View source for Virginia

{{short description|U.S. state}}
{{About|the U.S. state}}
{{redirect|The Old Dominion||Old Dominion (disambiguation){{!}}Old Dominion}}
{{Featured article}}
{{protection padlock|small=yes}}
{{Use mdy dates|date = February 2025}}
{{Use American English|date=February 2025}}
{{Infobox U.S. state
| official_name = Commonwealth of Virginia
| image_flag = Flag of Virginia.svg
| name = Virginia
| anthem = "[[Our Great Virginia]]"<div style="display:inline-block;margin-top:0.4em;">[[File:Our Great Virginia.ogg|start=00:02|Our Great Virginia]]</div>
| flag_alt = Navy blue flag with the circular Seal of Virginia centered on it.
| image_seal = Seal of Virginia.svg
| seal_alt = A circular seal with the words "Virginia" on the top and "Sic Semper Tyrannis" on the bottom. In the center, a woman wearing a blue toga and Athenian helmet stands on the chest of dead man wearing a purple breastplate and skirt. The woman holds a spear and sheathed sword. The man holds a broken chain while his crown lies away from the figures. Orange leaves encircle the seal.
| flag_link = Flag of Virginia
| seal_link = Seal of Virginia
| nicknames = Old Dominion, Mother of Presidents
| motto = {{nowrap|{{lang|la|[[Sic semper tyrannis]]}}}}<br />{{nowrap|(English: Thus Always to Tyrants)}}<ref name="sic">{{harvnb|Hamilton|2016|pp=6}}</ref>
| image_map = Virginia in United States.svg
| map_alt = Virginia is located on the Atlantic coast along the line that divides the northern and southern halves of the United States. It runs mostly east to west. It includes a small peninsula across a bay which is discontinuous with the rest of the state.
| OfficialLang = English
| Languages = {{plainlist|
* English 86%
* Spanish 6%
* Other 8%}}
| population_demonym = Virginian
| seat = [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]]
| LargestCity = [[Virginia Beach, Virginia|Virginia Beach]]
| LargestCounty = [[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax]]
| LargestMetro = [[Washington metropolitan area|Washington]] (metro and urban)
| area_rank = 35th
| area_total_sq_mi = 42,774.2
| area_total_km2 = 110,785.67
| width_mi = 200
| width_km = 320
| length_mi = 430
| length_km = 690
| area_water_percent = 7.4
| Latitude = 36°&nbsp;32′&nbsp;N to 39°&nbsp;28′&nbsp;N
| Longitude = 75°&nbsp;15′&nbsp;W to 83°&nbsp;41′&nbsp;W
| population_rank = 12th
| population_as_of = 2024
| 2010Pop = {{IncreaseNeutral}} 8,811,195<ref name=QuickFacts/>
| MedianHouseholdIncome = {{Increase}} ${{round|89931|-2}} (2<span>0</span>23)<ref name=mhi>{{Cite web|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/2024/demo/acsbr-023.pdf|title=Household Income in States and Metropolitan Areas: 2023|access-date=January 12, 2025}}</ref>
| 2000DensityUS = 219.3
| 2000Density = 84.7
| population_density_rank = 15th
| IncomeRank = [[List of U.S. states and territories by income#States and territories ranked by median household income|11th]]
| elevation_max_point = [[Mount Rogers (Virginia)|Mount Rogers]]<ref name=mtrogers/>
| elevation_max_ft = 5,729
| elevation_max_m = 1746
| elevation_ft = 950
| elevation_m = 290
| elevation_min_point = [[Atlantic Ocean]]
| elevation_min_m = 0
| elevation_min_ft = 0
| Former = Colony of Virginia
| AdmittanceDate = June 25, 1788
| AdmittanceOrder = 10th
| Governor = {{nowrap|[[Glenn Youngkin]] ([[Republican Party (United States)|R]])}}
| Lieutenant Governor = {{nowrap|[[Winsome Earle-Sears]] (R)}}
| Legislature = [[Virginia General Assembly|General Assembly]]
| Upperhouse = [[Senate of Virginia|Senate]]
| Lowerhouse = [[Virginia House of Delegates|House of Delegates]]
| Judiciary = [[Supreme Court of Virginia]]
| Senators = {{plainlist|
* {{nowrap|[[Mark Warner]] ([[Democratic Party (United States)|D]])}}
* {{nowrap|[[Tim Kaine]] (D)}}}}
| Representative = 6 Democrats<br />5 Republicans
| timezone1 = [[Eastern Time Zone|Eastern]]
| utc_offset1 = −05:00
| timezone1_DST = [[Eastern Daylight Time|EDT]]
| utc_offset1_DST = −04:00
| iso_code = US-VA
| postal_code = VA
| TradAbbreviation = Va.
| website = virginia.gov
| Capital = 
| Representatives = 
}}
'''Virginia''', officially the '''Commonwealth of Virginia''',{{efn|Virginia is one of [[Commonwealth (U.S. state)|four U.S. states]] to use the term "Commonwealth" in its official name, along with [[Massachusetts]], [[Kentucky]], and [[Pennsylvania]].}} is a [[U.S. state|state]] in the [[Southeastern United States|Southeastern]] and [[Mid-Atlantic (United States)|Mid-Atlantic]] regions of the [[United States]] between the [[East Coast of the United States|Atlantic Coast]] and the [[Appalachian Mountains]]. The state's [[List of capitals in the United States|capital]] is [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]] and its most populous city is [[Virginia Beach, Virginia|Virginia Beach]]. Its most populous subdivision is [[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax County]], part of [[Northern Virginia]], where slightly over a third of Virginia's population of more than 8.8{{nbsp}}million live.

