Virginia
Virginia voters to vote on measure that could determine control of Congress
ARLINGTON, Va. (7News) — After months of television ads, mailings, and debates, Virginia voters head to the polls Tuesday to vote on whether to approve a redistricting measure that would radically change Congressional maps in order to favor Democrats.
The measure has the potential to determine which party controls Congress after the midterm elections this fall.
ALSO READ | Virginia redistricting vote draws national attention
Virginia polling locations will be open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. The election is unusual in that there are no names of candidates on the ballot. Instead, there is just one question to vote yes or no on:
“Should the Constitution of Virginia be amended to allow the General Assembly to temporarily adopt new congressional districts to restore fairness in the upcoming elections, while ensuring Virginia’s standard redistricting process resumes for all future redistricting after the 2030 census?”
A yes vote would likely lead to a new map that would be expected to give Democrats a 10 to one edge in Virginia’s Congressional delegation. Under the current map, Democrats have six seats and Republicans have five.
Supporters of voting yes said the measure is in response to states like Texas that have gerrymandered in favor of Republicans winning House seats. But opponents who urge a no vote point out the measure would make Virginia one of the most gerrymandered states in the nation, and would create districts in which many voters don’t share common interests with each other.
The vote is expected to be close.
“It seems to me that a strong turnout effort on election day can give either side a win,” said Stephen Farnsworth, a political science professor at the University of Mary Washington. “The big challenge for both the yes and the no side is to get people who will support them if they turn out to actually do soI think anybody who is not strongly committed one side or the other is likely to stay home.”
ALSO READ | Virginia voters to decide redistricting that could flip 4 GOP seats
Advertisements and messaging from both sides have left some voters confused. For example, both supporters and opponents of the measure have referenced Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger. She supports the measure to counterbalance Republican actions elsewhere, but in the past she has made strong statements against the type of gerrymandering the ballot measure would allow.
“Usually when people are confused, they don’t vote. Some of them do, but most of them don’t,” said Larry Sabato, the director of The Center for Politics at the University of Virginia.
Sabato said it’s tough to predict which side will win. Even though the limited polling that’s been done has given a narrow edge to the yes vote, data related to early voting may tell a different story.
“Normally, you would think given Virginia’s pretty strong Democratic lean, that this very partisan referendum would be enough to generate Democratic turnout for Democrats to win,” he said. “But I’ll tell you why people are hesitant – they’ve seen large turnouts in conservative, Republican areas. Because [voters in those areas] are mad. Their representatives are being eliminated through this process.”
“This is going to be tied very closely to how one feels about President Trump,” Farnsworth said. “The people who don’t like President Trump will vote in favor of this amendment. The people who do like President Trump will vote against it.”
It’s not clear how many people will actually show up at the polls on election day Tuesday.
“People who were very interested in this, who were knowledgeable about the subject, probably voted early for the most part,” Sabato said.
Mail-in ballots can still be dropped off at official drop boxes until 7 p.m. on Tuesday, and if they are mailed they need to be postmarked by Tuesday and received by noon on Friday.
A bus driver with a history of speeding accusations was indicted on additional charges Monday in a chain-reaction crash in Virginia that killed five people and injured dozens more.
Jing Sheng Dong, 48, of Staten Island, New York, initially was charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter after the crash early Friday morning on Interstate 95. On Monday, a grand jury indicted him on three additional charges of involuntary manslaughter and one count of reckless driving, according to a statement from the Stafford County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office.
Authorities said Dong was driving a motorcoach from New York to North Carolina when he struck a line of vehicles that had slowed down in a work zone. A family of four from Greenfield, Massachusetts, on their way to a wedding were killed, as was a 25-year-old woman from Worcester, Massachusetts.
Dong, who remained hospitalized Monday, previously was accused of speeding in Colonial Heights, Virginia, in November 2024 and in Annapolis, Maryland, in March, according to online court records. In the latter case, he is accused of driving a motorcoach 72 mph (116 kph) in a 50 mph (80 kph) zone.
In the Virginia case, Dong was convicted of driving 73 mph (117 kph) in a 55 mph (89 kph) zone and paid $219 in fines and court costs. He also has a pending case in Mecklenburg County, Virginia, where he was accused of trespassing in July.
The bus involved in Friday’s crash was operated by E&P Travel Inc., based in Kings Mountain, North Carolina. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the crash, a board member said.
