Voters are heading to the polls Tuesday for a special election in parts of Northern Virginia to fill two open seats in the state’s General Assembly.

Polls are open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. for in-person voting Tuesday in Districts 11 and 23, which include parts of Fairfax, Prince William and Stafford counties, as well as Fairfax City.

Tuesday’s special election was triggered when Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger tapped two current members of the Virginia House of Delegates to join her cabinet.

Del. David Bulova, who represents Fairfax City and portions of Fairfax County, has been asked to lead as Virginia’s next secretary of natural and historic resources.

In nearby District 23, Del. Candi Mundon King is resigning to serve as the secretary of the commonwealth. Her constituents live in parts of Prince William and Stafford counties.

Both exiting lawmakers are Democrats.

Tuesday marks one of several special elections happening this month to fill open seats in Virginia’s General Assembly, including a second contest in another part of Fairfax County. Voters will head to the polls in District 17 next week.

How to vote

The Virginia Department of Elections website has a tool to help voters find their polling location.

Voters who are 65 or older, or those with disabilities, have the option of voting curbside.

Ballots that are cast by mail need to be postmarked on or before Jan. 13 and received by Jan. 16.

Outside of mailing those absentee ballots, voters can also bring them to a drop-off location. Check in with your city or county elections office for information about drop boxes and their locations.

District 11

Voters will see two candidates on the ballot in District 11: Democrat Gretchen Bulova and Republican Adam Wise.

Both candidates hold some name recognition in Fairfax County and Fairfax City.

Gretchen Bulova is married to the longtime Del. David Bulova, who is resigning from his position in the house to serve alongside Spanberger.

Wise challenged the incumbent for his seat in 2025 but lost to David Bulova.

The Republican nominee, Wise, is a native of Fairfax who works as a firearms instructor and self-defense teacher. On his website, he promoted a campaign slogan that seems to advocate for restricting the government’s influence on Virginians, writing “the government which governs least, governs best.”

Gretchen Bulova serves as the Director of the Office of Historic Alexandria, overseeing museums as well as other research-centered programs, according to her website. She’s also the chair of the Fairfax County 250th Commission.

Affordability was the top issue of Gretchen Bulova’s campaign, with the Democrat specifically listing priorities of access to affordable housing, child care, electricity and health care on her website.

District 23

Democrat Margaret Franklin is running against Republican Verndell Robinson for the open seat in District 23.

Franklin represents the Woodbridge District on the Prince William Board of County Supervisors. She was first elected to the board in 2019.

With hopes of maintaining the seat for Democrats, Franklin has campaigned on issues such as affordable housing, health care and the economy.

Robinson is a veteran of the U.S. Navy and currently works as a real estate agent, according to a local GOP committee.

Robinson has been a critic of certain data center developments and pressed for more affordable housing.

A man accused of carrying out an elaborate fetish sex plot to kill his wife and a man inside his Northern Virginia home is set to stand trial.

Nine men and seven women were selected to the jury Monday in the trial for Brendan Banfield. Four of those 16 jurors are alternates who will step in if other jurors can’t attend for some reason.

Banfield is charged with aggravated murder in the killings of his wife, 37-year-old Christine Banfield, and a stranger, 39-year-old Joseph Ryan, at the Banfields’ Herndon home on the morning of Feb. 24, 2023.

Prosecutors say Brendan Banfield was having an affair with the family’s au pair, Juliana Peres Magalhães, for months before the killings, and that he conspired with his then-4-year-old daughter’s caretaker to get his wife “out of the picture.”

Peres Magalhães told prosecutors Brendan was the mastermind of the alleged plan. She said he created a fake profile on FetLife.com, a kink, BDSM and fantasy dating website, pretending to be Christine. Peres Magalhães said she and Brendan logged onto Christine’s work computer and used the fake FetLife account to solicit a stranger, Ryan, to the house to carry out a rape fantasy involving a knife.

