The government of Richmond, Virginia, headquartered at Richmond City Hall in Downtown Richmond, is organized under the Charter of Richmond, Virginia and provides for a "strong" mayor-council system. [1] The mayor is elected to a four-year term and is responsible for the administration of city government. The Richmond City Council is a unicameral body consisting of nine members, each elected to represent a geographic district. The city of Richmond is located in the 13th Judicial Circuit of Virginia, and its court system consists of a circuit court and four district courts. [2]
Richmond's government employs approximately 4,000 people. [3] The city government is responsible for public education, correctional institutions, public safety, recreational facilities, sanitation, water supply, and welfare services.
The current Mayor of Richmond and 80th in the sequence of regular officeholders is Democrat Levar Stoney. Stoney was elected in the 2016 Richmond mayoral election and succeeded Dwight C. Jones, a Baptist pastor and former member of the Virginia House of Delegates.
Position | Individual | Assumed Office |
---|---|---|
Chief of Staff | Lincoln Saunders [4] | January 1, 2017 [5] |
Senior Assistant to the Mayor | Laura Harrison [4] | |
Senior Policy Advisor (Community Engagement and Liaison to LGBTQ Community) | Osita Iroegbu [4] | |
Senior Policy Advisor (Youth Initiatives) | Eva Colen [4] | May 22, 2018 [6] |
Policy Analyst | Margaret Anderson [4] | |
Constituent Services Manager | Tameka Jefferson [4] | |
Executive Staff Assistant to the Mayor | Terelle Robinson [4] | |
Executive Assistant | Lela Jefferson [4] |
The Office of the Press Secretary to the Mayor serves as the public relations advisor to the Mayor and the Chief Administrative Officer and is the primary contact for the news media. As of June 2020 [update] , Jim Nolan served as the Director of Communications for the office of the Press Secretary. [7]
The Richmond City Council consists of nine members, each elected to represent one of the nine Richmond Voting Districts for a four-year term. The City Council is responsible for creating and amending local laws, providing policy and government oversight, appointing members to boards and commissions, and approving the annual city budget. The City Council elects one of its members to serve as council president and one to serve as vice president, each for two-year terms. There are six standing committees, each consisting of three City Council members and one alternate: Finance and Economic Development; Health, Human Services and Education; Land Use, Housing and Transportation; Governmental Operations; Organizational Development; and Public Safety. The Council President reviews all proposed legislation and assigns it to the appropriate standing committee according to subject matter. The standing committee then reviews the proposed legislation and returns its recommendation to the full Council. [8]
The Richmond City Council uses ordinances and resolutions to create and amend local laws and to affect local government operations. In the City of Richmond, City Council ordinances have the effect of local law and are codified in the Richmond Code of Laws. [9] City Council resolutions generally do not have the effect of law but instead are used to express the Council's will, intent, or policy on a particular matter. Resolutions are also generally used to appoint individuals to serve on local and regional boards, commissions, committees, and task forces. As of 2020 [update] , there are approximately fifty such groups that help provide oversight on various topics, programs, and services. [10]
As of January 2021 [update] , the Richmond City Council consisted of:
The Richmond City Council appoints and provides oversight of six offices.