Court documents related to the bus crash do not list an attorney for Dong. Neither the attorney representing him in the trespassing case nor the lawyer representing him in Maryland responded to emails seeking comment Monday.
Prosecutor Eric Olsen said Dong will be transported to jail upon his release from the hospital.
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Ramer reported from Concord, New Hampshire.
(WSET) — Average gasoline prices in Virginia have fallen 23.7 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $4.15/g on Monday, according to GasBuddy’s survey of 4,081 stations in Virginia.
Prices in Virginia are 1 cent per gallon lower than a month ago and stand $1.21/g higher than a year ago. The national average price of diesel has decreased 15.5 cents compared to a week ago and stands at $5.437 per gallon, GasBuddy said.
SEE ALSO: Suspect in fatal shooting of Carroll County deputy captured in North Carolina
According to GasBuddy price reports, the cheapest station in Virginia was priced at $3.29/g on Sunday, while the most expensive was $5.59/g, a difference of $2.30/g. The lowest price in the state on Sunday was $3.29/g while the highest was $5.59/g, a difference of $2.30/g.
The national average price of gasoline has fallen 19.5 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $4.26/g on Monday. The national average is down 17.8 cents per gallon from a month ago and stands $1.18/g higher than a year ago, according to GasBuddy data compiled from more than 11 million weekly price reports covering over 150,000 gas stations across the country.
Virginia
Deadly crashes on Interstate 95 over 2 days prompt safety concerns along Virginia’s busy corridor
CAROLINE COUNTY, Va. — Two deadly crashes on I-95 in two days are drawing attention to safety concerns along one of Virginia’s busiest corridors.
Stafford Commonwealth’s Attorney Eric Olsen authorized felony warrants charging Jing Sheng Dong, 48, of Staten Island, New York, with two counts of involuntary manslaughter in connection with Friday’s deadly bus crash in Stafford County. Additional charges are pending.
Investigators say the bus was traveling at a high rate of speed when it slammed into traffic slowing for a work zone on I-95 south, triggering a chain reaction involving at least eight vehicles.
“According to local first responders, five occupants of passenger vehicles in the traffic queue were tragically killed. Numerous other occupants, including the bus driver, were injured and some seriously,” National Transportation Safety Board member Tom Chapman said.
Family killed in I-95 bus crash was headed to wedding in South Carolina, relatives say
Family killed in I-95 bus crash was headed to wedding in South Carolina, relatives say
Among those killed was a Massachusetts family of four who were traveling to a wedding in South Carolina. A fifth victim, also from Massachusetts, was killed.
A total of 44 people were taken to hospitals, including three with critical injuries.
A woman who was on the bus described the scene in the aftermath of the crash.
“You have blood, people bleeding, people screaming, the bus smoking. A stranger came bust the window open and let us all out; I’m thankful for that,” passenger Judy said.
Dong remains hospitalized but is in custody after being served with the felony warrants. Prosecutors say more charges are possible. He will be held without bond, and his first court appearance will be scheduled once he is released from the hospital.
Then on Saturday, another deadly crash closed portions of I-95 in Caroline County.
WTVR
Christina Baker and her husband Joshua say they witnessed the crash unfold. They told us an SUV was speeding down the left shoulder of I-95 South before striking debris and losing control.
“It went down, and then it went up, and then just flew across the entire median across onto oncoming traffic going the opposite direction,” Christina Baker said. “I started screaming, saying, ‘Oh my gosh, oh my gosh.’”
Officials say one person died and two others were hospitalized. At this time, they have not released any more information about those involved.
The crash left the Bakers wanting to remind drivers to stay alert and think of others when behind the wheel.
“People should just stay in the lanes, drive the speed limit right, and be responsible. Because I felt for a moment, I was obviously concerned for our safety as well,” Joshua Baker said.
While the cause of both crashes remains under investigation, Chapman says the NTSB is noticing many common factors when it comes to crashes on I-95, including traffic backups.
“We also want to look very closely here to issues potentially involving fatigue, driver performance, those sorts of things. And vehicle performance issues. That might include factors such as automatic braking, whether the vehicle was or was not equipped with what’s called AEB. Those are the sorts of things we want to look at here and we might be able to learn some lessons,” Chapman said.
This is a developing story. Email the CBS 6 Newsroom if you have additional information to share.
IN-DEPTH COVERAGE: Fatal I-95 Charter Bus Crash
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