The Democratic Party of Virginia (DPVA/VA Dems) is the Virginia affiliate of the Democratic Party based in

Richmond, Virginia Richmond ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. Incorporated in 1742, Richmond has been an independent city (United States), independent city since 1871. ...

. Historically, the Democratic Party has dominated Virginia politics. Since the 1851 Virginia gubernatorial election, the first gubernatorial election in Virginia in which the governor was elected by direct popular vote, 34 Virginia Governors have been Democrats. Since the 1851 Virginia lieutenant gubernatorial election, the first lieutenant gubernatorial election in Virginia in which the lieutenant governor was elected by direct popular vote, 29 Virginia Lieutenant Governors have been Democrats. Since the 1851 Virginia Attorney General election, the first Attorney General election in Virginia in which the Attorney General was elected by direct popular vote, 25 Attorneys General have been Democrats. As of 2023, Democrats hold a 21–19 majority in the

Virginia Senate The Senate of Virginia is the upper house of the Virginia General Assembly. The Senate is composed of 40 senators representing an equal number of single-member constituent districts. The Senate is presided over by the lieutenant governor of Virg ...

, and a 51–49 majority in the

Virginia House of Delegates The Virginia House of Delegates is one of the two houses of the Virginia General Assembly, the other being the Senate of Virginia. It has 100 members elected for terms of two years; unlike most states, these elections take place during odd-numbe ...

. At the federal level, Virginia has voted for every Democratic presidential candidate since

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

. Democrats hold six of the Commonwealth's 11

U.S. House The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

seats and both of the Commonwealth's

U.S. Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

seats.

Organization

Staff

* Executive Director: Shyam Raman * Deputy Executive Director and Chief Technology Officer: Brenner Tobe * Data Director: Katie O'Grady * Political Director: Emily Hamm

Steering Committee

The Steering Committee makes decisions about the Party in-between meetings of the Central Committee, and also has an exclusive role of overseeing staff. * Chair: Lamont Bagby * 1st Vice Chair for Organization: Gaylene Kanoyton * 2nd Vice Chair for Rules and Resolutions: Marc Broklawsk * Vice Chair for Technology and Communications: Ricardo Alfaro * Vice Chair for Outreach: Sen. L. Louise Lucas * Vice Chair for Finance: Clarence Tong * Secretary: Isaac Sarver * Treasurer: Abbi Easter * DNC Member: Sen. Jennifer Carroll Foy * DNC Member: Doris Crouse-Mays * DNC Member: Bryan Graham * DNC Member: Harry Khanna * DNC Member: Tram Nguyen * DNC Member: Elaine Kamarck * 1st Congressional District Democratic Committee Chair: Dianne Carter de Mayo * 2nd Congressional District Democratic Committee Chair: Sandra Brandt * 3rd Congressional District Democratic Committee Chair: Charles Stanton * 4th Congressional District Democratic Committee Chair: Alexsis Rodgers * 5th Congressional District Democratic Committee Chair: Patricia Harper Tunley * 6th Congressional District Democratic Committee Chair: Kym Crump * 7th Congressional District Democratic Committee Chair: Matt Rowe * 8th Congressional District Democratic Committee Chair: Margo Horner * 9th Congressional District Democratic Committee Chair: Rebecca Daly * 10th Congressional District Democratic Committee Chair: Zach Pruckowski * 11th Congressional District Democratic Committee Chair: Manisha Singh * Labor Caucus Chair: Julie Hunter * Associations of Local Chairs Chair: Tina Winkler * Democratic Black Caucus Chair: EJ Scott * Women's Caucus Chair:

Hala Ayala Hala Sophia Ayala (born April 23, 1973) is an American politician who served as a member of the Virginia House of Delegates for the 51st district from 2018 to 2022. She was the Democratic nominee in the 2021 Virginia lieutenant gubernatorial ...