Article VII, Section 4 of the Constitution of Virginia requires each county and city to elect a treasurer, sheriff, Commonwealth's attorney, clerk, and commissioner of revenue. [18]
Commonwealth's attorney is the title given to prosecutors in Virginia, who are elected for four year terms. [18] As of June 2020 [update] , Colette McEachin was the Commonwealth Attorney for the City of Richmond with a term ending in 2021. McEachin assumed the role of interim Commonwealth's Attorney upon the resignation of Michael Herring on July 1, 2019. [19] McEachin ran unopposed as the Democratic Party candidate in the 2019 special general election to fill the remainder of Herring's term and was elected with 97.6% of the vote. [20]
Virginia circuit court clerks are elected for eight year terms. [18] As of June 2020 [update] , Edward F. Jewett served as the Richmond Circuit Court Clerk with a term ending in 2028. [21] Jewett, formerly the chief deputy clerk, assumed the office of Interim Circuit Court Clerk in 2014 upon the retirement of Circuit Court Clerk Bevill M. Dean. [22] He was elected as Circuit Court Clerk in a 2014 special election to fill the remainder of Dean's term. [23] Jewett ran unopposed as the Democratic Party candidate in the 2019 general election and was elected with 98% of the vote. [23]
Sheriffs in Virginia are elected for four year terms. [18] As of June 2020 [update] , Antoinette V. Irving was the Sheriff for the City of Richmond. Prior to assuming the office of Sheriff on January 1, 2018, Irving worked in the Henrico County Sheriff's Office for over 25 years, where she was the first woman to be promoted to the rank of major. [24] In the 2017 Democratic primary, Irving was successful in her third consecutive attempt to unseat the incumbent, Sheriff C.T. Woody Jr., who was running for a fourth term. [25] Irving narrowly defeated Woody in the Democratic primary, receiving 51.7% of the vote, [26] and she won the 2017 general election with 61.5% of the vote. [27]
As of June 2020 [update] , Nicole R. Armistead was the Richmond City Treasurer. [28] Armistead ran as the Democratic Party candidate in the 2017 general election and was elected as city treasurer with 47% of the vote. [29]
Department | Director |
---|---|
Animal Care and Control | Christie Chipps Peters [30] |
Budget and Strategic Planning | Jay A. Brown [31] |
City Treasurer's Office | Treasurer Nichole Richardson Armstead [28] |
Community Wealth Building | Valaryee N. Mitchell [32] |
Economic Development | |
Emergency Communications | Stephen M. Willoughby |
Finance | |
Fire and Emergency Services | Fire Chief Melvin D. Carter |
Housing and Community Development | |
Human Resources | Mona Adkins-Easley |
Human Services | Reggie Gordon [33] |
Information Technology | Charles Todd |
Justice Services | Dawn Barber [34] |
Minority Business Development | |
Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities | |
Planning and Development Review | |
Procurement Services | |
Public Utilities | |
Public Works | Bobby Vincent Jr. [35] |
Richmond Police Department | Chief Gerald M. Smith [36] |
Sheriff's Office | Sheriff Antoinette V. Irving [37] |
Social Services | Shunda Giles [38] |
Sustainability |
Mecklenburg County is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 30,319. Its county seat is Boydton.
The Supreme Court of Virginia is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It primarily hears direct appeals in civil cases from the trial-level city and county circuit courts, as well as the criminal law, family law and administrative law cases that are initially appealed to the Court of Appeals of Virginia. Established in 1779 as the Supreme Court of Appeals, the Supreme Court of Virginia is one of the oldest continuously active judicial bodies in the United States.
The Mayor of the City of Richmond, Virginia is head of the executive branch of Richmond, Virginia's city government. The mayor's office administers all city services, public property, police and fire protection, most public agencies, and enforces all city, state and federal laws within Richmond, Virginia.
The government of the U.S. State of Oklahoma, established by the Oklahoma Constitution, is a republican democracy modeled after the federal government of the United States. The state government has three branches: the executive, legislative, and judicial. Through a system of separation of powers or "checks and balances," each of these branches has some authority to act on its own, some authority to regulate the other two branches, and has some of its own authority, in turn, regulated by the other branches.
The government of Virginia combines the executive, legislative and judicial branches of authority in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The current governor of Virginia is Glenn Youngkin. The State Capitol building in Richmond was designed by Thomas Jefferson, and the cornerstone was laid by Governor Patrick Henry in 1785. Virginia currently functions under the 1971 Constitution of Virginia. It is Virginia's seventh constitution. Under the Constitution, the government is composed of three branches: the legislative, the executive and the judicial.
The Government of West Virginia is modeled after the Government of the United States, with three branches: the executive, consisting of the Governor of West Virginia and the other elected constitutional officers; the legislative, consisting of the West Virginia Legislature which includes the Senate and the House of Delegates; and the judicial, consisting of the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals and lower courts.
The government of Jacksonville is organized under the city charter and provides for a "strong" mayor–council system. The most notable feature of the government in Jacksonville, Florida, is that it is consolidated with Duval County, which the jurisdictions agreed to in the 1968 Jacksonville Consolidation.
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is governed by a set of political tenets laid down in its state constitution. Legislative power is held by the bicameral General Court, which is composed of the Senate and House of Representatives. The governor exercises executive power with other independently elected officers: the Attorney General, Secretary of the Commonwealth, and Auditor. The state's judicial power rests in the Supreme Judicial Court, which manages its court system. Cities and towns act through local governmental bodies to the extent that they are authorized by the Commonwealth on local issues, including limited home-rule authority. Although most county governments were abolished during the 1990s and 2000s, a handful remain.