Eastern Virginia is part of the [[Atlantic Plain]], and the [[Middle Peninsula]] forms the mouth of the [[Chesapeake Bay]]. Central Virginia lies predominantly in the [[Piedmont (United States)|Piedmont]], the foothill region of the [[Blue Ridge Mountains]], which cross the western and southwestern parts of the state. The fertile [[Shenandoah Valley]] fosters the state's most productive agricultural counties, while the economy in Northern Virginia is driven by [[technology company|technology companies]] and [[Federal government of the United States|U.S. federal government]] agencies. [[Hampton Roads]] is also the site of the [[Virginia Port Authority|region's main seaport]] and [[Naval Station Norfolk]], the world's largest naval base.

Virginian history begins with [[Native American tribes in Virginia|several Indigenous groups]], including the [[Powhatan]]. In 1607, the [[London Company]] established the [[Colony of Virginia]] as the first permanent [[English overseas possessions|English colony]] in the [[New World]], leading to Virginia's nickname as '''the Old Dominion'''. Slaves from Africa and land from displaced native tribes fueled the growing plantation economy, but also fueled conflicts both inside and outside the colony. Virginians [[Virginia in the American Revolution|fought for the independence]] of the [[Thirteen Colonies]] in the [[American Revolution]], and helped establish the new national government. During the [[Virginia in the American Civil War|American Civil War]], the state government in Richmond joined the [[Confederated States of America|Confederacy]], while many northwestern counties remained loyal to the [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]], which led to the separation of [[West Virginia]] in 1863.

Although the state was under [[Solid South|one-party Democratic rule]] for nearly a century following the [[Reconstruction era of the United States|Reconstruction era]], both major political parties have been competitive in Virginia since the repeal of [[Jim Crow laws|racial segregation laws]] in the 1960s and 1970s. Virginia's state legislature is the [[Virginia General Assembly]], which was established in July 1619, making it the oldest extant law-making body in [[North America]]. Unlike other states, cities and counties in Virginia function as approximate equals, but the state government manages most local roads. It is also the only state where governors are prohibited from serving consecutive terms.