* LGBT Democrats of Virginia Chair: Joel McDonald * Veterans and Military Families Caucus Chair: Charley Conrad *

Virginia Young Democrats Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

President: Malena Llanos * DisAbility Caucus Chair: Cyliene Montgomery * Democratic Asian Americans of Virginia Chair: Shyamali Hauth * Democratic Latino Organization of Virginia President: Carla Bustillos * Rural Caucus Chair: Roberta Thacker-Oliver * Small Business Caucus Chair: Mark Cannady * Immediate Past Chair: Susan Swecker

Central Committee

The Central Committee has full control over all matters of the Party, including the adoption of an annual budget, the method of nomination for statewide candidates such as Governor, Lieutenant Governor and Attorney General; the adoption of resolutions and policy statements. In addition, the Central Committee can veto any decision of the Steering Committee. The Central Committee meets at least four times a year, usually in Richmond, although by tradition, the September meeting is in Fredericksburg. Central Committee meetings are accompanied by meetings of the Steering Committee the night before, and Caucus meetings over the weekend. The Central Committee is composed of 20 members from each of Virginia's 11 congressional districts. Each district apportions the central committee seats to localities in the district based on population. Additionally, each district committee can elect three more members from local committees and one member of the Virginia General Assembly. The Central Committee is "reorganized" every four years following the election for Governor. The last reorganization was held in March 2022. In addition, the following people are ex-officio members of the Central Committee and their District Committees: * Members of the steering committee * Democratic Virginia members of the United States Congress * Democratic statewide elected officials, such as Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and Attorney General * the President Pro Tempore of the Virginia Senate and the Speaker of the House of Delegates, provided they are Democrats * the Democratic Leaders of the Virginia House and Senate * the Chairs of the Democratic Caucuses in Virginia the House and Senate * the president, national committeeman, and national committeewoman of the

* the president and first vice president of the Women's Caucus * the chair of the Association of Democratic Elected Officials * the chair of the Virginia Young Democrats Teen Caucus * the chair of the Virginia Young Democrats College Caucus * and the chair of the Virginia Young Democrats City/County Caucus

Local Democratic Committees

Local Democratic Committees serve to promote the Democratic Party in their specific locality. Some committees may contain several localities. Local committees may endorse candidates for nonpartisan office (such as school board) and assist in campaigning for their candidate.

Current elected officials

Members of Congress

U.S. Senate

Democrats have controlled both of Virginia's seats in the

since

: File:Tim Kaine 116th official portrait.jpg, Junior U.S. Senator File:Mark Warner 113th Congress photo.jpg, Senior U.S. Senator

U.S. House of Representatives

Out of the 11 seats Virginia is apportioned in the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

, six are held by Democrats:

Legislative leadership

* President pro tempore of the Senate of Virginia: Louise Lucas * Senate Majority Leader: Scott Surovell * Senate Caucus Chair: Mamie Locke * Speaker of the House of Delegates: Don Scott * House Majority Leader: Charniele Herring * House Caucus Chair: Kathy Tran

Mayors

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

: Kenny Alexander (3) *

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...

Levar Stoney Levar Marcus Stoney (born March 20, 1981) is an American politician who served as the 80th Mayor of Richmond, Virginia, mayor of Richmond, Virginia, from 2017 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previou ...

(4) *

Newport News Newport News () is an independent city in southeastern Virginia, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 186,247. Located in the Hampton Roads region, it is the fifth-most populous city in Virginia and 140th-most populous city i ...

: Phillip Jones (5) *

Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...

: Justin Wilson (6)

List of chairs

* John S. Barbour Jr. (1883–1889) * Basil B. Gordon (1889–1890) * J. Taylor Ellyson (1890–1916) * Rorer A. James (1916–1921) * Henry D. Flood (1921) * Harry F. Byrd (1922–1924) * J. Murray Hooker (1925–1940) * Horace H. Edwards (1940–1948) * G. Alvin Massenburg (1948–1952) * William M. Tuck (July 1952–August 1952) * T. Nelson Parker (August 1952–December 1952) * Thomas H. Blanton (1952–1964) * Watkins Abbitt Sr. (1964–1970) * William G. Thomas (1970–1972) * Joseph T. Fitzpatrick (1972–1979) * Richard J. Davis (1979–1980) * Owen B. Pickett (1980–1982) * Alan Diamonstein (1982–1985) * Richard J. Davis (1985–1986) * Lawrence H. Framme III (1986–1990) * Paul Goldman (1990–1993) *

Mark Warner Mark Robert Warner (born December 15, 1954) is an American businessman and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Virginia, a seat he has held since 2009. A member of the Democratic Party, Warner served as the 69th gove ...

