| 164th Virginia General Assembly | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Overview | |||||
| Term | January 14, 2026 – | ||||
| Senate of Virginia | |||||
| Members | 40 | ||||
| President of the Senate | Lt. Gov. Ghazala Hashmi (D) | ||||
| Senate Majority Leader | Scott Surovell (D) | ||||
| Senate Minority Leader | Ryan McDougle (R) | ||||
| Party control | Democratic | ||||
| Virginia House of Delegates | |||||
| Members | 100 | ||||
| Speaker of the House | Don Scott (D) | ||||
| House Majority Leader | Charniele Herring (D) | ||||
| House Minority Leader | Terry Kilgore (R) | ||||
| Party control | Democratic | ||||
| Sessions | |||||
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The 164th Virginia General Assembly, consisting of members who were elected to the Senate in 2023 and the House of Delegates in 2025, convened on January 14, 2026. Democrats retained a majority in the Virginia Senate and expanded their majority in the House of Delegates, with Democratic former State Senator Ghazala Hashmi becoming the next Lieutenant Governor. The 2023 Senate election was the first, and the 2025 House election was the second, to be held under maps for both houses of the Virginia General Assembly which were approved by the Virginia Redistricting Commission and the Supreme Court of Virginia in 2021, which were the first in Virginia history to not be drawn and approved by the legislature.
The 2026 session began on January 14 and is set to adjourn on March 16, 2026. The 2024 special session that was called in the previous term of the Virginia General Assembly by Governor Glenn Youngkin ran concurrently into the 2026 session.
Legislation
Intended legislation of the Democratic majorities include the following which were, or are set to be, initiated in the previous General Assembly:
Proposed constitutional amendments
- HJ1 / SJ247 (initiated March 24, 2025): Constitutional amendment to guarantee a right to abortion[1][2]
- HJ9 / SJ249 (initiated March 24, 2025): Constitutional amendment to codify same-sex and interracial marriage
- HJ2 / SJ248 (initiated March 24, 2025): Constitutional amendment to automatically restore voting rights to formerly-incarcerated individuals
- HJ6007 (initiated October 31, 2025): Constitutional amendment to allow legislative mid-decade redistricting of congressional districts in response to mid-decade redistricting by other states.[3]
All four bills were passed again by the House on January 14, 2026, and await a vote in the Senate. HJ6007, if passed by the Senate, would appear on the April 2026 ballot, while the other three would appear on the November 2026 ballot.[4]
Constitutional amendments, under Virginia law, must be initiated by majorities in both houses in two consecutive legislatures before being sent to voters for approval.
Proposed statutes
- HB1: Increase the minimum wage to $15/hour by 2028
- HB2: Reducing heating related costs by requiring utilities to provide energy efficiency upgrades[5]
- HB3: Establishing an Income-Qualified Energy Efficiency and Weatherization Task Force
- HB4: Affordable Housing Right of First Refusal
- HB5: Expands minimum sick leave eligibility to include employees of private employers and state and local governments
- HB6: right to obtain contraceptives and engage in contraception[6]
See also
References
- ^ "In a historic vote, constitutional amendment to protect reproductive freedom passes the General Assembly". ACLU of Virginia. Retrieved 2025-10-29.
- ^ Khalil, Jahd (2025-01-20). "Virginia Senate pushes forward constitutional amendments". VPM. Retrieved 2025-10-29.
- ^ Schmidt, Markus (2025-10-23). "House Speaker calls Virginia lawmakers back to Richmond as possible redistricting fight brews • Virginia Mercury". Virginia Mercury. Retrieved 2025-10-29.
- ^ Woods, Markus Schmidt, Charlotte Rene (2026-01-14). "Virginia House Democrats advance four constitutional amendments on opening day of 2026 session • Virginia Mercury". Virginia Mercury. Retrieved 2026-01-15.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Heckt, Shannon (2025-11-25). "Va. House Democrats make energy efficiency a key priority for legislative session • Virginia Mercury". Virginia Mercury. Retrieved 2025-11-25.
- ^ Dems, VA House (2025-11-17). "Virginia House Democratic Caucus Announce First Bills and Legislation for 2026 Session". Virginia House Democrats. Retrieved 2025-11-25.