==History==
{{Main|History of Virginia}}

=== Earliest inhabitants ===
{{Main|Native American tribes in Virginia}}
{{stack|float=right|margin=true|[[File:Pocahontas-14.jpg|thumb|The story of [[Pocahontas]] was simplified and romanticized by later artists and authors, including [[John Smith (explorer)|Smith]] himself, and promoted by her descendants, some of whom married into [[First Families of Virginia|elite colonial families]].<ref name=slate_pocahontas>{{cite news |url= http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/science/2014/06/pocahontas_wedding_re_enactment_john_rolfe_john_smith_and_native_americans.html |title= Pocahontas: Fantasy and Reality |work= Slate Magazine |first= Laurie Gwen |last= Shapiro |date= June 22, 2014 |access-date= June 23, 2014 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140623013337/http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/science/2014/06/pocahontas_wedding_re_enactment_john_rolfe_john_smith_and_native_americans.html |archive-date= June 23, 2014 |url-status= live}}</ref>|alt=A simple drawing of a young dark-haired Native American woman speaking to two men in armor from the early 1600s. Several Native Americans look on from the right.]]}}
Nomadic hunters are [[Peopling of the Americas|estimated to have arrived]] in Virginia around 17,000 years ago. Evidence from [[Daugherty's Cave and Breeding Site|Daugherty's Cave]] shows it was regularly used as a [[rock shelter]] by 9,800 years ago.{{sfn|Egloff|Woodward|2006|pp=2–14}} During the late [[Woodland period]] (500–1000 [[Common Era|CE]]), tribes coalesced, and farming, first of corn and squash, began, with beans and tobacco arriving from [[Southwestern United States|the southwest]] and Mexico by the end of the period. [[Palisade]]d towns began to be built around 1200. The native population in the current boundaries of Virginia reached around 50,000 in the 1500s.{{sfn|Egloff|Woodward|2006|pp=5, 31–39}} Large groups in the area at that time included the [[Algonquian peoples|Algonquian]] in the [[Tidewater region of Virginia|Tidewater region]], which they referred to as [[Tsenacommacah]], the [[Iroquoian languages|Iroquoian]]-speaking [[Nottoway Tribe|Nottoway]] and [[Meherrin]] to the north and south, and the [[Tutelo]], who spoke [[Siouan languages|Siouan]], to the west.<ref name=heinemann/>

In response to threats from these other groups to their trade network, thirty or so [[Powhatan language|Virginia Algonquian]]-speaking tribes consolidated during the 1570s under Wahunsenacawh, known in English as [[Chief Powhatan]].<ref name=heinemann>{{harvnb|Heinemann|Kolp|Parent|Shade|2007|pp=4–11}}</ref> Powhatan controlled more than 150&nbsp;settlements that had a total population of around 15,000 in 1607.<ref>{{cite web|first=Sarah J.|last=Stebbins|date=August 20, 2020|title=Chronology of Powhatan Indian Activity|url=https://www.nps.gov/jame/learn/historyculture/chronology-of-powhatan-indian-activity.htm|access-date=February 14, 2022|publisher=National Park Service}}</ref> Three-fourths of the native population in Virginia, however, died from [[smallpox]] and other [[Old World diseases]] during that century,<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.nlm.nih.gov/nativevoices/timeline/220.html |title= 1700: Virginia Native peoples succumb to smallpox |website= National Institutes of Health |date= July 10, 2020 |access-date= June 11, 2021}}</ref> disrupting their [[oral tradition]]s and complicating research into earlier periods.<ref>{{cite journal |url= https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/etd/1553 |title= How Cultural Factors Hastened the Population Decline of the Powhatan Indians
|first= Julia Ruth |last= Beckley |website= Virginia Commonwealth University Scholars Compass |date= May 2008 |doi= 10.25772/VWYX-2J21
|access-date= August 10, 2023}}</ref> Additionally, many primary sources, including those that mention Powhatan's daughter, [[Pocahontas]], were created by Europeans, who may have held biases or misunderstood native social structures and customs.<ref name=slate_pocahontas/><ref>{{cite web |url= https://states.aarp.org/virginia/virginia-treasures-pocahontas-her-real-world-versus-the-legend |title= Virginia Treasures: Pocahontas—Her Real World Versus the Legend |first= Myra |last= Basnight |website= AARP |date= June 7, 2022 |access-date= August 10, 2023}}</ref>