When Ryan showed up to the house and started carrying out the plan, Brendan Banfield and Peres Magalhães burst into the bedroom pretending to save the day, prosecutors said. Banfield allegedly shot Ryan and then stabbed Christine.

Peres Magalhães said in an interview with prosecutors that she also shot Ryan. She pleaded guilty to manslaughter and spoke to prosecutors as part of her plea agreement.

The Fairfax County man accused of murdering his wife and another man in their home will stand trial starting Monday. News4’s Aimee Cho shares what to expect.

Banfield has denied the allegations. Defense attorneys argued in a hearing last summer that investigators have a secret folder of evidence that dismantles the so-called “catfish theory” that Brendan Banfield created the FetLife account.

A Fairfax County detective trained in digital forensics testified that he pulled and analyzed all the digital data on the devices used to access the FetLife profile. It was his professional conclusion that it was Christine on the computer, not Brendan, he said.

He said during a July 10 hearing that police command staff disagreed with his findings because they didn’t support their theory that Brendan Banfield was behind the fetish site profile.

The detective said his supervisors reassigned him off of the case against his will.

Multiple Fairfax County Police Department employees said under oath that the evidence did not support the theory that Brendan Banfield catfished Ryan to the family’s home.

Opening statements are expected to begin Tuesday, and the trial could take about four weeks.

News4 is getting rare, video access inside the courtroom. Watch a daily livestream of the trial and follow updates here and on the NBC4 Washington YouTube.

WASHINGTON (7News) — Families across the D.C. region are seeing higher utility bills this winter, as gas and electric rate hikes approved by regulators take effect — sparking criticism from local leaders and concern from residents already feeling the squeeze.

In D.C., Washington Gas customers are now paying about 13% more on their bills. The increase has triggered renewed debate at the D.C. Council, where critics argue the utility’s strategy of full pipeline replacements — rather than targeted repairs — is driving costs higher than necessary.

Council members and consumer advocates said those costs are being passed along to residents least able to absorb them, particularly low-income households already struggling with rising prices for food, rent, and other essentials.

SEE ALSO | Winterizing your home: Simple steps to save up to 30% on energy costs this season

Across the Potomac River in Prince William County, Virginia, electric customers are also facing higher bills.

State regulators approved phased rate increases for Dominion Energy in late 2025 — less than what the company initially requested — citing inflation and the rising cost of maintaining and upgrading the electric grid. The changes are expected to add roughly $11 more per month this year, with an additional increase planned for 2027.

Dominion Energy spokesperson Aisha Khan said the utility is facing mounting demand and higher infrastructure costs, including utility poles, wires, and transformers — but emphasized that large power users will now shoulder more of the burden.

“Now the commission also approved new customer rates to reflect inflationary pressures and increasing costs of grid equipment,” Khan said. “But I want to make it clear that data centers are not driving up residential bills. Independent state studies have confirmed that these data centers pay the full cost of their power.”

Under the new structure, regulators created a separate rate class requiring large users — including data centers — to pay higher rates than typical households.

Still, some residents say the increases are already taking a toll.

Janice Howard, a single mother from Woodbridge, says her most recent electric bill jumped nearly $150, despite no change in her family’s daily routine.

“It is $317,” Howard said. “I’m a single mom who works 50 hours a week with a five-year-old. We’re barely home. I don’t understand why my bill jumped up almost $150 when we’re doing absolutely the same thing.”

Dominion Energy maintains the increases are necessary to keep up with demand and maintain reliability, but says customers are not paying the full cost alone — pointing to the higher rates now required of large commercial users.

Local leaders said the debate is far from over, and questions remain about whether future relief could be on the way for households facing rising utility costs.

If you need help paying your bills:

• D.C. residents can find utility bill assistance programs, discounts, and resources through the District’s Department of Energy & Environment, including income-based help with energy costs and utility discounts. Washington Gas — Energy assistance information can be found here
• Dominion Energy customers in Virginia can find billing support, payment arrangements, and energy assistance resources (including EnergyShare) at Dominion Energy Billing & Assistance Programs and EnergyShare Assistance Program Info here.