Virginia House of Delegates
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The Virginia House of Delegates is the lower house of the Virginia General Assembly. It has 100 members elected for terms of two years; unlike most states, these elections take place during odd-numbered years. The House is presided over by the Speaker of the House, who is elected from among the House membership by the Delegates. The Speaker is almost always a member of the majority party and, as Speaker, becomes the most powerful member of the House. The House shares legislative power with the Senate of Virginia, the upper house of the Virginia General Assembly. The House of Delegates is the modern-day successor to the Virginia House of Burgesses. The House is divided into Democratic and Republican caucuses. In addition to the Speaker, there is a majority leader, majority caucus chair, minority leader, minority caucus chair, and the chairs of the several committees of the House. The Virginia House of Delegates is considered the oldest continuous English-speaking legislative body in the New World, having been formed as the House of Burgesses at Jamestown in 1619.
The House has met in Virginia's Capitol Building, designed by Thomas Jefferson, since 1788. In recent years, the General Assembly members and staff operate from offices in the General Assembly Building, located in Capitol Square.
Republicans took control of the traditionally Democratic House of Delegates for the first time since Reconstruction in 1999 (with the exception of a brief 2 year period in which the Readjuster Party was in the majority in the 1880s). However, the Democrats began making a comeback under the leadership of Governors Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, gaining 6 seats during Warner's term in office (2002-2006), and 1 in a special election at the beginning of Kaine's term.
Make-up of the Virginia House of Delegates
| Affiliation | Members | |
| #FF3333> | Republican Party | 57 |
| #3333FF> | Democratic Party | 40 |
| Independent | 3 | |
| Total | 100 | |
| Government Majority | 14 | |
Party Control
| Year | Democratic Party | Republican Party | Independent | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #3333FF> | 1998-2000 | 50 | 49 | 1 |
| #FF3333> | 2000-2002 | 47 | 52 | 1 |
| #FF3333> | 2002-2004 | 34 | 64 | 2 |
| #FF3333> | 2004-2006 | 37 | 61 | 2 |
| #FF3333> | 2006-2008 | 40 | 57 | 3 |
House Leadership
{| table border="1" cellpadding="2" ! Position !! Name !! Party !! District |- |
Members
| Office | Name | Party and District | First Election | Next Election | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #FF3333> | Delegate | Matt Lohr [link] | Republican Party (26) | 2005 | 2007 |
| #FF3333> | Delegate | Vince Callahan | Republican Party (34) | 1967 | 2007 |
| Delegate | Steve Shannon [link] | Democratic Party (35) | 2003 | 2007 | |
| Delegate | Ken Plum [link] | Democratic Party (36) | 1977 | 2007 | |
| Delegate | David Bulova [link] | Democratic Party (37) | 2005 | 2007 | |
| Delegate | Bob Hull [link] | Democratic Party (38) | 1993 | 2007 | |
| Delegate | Vivian Watts [link] | Democratic Party (39) | 1995 | 2007 | |
| #FF3333> | Delegate | Tim Hugo [link] | Republican Party (40) | 2001 | 2007 |
| Delegate | Dave Marsden [link] | Democratic Party (41) | 2005 | 2007 | |
| #FF3333> | Delegate | Dave Albo [link] | Republican Party (42) | 1993 | 2007 |
| Delegate | Mark Sickles [link] | Democratic Party (43) | 2003 | 2007 | |
| Delegate | Kris Amundson [link] | Democratic Party (44) | 2001 | 2007 | |
| Delegate | David Englin [link] | Democratic Party (45) | 2005 | 2007 | |
| Delegate | Brian Moran [link] | Democratic Party (46) | 1995 | 2007 | |
| Delegate | Albert Eisenberg [link] | Democratic Party (47) | 2003 | 2007 | |
| Delegate | Robert Brink [link] | Democratic Party (48) | 1997 | 2007 | |
| Delegate | Adam Ebbin [link] | Democratic Party (49) | 2003 | 2007 | |
| Delegate | Jim Scott | Democratic Party (53) | 1991 | 2007 | |
| Delegate | Chuck Caputo [link] | Democratic Party (67) | 2005 | 2007 | |
| #FF3333> | Delegate | Tom Rust [link] | Republican Party (86) | 2001 | 2007 |
See also:
External link
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