===Colony===
{{Main|Colony of Virginia}}
Several European expeditions, including a [[Ajacán Mission|group of Spanish Jesuits]], explored the [[Chesapeake Bay]] during the 16th century.<ref>{{cite journal|author=Glanville, Jim|url=http://www.holstonia.net/files/Conquistadors2.pdf|title=16th Century Spanish Invasions of Southwest Virginia|type=Reprint|journal=Historical Society of Western Virginia Journal|volume=XVII|issue=1|pages=34–42|year=2009|access-date=January 27, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131212092301/http://www.holstonia.net/files/Conquistadors2.pdf|archive-date=December 12, 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> To help counter [[Spanish West Indies|Spain's colonies in the Caribbean]], Queen [[Elizabeth I of England]] supported [[Walter Raleigh]]'s 1584 expedition to the [[East Coast of the United States|Atlantic coast of North America]].{{sfn|Wallenstein|2007|pp=8–9}}{{sfn|Moran|2007|p=8}} The name "Virginia" was used by Captain [[Arthur Barlowe]] in the expedition's report, and may have been suggested by Raleigh or Elizabeth (perhaps noting her status as the "Virgin Queen" or that they viewed the land as being untouched) or related to an [[Algonquin language|Algonquin]] phrase, ''Wingandacoa'' or ''Windgancon'', or leader's name, [[Wingina]], as heard by the expedition.{{sfn|Stewart|2008|p=22}}<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.pilotonline.com/history/article_bae82fca-f03f-5c5e-8770-89e925406801.html |title= What's in a name? |first= Elisabeth |last= Hulette |newspaper= The Virginian-Pilot |date= March 19, 2012 |access-date= June 30, 2021}}</ref> The name initially applied to the entire coastal region from [[South Carolina]] in the south to [[Maine]] in the north, along with the island of [[Bermuda]].{{sfn|Vollmann|2002|pp=695–696}} [[Roanoke Colony|Raleigh's colony]] failed, but the potential financial and strategic gains still captivated many English policymakers. In 1606, [[James I of England|King James I]] issued a [[First Virginia Charter|charter for a new colony]] to the [[London Company|Virginia Company of London]]. The group financed an expedition under [[Christopher Newport]] that established a settlement named [[Jamestown, Virginia|Jamestown]] in 1607.{{sfn|Conlin|2009|pp=30–31}}

Though more settlers soon joined, many were ill-prepared for the dangers of the new settlement. As the colony's president, [[John Smith (explorer)|John Smith]] secured food for the colonists from nearby tribes, but after he left in 1609, this trade stopped and a [[Anglo-Powhatan Wars|series of ambush-style killings]] between colonists and natives under [[Powhatan (Native American leader)|Chief Powhatan]] and [[Opechancanough|his brother]] began, resulting in [[Starving Time (Jamestown)|mass starvation in the colony]] that winter.<ref>{{harvnb|Hoffer|2006|p=132}}; {{harvnb|Grizzard|Smith|2007|pp=128–133}}</ref> By the end of the colony's first fourteen years, over eighty percent of the roughly eight thousand settlers transported there had died.{{sfn|Heinemann|Kolp|Parent|Shade|2007|pp=30}} [[Tobacco in the American Colonies|Demand for exported tobacco]], however, fueled the need for more workers.{{sfn|Wallenstein|2007|p=22}} Starting in 1618, the [[headright]] system tried to solve this by granting colonists farmland for their help attracting [[indentured servant]]s.{{sfn|Hashaw|2007|pp=76–77, 239–240}} Enslaved Africans [[First Africans in Virginia|were first sold in Virginia]] in 1619. Though other Africans arrived as indentured servants and could be freed after four to seven years, the basis for [[History of slavery in Virginia|lifelong slavery]] was developed in legal cases like those of [[John Punch (slave)|John Punch]] in 1640 and [[John Casor]] in 1655.<ref>{{Cite news |url= https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/horrible-fate-john-casor-180962352/ |title= The Horrible Fate of John Casor, The First Black Man to be Declared Slave for Life in America |first= Kat |last= Eschner |magazine= Smithsonian Magazine |date= March 8, 2017 |access-date= June 5, 2020}}</ref> Laws passed in Jamestown defined slavery as [[Race (human categorization)|race-based]] in 1661, as [[Partus sequitur ventrem|inherited maternally]] in 1662, and as enforceable by death in 1669.{{sfn|Hashaw|2007|pp=211–215}}

