RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — A $50 million statewide initiative is looking to reform Virginia’s child welfare system.

In a release shared by the governor’s office on Tuesday, Dec. 16, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced the Safe Kids, Strong Families roadmap, which aims to strengthen child safety, expand permanency and support the Commonwealth’s child welfare workforce. The initiative is a collaboration between the governor’s office and a coalition of state, local and community partners.

The proposed $50 million investment from the governor’s budget would go toward several key objectives in the plan. The roadmap builds on several initiatives to strengthen child safety and permanency that were launched since 2022.

Per the release, $10 million would go toward increasing the minimum salary for local family services specialists to $55,000 to address high vacancy and turnover rates.

An allocation of $424,000 would go toward priority response within 24 hours for children ages 3 and younger. With 81% of last year’s child fatalities involving children under 3 years old, the age group is at the highest risk of maltreatment, per the release.

The initiative also calls for a $32.7 million investment and 132 positions to create a centralized intake system. The 24/7 hotline would handle reports of child abuse and neglect and connect them to local departments.

Youngkin said the initiative reflects years of efforts from the state to strengthen child welfare.

“This roadmap builds on the progress we’ve made and sets a clear direction for a system designed to protect children and support families for generations,” Youngkin said. “It reflects the Commonwealth’s enduring commitment to every child’s well-being and future.”

A posthumous memoir by one of Jeffrey Epstein’s best-known accusers, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, has sold 1m copies worldwide in just the two months after its release.

Publisher Alfred A Knopf announced on Tuesday that more than half the sales for Nobody’s Girl came out of North America; in the US, the book is now in its 10th printing after an initial run of 70,000 copies. Giuffre’s book, co-written by author-journalist Amy Wallace, was published in early October.

The memoir helped revive criticism of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly a British prince, whom Giuffre alleged had sex with her when she was 17. And it heightened demands that the Justice Department release its files on Epstein, who killed himself in prison in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.

Giuffre died by suicide in April at age 41.

“This is a bittersweet moment for us,” Giuffre’s family, including siblings Sky Roberts and Danny Wilson, said in a statement. “We are enormously proud of our sister, and the impact she continues to have on the world. We’re also filled with so much sorrow that she couldn’t be here to witness the impact of her words. In her absence, our family remains committed to ensuring her voice is everlasting.”

Within weeks of Giuffre’s book being published, King Charles III stripped Mountbatten-Windsor of his remaining titles and evicted him from his royal residence.

Mountbatten-Windsor has long denied Giuffre’s claims but stepped down from royal duties after a disastrous November 2019 BBC interview in which he attempted to rebut her allegations.

He paid millions in an out-of-court settlement in 2022 after Giuffre filed a civil suit against him in New York. While he didn’t admit wrongdoing, he acknowledged Giuffre’s suffering as a victim of sex trafficking.

This week Giuffre’s family expressed their “deep disappointment” after the Metropolitan police announced Mountbatten-Windsor will not face a criminal investigation in the UK over allegations against him.

• In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255. In the UK, Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123. Other international suicide helplines can be found at befrienders.org

Voters in several Northern Virginia districts are nominating candidates Tuesday who could be elected to serve on the state’s House of Delegates.

Whoever wins Tuesday’s contests will compete in a special election on Jan. 13, 2026, for vacated seats in the Virginia General Assembly, where Democrats currently hold a 63-37 majority.

The series of shake-ups comes as several Democratic lawmakers step down from the House of Delegates to join Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger’s administration.

Two of the resigning lawmakers represent Northern Virginia: Del. David Bulova, of Fairfax City and Fairfax County; and Del. Candi Mundon King, of Prince William and Stafford counties.

Last week, Spanberger named Bulova as her pick for Virginia’s next secretary of natural and historic resources.

And the future governor tapped King to serve as the secretary of the commonwealth.

Each party has until Dec. 17 to submit a nominee to the Virginia Board of Elections for next month’s special election, according to a writ of special elections filed by Virginia House Speaker Don Scott.

District 11: Fairfax City and part of Fairfax County

Democrats

Five candidates are running for the Democratic nomination in a firehouse primary, including the exiting delegate’s wife, Gretchen Bulova, as well as Vanessa Cardenas, So Lim, Douglas Shuster and Denver Supinger.

Any voter registered in Virginia House of Delegates District 11 can participate — but they have to sign a declaration of support for the Democratic Party, according to the democratic committees in Fairfax County and Fairfax City. In a firehouse primary, the political parties organize the contest, not the state.

District 11 includes all of Fairfax City and portions of Fairfax County. If you’re not sure whether your home sits within the district’s boundaries, check out this website.

The caucus locations are open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at these locations:

• Fairfax Presbyterian Church at 10723 Main Street
• Jim Scott Community Center at 3001 Vaden Drive
• Fairfax County Government Center at 12000 Government Center Parkway

Gretchen Bulova is the chair of the Fairfax County 250th Commission and the county’s history commission.

Cardenas is also a Fairfax City resident who works as the executive director of America’s Voice, which works to garner support for policy changes that create paths toward full citizenship for immigrants.

At a candidate forum on Sunday, Lim introduced herself as a progressive Democrat. She served three terms on the Fairfax City Council.

Shuster is the president of the Miller Heights Neighborhood Association and works at an advisory firm.

Supinger, former chief of staff to Del. Karrie Delaney, is the founder of a consulting firm that specializes in social impact strategy, political advocacy, and policymaking, according to its website.

It’s the second time Fairfax voters have participated in a firehouse primary this year, after earlier nominating candidates who competed to replace the late Rep. Gerry Connolly in June. Democrat James Walkinshaw ultimately won that special election in September.

Republicans

The Fairfax County Republican Committee confirmed with WTOP that Adam Wise will be the nominee, and there will be no caucus held.

Wise had previously run for the District 11 seat in November but lost to David Bulova, the incumbent.

District 23: Parts of Prince William and Stafford

Democrats

A Democratic caucus will also be going on in Virginia House of Delegates District 23 on Tuesday, according to the Democratic committees in Prince William and Stafford counties.

The caucus is scheduled to run from noon to 7 p.m. at these locations:

• Dumfries Community Center at 17757 Main Street, Dumfries
• Porter Branch Library at 2001 Parkway Boulevard, Stafford

Two candidates qualified to be on the ballot: Woodbridge Supervisor Margaret Franklin and Muhammed “Sef” Casim.

WTOP will report on the full ballot once the Republican nominee is finalized.

What’s happening in January

Voters in District 23 and District 11 will head to the polls on Jan. 13, 2026, for a special election to replace Dels. Bulova and King.

Early voting will be open from Jan. 3 to Jan. 10.

Outside of Northern Virginia, a separate special election is being held on Jan. 6, 2026, to replace representatives headed to Spanberger’s administration. Voters in the Richmond area will elect a new state senator in House District 15 and a new delegate in District 77.

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