The Richmond Police Department (RPD) is the primary law enforcement agency for the 230,436 people within the 62.5 square miles (162 km2) jurisdiction of Richmond, Virginia. The department employs about 750 sworn officers and about 170 civilians.
A clerk is a senior official of many municipal governments in the English-speaking world. In some communities, including most in the United States, the position is elected, but in many others, the clerk is appointed to their post. In the UK, a town or parish clerk is appointed by the town or parish council members. In almost all cases, the actual title of the clerk reflects the type of municipality they work for; thus, instead of simply being known as the clerk, the position is generally referred to as the town clerk, township clerk, city clerk, village clerk, borough clerk, board secretary, or county clerk. Other titles also exist, such as recorder and corporate officer. The office has existed for centuries, though in some places it is now being merged with other positions.
The Judiciary of Virginia is defined under the Constitution and law of Virginia and is composed of the Supreme Court of Virginia and subordinate courts, including the Court of Appeals, the Circuit Courts, and the General District Courts. Its administration is headed by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, the Judicial Council, the Committee on District Courts, the Judicial Conferences, the Judicial Inquiry and Review Commission, and various other offices and officers.
Levar Marcus Stoney is an American politician who has served as the 80th mayor of Richmond, Virginia since 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the Secretary of the Commonwealth of Virginia from 2014 through 2016, being the youngest member of Governor Terry McAuliffe's administration.
The 2017 Virginia lieutenant gubernatorial election was held on November 7, 2017. After the party primary elections were held, the major party nominees were Jill Vogel (Republican) and Justin Fairfax (Democrat). The incumbent Lieutenant Governor, Democrat Ralph Northam, declined to run for re-election in order to run for Governor. In the general election on November 7, 2017, Democratic nominee Justin Fairfax defeated Republican state Senator Jill Vogel to become the 41st Lieutenant Governor of Virginia.
Richmond, Virginia, held a general election on November 8, 2016. Voters elected the Mayor of Richmond, Virginia, members of the Richmond City Council, as well as several other local officials. In an officially nonpartisan, three-way race, Levar Stoney, the former state Secretary of the Commonwealth defeated Jack Berry, former Hanover County Administrator, and Joe Morrissey, former delegate of the Virginia House of Delegates. Former councilperson, Michelle Mosby, finished in a distant third. On January 1, 2017, Stoney took office as the 80th mayor of Richmond, Virginia.
The Cook County, Illinois, general election was held on November 3, 2020. Elections were held for Clerk of the Circuit Court, State's Attorney, Cook County Board of Review district 1, three seats on the Water Reclamation District Board, and judgeships on the Circuit Court of Cook County.
Richmond, Virginia, held a general election on November 3, 2020. Voters elected the mayor of Richmond, Virginia, members of the Richmond City Council, and several other local officials. The incumbent, Levar Stoney, who was elected in 2016, ran for reelection, facing five challengers. While local races in Virginia are officially nonpartisan elections, four candidates identified with the Democratic party while Griffin ran as an independent. Stoney won the most votes in six out of nine city council districts, and therefore won reelection. In order to win election, a candidate must receive the most votes in five or more districts.
The mayor of Virginia Beach is the head of the municipal government in Virginia Beach, Virginia, which has a council-manager system of government. The mayor presides over city council meetings and serves as the ceremonial head and spokesperson of the city. The mayor is elected to a four-year term through direct election and the office has no term limits. These elections are nonpartisan, as are all municipal elections in Virginia Beach. Prior to 1988, the mayor was appointed from among city council members elected to represent the city's various boroughs. The mayor's office is located within the City Clerk's office in the Virginia Beach Municipal Center.
The 2025 Virginia gubernatorial election will be held on November 4, 2025. Incumbent Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin will be ineligible to run for re-election, as the Constitution of Virginia prohibits the state's governors from serving consecutive terms.
A general election will be held in the U.S. state of Kentucky on November 5, 2024. The primary election for all offices was held on May 21, 2024. The last day to register to vote in the primary election was April 22 and the last day to register to vote in the general election is October 7.