limited Republican support.

Republicans

Marijuana

Democrats

Republicans

Minimum Wage

Democrats

Republicans

Voting Rules

Democrats

Republicans

Tomorrow we will examine Kentucky.

Read More

Project 2025: Trump Admin Tries to Curb the FTC's Corporate Oversight

The Federal Trade Commission building.

Getty Images, Greggory DiSalvo

Project 2025: Trump Admin Tries to Curb the FTC's Corporate Oversight

In the first few weeks of his presidency, Donald Trump signed a series of controversial executive orders that are designed to exert tight control over 19 federal agencies that were established decades ago by Congress to act independently of the president. Since then, the Trump administration has attempted to methodically remove the independence of the Federal Election Commission, National Labor Relations Board, Securities and Exchange Commission, the Federal Communications Commission, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and other agencies.

The latest regulatory agency in the presidential crosshairs is one of the most important: the corporate watchdog Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Just recently, the White House mounted a takeover of the FTC by firing the only two Democratic commissioners on the five-person commission and politicizing its bipartisan regulatory oversight.

Keep ReadingShow less
Future of the National Museum of the American Latino is Uncertain

PRESENTE! A Latino History of the United States

Credit: National Museum of the American Latino

Future of the National Museum of the American Latino is Uncertain

The American Museum of the Latino faces more hurdles after over two decades of advocacy.

Congress passed legislation to allow for the creation of the Museum, along with the American Women’s History Museum, as part of the Smithsonian Institution in an online format. Five years later, new legislation introduced by Nicole Malliotakis (R-N.Y.) wants to build a physical museum for both the Latino and women’s museums but might face pushback due to a new executive order signed by President Donald Trump.

Keep ReadingShow less
Where Can We Find Hope in America Today?

People putting their hands in together.

Getty Images, filadendron

Where Can We Find Hope in America Today?

If we were deeply divided during the last presidential election, I find we’re all in the same boat now. As I travel the country, people tell me they’re disoriented by the uncertainty, chaos, and confusion in society. I hear this from Democrats, Republicans, Independents, and others alike.

What’s clear is that we have lost a basic sense of decency in our interactions. Empathy and compassion are missing from one another. Yet, there remains a hunger among people for belonging and connection—for community.

Keep ReadingShow less
Competitive Authoritarianism Comes for Civil Society

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media before boarding Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House on April 3, 2025 in Washington, DC.

Getty Images, Andrew Harnik

Competitive Authoritarianism Comes for Civil Society

I make a point of letting readers know when I change my mind about matters that bear on the ongoing discussion here at The Art of Association. I need to introduce today’s newsletter about what the second Trump Administration entails for civil society with just such an update.

My views on Donald Trump have remained more or less stable for a decade. As I wrote in the aftermath of Trump’s re-election and before his second inauguration,

Keep ReadingShow less