[[File:The Governor's Palace -- Williamsburg (VA) September 2012.jpg|thumb|left|In 1699, after the statehouse in [[Jamestown, Virginia|Jamestown]] was destroyed by fire, the [[Colony of Virginia]]'s capitol was moved to [[Williamsburg, Virginia|Williamsburg]], where the [[College of William & Mary]] was founded six years earlier.{{sfn|Heinemann|Kolp|Parent|Shade|2007|pp=76–77}}|alt=A three-story red brick colonial-style hall and its left and right wings during summer.]]
From the colony's start, residents agitated for greater local control, and in 1619, certain male colonists began electing representatives to an assembly, later called the [[House of Burgesses]], that negotiated issues with the [[Virginia Governor's Council|governing council]] appointed by the London Company.{{sfn|Gordon|2004|p=17}} Unhappy with this arrangement, the monarchy revoked the company's charter and began directly naming [[List of colonial governors of Virginia|governors]] and Council members in 1624. In 1635, colonists arrested [[John Harvey (Virginia governor)|a governor who ignored the assembly]] and sent him back to England against his will.{{sfn|Heinemann|Kolp|Parent|Shade|2007|pp=32, 37}} [[William Berkeley (governor)|William Berkeley]] was named governor in 1642, just as the turmoil of the [[English Civil War]] and [[British Interregnum|Interregnum]] permitted the colony greater autonomy.<ref>{{cite book |last= Billings |first= Warren |title= A Little Parliament: The Virginia General Assembly in the Seventeenth Century |location= Richmond |publisher= Library of Virginia |date= 2004 |pages= 30–35 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=FQiGAAAAMAAJ |isbn= 978-0-88490-202-7}}</ref> As a supporter of the king, Berkeley welcomed other [[Virginia Cavaliers (historical)|Cavaliers]] who fled to Virginia. He surrendered to [[Roundhead|Parliamentarians]] in 1652, but after the 1660 [[Stuart Restoration|Restoration]] made him governor again, he blocked assembly elections and exacerbated the [[Class stratification|class divide]] by disenfranchising and restricting the movement of indentured servants, who made up around eighty percent of the workforce.{{sfn|Tarter|2020|pp=62}} On the colony's frontier, [[Native American tribes in Virginia|tribes]] like the [[Tutelo]] and [[Doeg people|Doeg]] were being squeezed by [[Seneca people|Seneca]] raiders from the north, leading to more confrontations with colonists. In 1676, several hundred working-class followers of [[Nathaniel Bacon (Virginia colonist)|Nathaniel Bacon]], upset by Berkeley's refusal to retaliate against the tribes, burned Jamestown.{{sfn|Heinemann|Kolp|Parent|Shade|2007|pp=51–59}}

[[Bacon's Rebellion]] forced the signing of [[Bacon's Laws]], which restored some of the colony's rights and sanctioned both attacks on native tribes and the enslavement of their people.{{sfn|Tarter|2020|pp=51–57}}<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.nps.gov/ethnography/aah/aaheritage/lowcountry_furthrdg1.htm |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100830161805/http://www.nps.gov/ethnography/aah/aaheritage/lowCountry_furthRdg1.htm |archive-date= August 30, 2010 |title= Work, Marriage, Christianity |website= National Park Service |date= April 20, 2022 |access-date= November 11, 2024}}</ref> The [[Treaty of 1677]] further reduced the independence of the tribes that signed it, and aided the colony's assimilation of their land in the years that followed.{{sfn|Heinemann|Kolp|Parent|Shade|2007|pp=57}}{{sfn|Shefveland|2016|pp=59–62}} Colonists in the 1700s were pushing westward into the area held by the Seneca and their larger [[Iroquois|Iroquois Nation]], and in 1748, a group of wealthy speculators, backed by the British monarchy, formed the [[Ohio Company]] to start English settlement and trade in the [[Ohio Country]] west of the [[Appalachian Mountains]].{{sfn|Anderson|2000|p=23}} France, which claimed this area as part of [[New France]], viewed this as a threat, and in 1754 the [[French and Indian War]] engulfed England, France, the Iroquois, and other allied tribes on both sides. A militia from several British colonies, called the [[Virginia Regiment]], was led by Major [[George Washington]], himself one of the investors in the Ohio Company.{{sfn|Anderson|2000|pp=42–43}}

