Voter Guide

Some of the features in this Voter Guide were made possible through the Knight Election Center and a grant from Microsoft. For questions about this Voter Guide, contact us at news@cardinalnews.org.

What we’re voting on this year

Virginians this year will vote on:

  • A U.S. Senator (Mark Warner is up for reelection; Republicans are holding a primary Aug. 4 to pick their nominee)
  • U.S. House of Representatives (all 11 districts). Many districts will have primary elections on Aug. 4 to pick party nominees.
  • Three proposed amendments to the state constitution: They deal with abortion, civil rights restoration for felons, same-sex marriage. (See more detailed explanations below).
  • Some localities will have local elections for city council and other offices. Six localities will hold Democratic primaries on Aug. 4 to pick nominees for local office: Arlington County (county board), Chesterfield County (board of supervisors), Harrisonburg (city council), Manassas (city council), Montgomery County (sheriff) and Roanoke (city council). Of note: Montgomery County Republicans will pick a sheriff’s candidate in a party-run process on June 20.

For details about who is on your ballot, look up your locality under “Elections by Locality” below.

Virginia election dates for 2026

Primaries for party nominations

June 18*: Early voting begins for August 4 primaries. (The official start date for early voting is June 19 but the Department of Elections advises: “If the local office is closed on June 19 for the Juneteenth state holiday, then the office shall be open for early voting on Thursday, June 18.“)

August 4: Primary elections. This will include a Republican primary for U.S. Senate, both Democratic and Republican primaries in some congressional districts to pick House nominees, and Democratic primaries in six localities to nominate candidates for local office: Arlington County (county board), Chesterfield County (board of supervisors), Harrisonburg (city council), Manassas (city council), Montgomery County (sheriff) and Roanoke (city council).

General election

September 18: Early voting begins for the November general election.

October 23: Deadline to register to vote, if you’re not already registered, without having to cast a provisional ballot.

October 31: Early voting ends.

November 3: Virginians will be voting for a U.S. senator, members of the U.S. House, and various local offices.

For more details, see the Virginia Department of Elections.

Which congressional district are you in?

Virginia will be using the same congressional map it’s used since the 2022 elections:

Virginia's current congressional districts,approved in late 2021. Courtesy of Twotwofourtysix.
Virginia’s current congressional districts, approved in late 2021. Courtesy of Twotwofourtysix.

We have more detailed maps of each district on the locality pages below.

How do I vote?

Who’s running?

U.S. Senate: Mark Warner, the Democratic incumbent, is seeking reelection. The candidates for the Republican nomination in the August 4 primary are Kim Farington, Bert Mizusawa, David Williams.

U.S. House: All 11 Virginia incumbents are seeking reelection. Three districts will have Republican primaries on August 4: the 5th, 7th and 10th. Five districts will have Democratic primaries that day: the 1st, 2nd, 5th, 8th and 9th. You can find the full list of congressional candidates here. To find the candidates for your locality, look under “Elections by Locality” below.

Local offices: See each locality under “Elections by Locality.”

About the proposed constitutional amendments

  • Abortion: This will guarantee the right to an abortion in Virginia.
  • Restoration of rights: Virginia is one of only two states where felons are permanantly barred from voting unless the governor intervenes. This amendment would automatically restore those rights.
  • Same-sex marriage: The U.S. Supreme Court in 2015 upheld the right to a same-sex marriage. However, the Virginia constitution still retains now-moot language banning same-sex marriage. This amendment would repeal that language and add language to guarantee the right to a same-sex marriage in case the U.S. Supreme Court ever reverses itself.

Are you missing Virginia’s biggest political stories? Sign up for free here.

Who’s on your ballot?

We’ve created election pages (below, under “Elections by Locality”) that list who’s on the ballot in each county and city. We’ve now updated all 133 locality pages for the August 4 primary. The Department of Elections will release the full list of who is on the November ballot for local offices later this month, we’ll add those when they become available.

If you spot any errors or omissions, please let us know at elections@cardinalnews.org.

Elections by locality

Where the candidates stand

Once the ballot is set, we’ll send questionnaires to all the candidates. We’ll be posting the U.S. Senate candidates here and other candidates on the pages of the localities where they’re running.

How elections work

Youtube video

In conjunction with the nonpartisan group Keep Our Republic, Cardinal has produced this video interview with three registrars about how the election process works: Jacquelynne “Jackie” Harris, chief deputy registrar in Nelson County; Derek Lyall, general registrar and director of elections in Washington County and Blakley Morris, general registrar and director of elections for the city of Bristol. Cardinal’s Dutchie Jessee is the host.

Your support matters

Our Virginia Voter Guide is made possible by your membership and contributions. Your support enables us to provide comprehensive candidate information, election coverage and public Q&A sessions. Sign up now to help us continue this important work and keep Virginia voters informed!

Become a Member

Where is my polling place?

Find my polling place

How to vote

Can I vote with an out-of-state or expired license? 

Yes. If you get to your polling place without an acceptable ID, you can sign a statement affirming your identity and vote on a regular ballot, according to the Virginia Department of Elections. If your license is expired, you can still use it to vote.

How can I vote by mail in Virginia?

For June primaries: You can request a mail-in ballot for the primary election until June 14.

For fall elections: You can request a mail-in ballot for the primary election until October 24.

Request the mail-in ballot on Virginia’s election portal, or by mailing an application for an absentee ballot to your local voter registration office. You can find the address for your voter registration office on the Virginia Department of Elections website.

You can also request an absentee ballot up to 11 days until the deadline. After the deadline, only emergency absentee ballots are available until the day before the election. To qualify for an emergency absentee ballot, you need to have a serious conflict (like a work conflict, or a health issue of an immediate family member).

Can I vote early in-person?

Yes. You can vote early in-person at your local registrar’s office. You can find the location of the general registrar’s office in your jurisdiction and read more about early voting on the Virginia Department of Elections’ website.

When do polls open?

Polls will be open between 6 a.m. and 7 p.m. on Election Day.

If you are in line by 7 p.m., you will be allowed to vote.

Can I vote from jail in Virginia? 

In many cases, yes. If you do not have a felony conviction, or if the governor has restored your right to vote after a felony conviction, you can vote – even from jail. This includes if you are being detained awaiting your court date, or are in jail for a misdemeanor conviction. 

If you have a felony conviction, you can petition the governor to restore your voting rights.

Not sure if you’re eligible to vote?

Check your registration status at virginia.gov.

You can also check out Virginia’s list of voter rights, and read ProPublica’s guide on voting accessibility for more information.