(1993–1995) * Suzie Wrenn (1995–1998) * Kenneth R. Plum (1998–2000) *

Emily Couric Emily Couric (June 5, 1947 – October 18, 2001) was a Virginia Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Senate of Virginia, state senator from Charlottesville, Virginia, Charlottesville. Life and career Couric was born to Elinor (Hene) ...

(Co-chair, 2000–2001) * Lawrence H. Framme III (Co-chair, 2000–2001; 2001–2003) * Kerry J. Donley (2003–2005) * Richard Cranwell (2005–2010) *

Brian Moran Brian Joseph Moran (born September 9, 1959) is an American politician and a member of the Democratic Party. He served as Virginia Secretary of Public Safety from 2014 to 2022, and was a member of the Virginia House of Delegates from 1996 until ...

(2010–2012) * Charniele Herring (2012–2014) * Dwight C. Jones (2014 – March 27, 2015) * Susan Swecker (March 27, 2015 – March 22, 2025) * Lamont Bagby (since March 22, 2025)

Controversies

2019 Virginia political crisis Over the course of one week in February 2019, all three of Virginia's statewide elected executive officials (all members of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party) became engulfed in scandal, and were consequently the subjects o ...

In 2019, all three of Virginia's statewide executive office holders, all Democrats, were embroiled in various controversies. Governor Ralph Northam's medical school yearbook page had featured an individual in blackface and an individual in a

Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to KKK or Klan, is an American Protestant-led Christian terrorism, Christian extremist, white supremacist, Right-wing terrorism, far-right hate group. It was founded in 1865 during Reconstruction era, ...

hood, Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax was accused of having sexually assaulted a professor in 2004, and Attorney General Mark Herring was revealed to have worn blackface at a college party. Most Democrats urged Northam to resign from the governorship, but he refused. Ultimately, none of the three accused resigned.

Historical firsts

;

African Americans African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa ...

* First African American

Governor of Virginia The governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia is the head of government of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia. The Governor (United States), governor is head of the Government_of_Virginia#Executive_branch, executive branch ...

and

Lieutenant Governor of Virginia The lieutenant governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia is a constitutional officer of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The lieutenant governor is elected every four years along with the governor and attorney general. The office is currently held ...

Douglas Wilder Lawrence Douglas Wilder (born January 17, 1931) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 66th governor of Virginia from 1990 to 1994. He was the first African American to serve as governor of a U.S. state since the Reconstruction ...

;

Arab Americans Arab Americans ( or ) are Americans who trace ancestry to any of the Arab immigration to the United States, various waves of immigrants from the Arabic-speaking countries. In the United States census, Arabs are racially classified as White Amer ...

* First

Lebanese-American Lebanese Americans () are Americans of Lebanese descent. This includes both those who are native to the United States of America, as well as immigrants from Lebanon and Latin America. Lebanese Americans comprise 0.79% of the American populatio ...

member of the

* First

Palestinian-American Palestinian Americans () are Americans who are of full or partial Palestinian descent. There are around 160,000 Palestinian American refugees according to the 2023 American Community Survey, making up around 0.05% of the U.S. population. Th ...

member of the Virginia House of Delegates: Sam Rasoul ;

Asian Americans Asian Americans are Americans with Asian diaspora, ancestry from the continent of Asia (including naturalized Americans who are Immigration to the United States, immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of those immigrants). A ...