===Statehood===
{{see also|Virginia in the American Revolution}}
{{stack|float=right|margin=true|[[File:Patrick-Henry-by-Rothermel.jpg|thumb|upright=0.75|In 1765, [[Patrick Henry]] led a [[Virginia Resolves|protest]] of the unpopular [[Stamp Act 1765|Stamp Act]] in the [[House of Burgesses]], later depicted in this portrait by [[Peter F. Rothermel]].|alt=Upper-class middle-aged man dressed in a bright red cloak speaks before an assembly of other angry men. The subject's right hand is raise high in gesture toward the balcony.]]}}
In the decade following the [[French and Indian War]], the [[Parliament of Great Britain|British Parliament]] passed new taxes which were deeply unpopular in the colonies. In the [[House of Burgesses]], opposition to [[No taxation without representation|taxation without representation]] was led by [[Patrick Henry]] and [[Richard Henry Lee]], among others.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/declaration/bio26.htm|title=Signers of the Declaration (Richard Henry Lee)|publisher=[[National Park Service]]|date=April 13, 2006|access-date=February 2, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080611071114/http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/declaration/bio26.htm|archive-date=June 11, 2008}}</ref> Virginians began to [[committee of correspondence|coordinate their actions]] with other colonies in 1773 and sent delegates to the [[Continental Congress]] the following year.{{sfn|Gutzman|2007|pp=24–29}} After the House of Burgesses was dissolved in 1774 by [[John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmore|the royal governor]], Virginia's revolutionary leaders continued to govern via the [[Virginia Conventions]]. On May 15, 1776, the Convention declared Virginia's independence and adopted [[George Mason]]'s [[Virginia Declaration of Rights]], which was then included in a new constitution that designated Virginia as a [[commonwealth]].{{sfn|Heinemann|Kolp|Parent|Shade|2007|pp=125–133}} Another Virginian, [[Thomas Jefferson]], drew upon Mason's work in drafting the national [[United States Declaration of Independence|Declaration of Independence]].<ref name=mason>{{cite journal|last=Schwartz|first=Stephan A.|title=George Mason: Forgotten Founder, He Conceived the Bill of Rights|journal=[[Smithsonian (magazine)|Smithsonian]]|issue=2|page=142|date=May 2000|volume=31}}</ref>

After the [[American Revolutionary War]] began, [[George Washington]] was selected by the [[Second Continental Congress]] in [[Philadelphia]] to head the [[Continental Army]], and many [[Virginia Line|Virginians joined the army]] and revolutionary militias. Virginia was the first colony to ratify the [[Articles of Confederation]] in December 1777.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.politico.com/story/2010/11/articles-of-confederation-adopted-nov-15-1777-045100 |title= Articles of Confederation adopted, Nov. 15, 1777 |first= Andrew |last= Glass |website= Politico |date= November 15, 2010 |access-date= April 23, 2021}}</ref> In April 1780, the capital was moved to [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]] at the urging of Governor Thomas Jefferson, who feared that Williamsburg's coastal location would make it vulnerable to British attack.{{sfn|Cooper|2007|p=58}} British forces under [[Benedict Arnold]] did take [[Portsmouth, Virginia|Portsmouth]] in December 1780, and [[Raid on Richmond|raided Richmond]] the following month.{{sfn|Ketchum|2014|pp=155}} The British army had over seven thousand soldiers and twenty-five warships stationed in Virginia at the beginning of 1781, but [[Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis|General Charles Cornwallis]] and his superiors were indecisive, and maneuvers by the three thousand soldiers under the [[Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette|Marquis de Lafayette]] and twenty-nine allied French warships together managed to [[Yorktown campaign|confine the British]] to a swampy area of the [[Virginia Peninsula]] in September. Around sixteen thousand soldiers under George Washington and [[Comte de Rochambeau]] quickly [[Washington–Rochambeau Revolutionary Route|converged there]] and defeated Cornwallis in the [[siege of Yorktown]].{{sfn|Ketchum|2014|pp=126–131, 137–139, 296}} His surrender on October 19, 1781, led to [[Peace of Paris (1783)|peace negotiations in Paris]] and secured the independence of the colonies.{{sfn|Heinemann|Kolp|Parent|Shade|2007|pp=131–133}}

