(The Center Square) – Virginia’s House of Delegates elections are taking shape, with both parties gearing up for competitive primaries in key districts ahead of the June 17 vote.

The 100-member House serves as the lower chamber of Virginia’s General Assembly, with each delegate representing about 86,000 residents. Members serve two-year terms and help craft state laws, shape the budget, and weigh in on issues ranging from education and health care to taxes and public safety.

All 100 seats are up for election this year. Democrats currently hold a slim 51-49 majority after retaking control of the chamber in 2023, a shift that followed Republican victories in 2021.

Both parties are working to defend or flip competitive districts ahead of November’s general election.

According to the Democratic Party of Virginia, candidates have filed to run in all 100 districts. Democratic primaries are set in at least nine races where more than one candidate has qualified for the ballot. On the Republican side, primary contests are scheduled for at least 10 districts, according to the Virginia Public Access Project.

Only one GOP incumbent — Del. Terry Austin, R-Botetourt — faces a primary challenger this cycle. On the Democratic side, at least two incumbents are being challenged from within their party: Del. Patrick Hope, D-Arlington, faces Arjoon Srikanth and Sean Epstein in District 1, while Del. Delores McQuinn, D-Richmond, faces Alicia Atkins in District 81.

Democrats have launched a push into Republican-leaning areas, with candidates running in 43 GOP-leaning districts, according to the Virginia Mercury. Republicans are fielding candidates in 66 districts and are challenging Democratic incumbents in 15.

This year’s contests include several veterans, educators and local officials. Among the Democratic field of 114 candidates, 58 are women and at least seven are veterans. Republicans are running 76 candidates across 66 districts, with five female incumbents and 17 women overall running for the House in 2025. The push for representation comes as Virginia appears poised to elect its first female governor this year, with both major parties fielding prominent women as leading contenders for the commonwealth’s top office.

Campaign finance reports show early fundraising strength among Democratic incumbents.

House Speaker Don Scott has raised more than $2 million this cycle, followed by Del. Luke Torian, D-Prince William, with over $650,000 and Del. Todd Gilbert, R-Shenandoah, with more than $519,000, according to the Virginia Public Access Project. Overall, Democrats have brought in about $8.5 million compared to roughly $5.2 million for Republican candidates. 

Just four independents have filed to run for House seats this year. They include Trudy Berry, a former Democratic candidate running as an independent in District 50; Dave Crance in District 13; Shelly Arnoldi in District 15; and Maynard L Keller, Jr. in District 38.

(The Center Square) – As cellphone bans in schools are gaining steam in dozens of states, one lawmaker is taking it to the federal level by proposing legislation leading to cellphone-free schools.

Freshman Virginia Democratic Rep. Eugene Vindman has introduced the UNPLUGGED Act, which the lawmaker describes as the “first step in restoring quality education” by removing cellphones from classrooms.

The movement to ban the technology from classrooms has gained bipartisan popularity by several state lawmakers. State leaders on opposite sides of the political, ideological spectrums appear to have found common ground, saying phones in the classroom are distractions and contribute to mental health issues.

Vindman recently hosted a roundtable discussion in Fredericksburg, Va., bringing together parents, educators and elected officials as a sounding board regarding the issue.

If approved, the legislation would “require state educational agencies to implement policies prohibiting the use or possession” of students’ cellphones in public schools “during school hours, and for other purposes.”

The legislation could mirror similar policies adopted by several states, including Virginia, led by an executive order issued by Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin that directed the Department of Education to develop policies and procedures to establish “age-appropriate restriction or elimination” of cellphone use in school.

Vindman cited “stagnant” education performance and mental health in his decision to author the legislation while touting Virginia’s success in removing the technology from classrooms.

“Restoring a quality education across our country through phone-free classrooms,” said Vindman. “I know how hard it can be to unplug – but the results I’ve heard from local Virginia leaders and students speak for themselves. Across the 7th District, school communities are seeing real benefits from keeping phones out of the classroom: more conversation between students, less social anxiety, longer attention spans, and even higher attendance.” 

Vindman says his legislation is supported by Jonathan Haidt, a leading social psychologist who specializes in cellphones in the classroom.

“No other policy change would confer as big and as rapid a benefit to American schools as freeing students from the constant distractions of the buzzing phones in their pockets,” said Haidt, author of “The Anxious Generation.” “To support kids’ mental health, educational success, and ability to pay attention – all schools in America should go bell-to-bell phone free. Schools that go phone free almost always report increased student engagement, decreased disciplinary problems, and, most touchingly, teachers say that they hear laughter in the hallways again.” 

In February, Sens. Tim Kaine, D-Va. and Tom Cotton, R-Ark., introduced the Focus on Learning Act, which would require the U.S. surgeon general to complete a study on the effects of cellphone or smartphone usage on students in K-12 classrooms, specifically looking at the impacts on mental health, educational outcomes and academic performance.

To date, nine states have statewide bans or restrictions on cell or smartphone usage in schools. Several other states have proposed statewide legislation to ban the device or review education department policy recommendations or pilot programs.