* First

Korean-American Korean Americans () are Americans of full or partial Korean ethnic descent. While the broader term Overseas Korean in America () may refer to all ethnic Koreans residing in the United States, the specific designation of Korean American impli ...

member of the Virginia House of Delegates: Mark Keam * First

Vietnamese-American Vietnamese Americans () are Americans of Vietnamese people, Vietnamese ancestry. They constitute a major part of all overseas Vietnamese. As of 2023, over 2.3 million people of Vietnamese descent live in the United States, making them the fourth ...

member of the Virginia House of Delegates: Kathy Tran * First

Filipino-American Filipino Americans () are Americans of Filipino ancestry. Filipinos in North America were first documented in the 16th century and other small settlements beginning in the 18th century. Mass migration did not begin until after the end of the Sp ...

member of the Virginia House of Delegates: Kelly Fowler ;

Jewish Americans American Jews (; ) or Jewish Americans are Americans, American citizens who are Jews, Jewish, whether by Jewish culture, culture, ethnicity, or Judaism, religion. According to a 2020 poll conducted by Pew Research, approximately two thirds of Am ...

* First Jewish American to represent Virginia in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

Norman Sisisky Norman Sisisky (June 9, 1927 – March 29, 2001) was an American businessman and politician who was a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives from Virginia from 1983 until his death in 2001, representing the 4th Distri ...

* First Jewish American Speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates:

Eileen Filler-Corn Eileen Robin Filler-Corn (born June 5, 1964) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the Minority Leader of the Virginia House of Delegates from January to April 2022, a position she previously held from 2019 to 2020. She previously s ...

;

Latino Americans Hispanic and Latino Americans are Americans who have a Spaniards, Spanish or Latin Americans, Latin American background, culture, or family origin. This demographic group includes all Americans who identify as Hispanic or Latino (demonym), ...

* First

Peruvian-American Peruvian Americans are Americans of Peruvians, Peruvian descent. According to the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau 2021 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates, , 720,626 U.S. residents identify themselves as being of Peruvi ...

member of the Virginia House of Delegates:

Elizabeth Guzmán Elizabeth Rosalina Guzmán is an American politician and social worker who served as a member of the Virginia's House of Delegates for the 31st district from 2018 to 2024. She was first elected in 2017 after defeating incumbent Republican Sc ...

* First Salvadoran-American member of the Virginia House of Delegates: Hala Ayala * First

Mexican-American Mexican Americans are Americans of full or partial Mexican descent. In 2022, Mexican Americans comprised 11.2% of the US population and 58.9% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexican Americans were born in the United State ...

member of the Virginia House of Delegates: Kelly Fowler ;

LGBT LGBTQ people are individuals who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning. Many variants of the initialism are used; LGBTQIA+ people incorporates intersex, asexual, aromantic, agender, and other individuals. The gro ...

* First openly

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...

member of the Virginia House of Delegates and

Senate of Virginia The Senate of Virginia is the upper house of the Virginia General Assembly. The Senate is composed of 40 senators representing an equal number of single-member constituent districts. The Senate is presided over by the lieutenant governor of Vir ...

: Adam Paul Ebbin * First openly

lesbian A lesbian is a homosexual woman or girl. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate nouns with female homosexu ...

member of the Virginia House of Delegates: Dawn M. Adams * First openly

transgender A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth. The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...

member of the Virginia House of Delegates: Danica Roem ;Women * First female

Attorney General of Virginia The attorney general of Virginia is an elected constitutional position that holds an Executive (government), executive office in the government of Virginia. Attorneys general are elected for a four-year term in the year following a United State ...

Mary Sue Terry Mary Sue Terry (born September 28, 1947) is an American Democratic politician from the Commonwealth of Virginia. Early life Terry was born the daughter of Nathaniel Chatham Terry and Nannie Ruth Terry in Martinsville, Virginia. She was an activ ...

* First female Speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates: Eileen Filler-Corn

References

External links

Democratic Party of Virginia Party Website

Virginia Young Democrats

Arlington Democrats

Senate Caucus

House Caucus
{{U.S. Democratic Party state parties

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

Political parties in Virginia 1924 establishments in Virginia

Organization

Staff

Steering Committee

Central Committee

Local Democratic Committees

Current elected officials

Members of Congress

U.S. Senate

U.S. House of Representatives

Legislative leadership

Mayors

List of chairs

Controversies

2019 Virginia political crisis Over the course of one week in February 2019, all three of Virginia's statewide elected executive officials (all members of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party) became engulfed in scandal, and were consequently the subjects o ...

Historical firsts

See also

References

External links