Virginians were instrumental in writing the [[United States Constitution]]. [[James Madison]] drafted the [[Virginia Plan]] in 1787 and the [[United States Bill of Rights|Bill of Rights]] in 1789,<ref name=mason/> and [[Virginia Ratifying Convention|Virginia ratified]] the Constitution on June 25, 1788. The [[three-fifths compromise]] ensured that Virginia, with its large number of slaves, initially had the largest bloc in the [[United States House of Representatives|House of Representatives]]. Together with the [[Virginia dynasty]] of presidents, this gave the Commonwealth national importance. Virginia is called the "Mother of States" because of its role in being carved into states such as [[Kentucky]], and for the numbers of [[American pioneer]]s born in Virginia.<ref name=Robertson/>

===Civil War===
{{Main|Virginia in the American Civil War}}
[[File:Crowe-Slaves Waiting for Sale - Richmond, Virginia.jpg|thumb|[[Eyre Crowe (painter)|Eyre Crowe]]'s 1853 portrait, ''Slaves Waiting for Sale: Richmond, Virginia'', which he completed after visiting [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]]'s slave markets, where thousands were sold annually<ref>{{cite web |url= https://dsl.richmond.edu/civilwar/slavemarket_essay.html |title= Visualizing the Richmond Slave Trade |first1= Scott |last1= Nesbit |first2= Robert K. |last2= Nelson |first3= Maurie |last3= McInnis |publisher= American Studies Association |location= San Antonio |date= November 2010 |access-date= August 30, 2022}}</ref>|alt=A family of eight women and children sit on a bench behind a cylindrical metal heater, while one adult male sits on his own to the right.]]
Between 1790 and 1860, the number of [[History of slavery in Virginia|slaves in Virginia]] rose from around 290&nbsp;thousand to over 490&nbsp;thousand, roughly one-third of the state population, and the number of slave owners rose to over 50 thousand. Both of these numbers represented the most in the U.S.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://faculty.weber.edu/kmackay/statistics_on_slavery.htm |title= Statistics on Slavery |first= Kathryn L. |last= MacKay |website= Weber State University |date= May 14, 2006 |access-date= July 23, 2022}}</ref>{{sfn|Morgan|1998|p=490}} The boom in [[Cotton Belt|Southern cotton production]] using [[cotton gin]]s to harvest [[Gossypium hirsutum|upland cotton]] increased the amount of labor needed, but [[Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves|new federal laws]] prohibited the importation of slaves. Decades of [[monoculture]] tobacco farming had also [[Land degradation|degraded]] Virginia's [[agricultural productivity]].<ref name=fischer/> Virginia plantations increasingly turned to [[Slave trade in the United States|exporting slaves]], which broke up countless families and made the [[Slave breeding in the United States|breeding of slaves]], often through rape, a profitable business.{{sfn|Bryson|2011|pp=466-467}}{{sfn|Jordan|1995|pp=119–122}} Slaves in the [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]] area were also forced into industrial jobs, including mining and shipbuilding.{{sfn|Davis|2006|pp=125, 208–210}} The failed slave uprisings of [[Gabriel Prosser]] in 1800, [[George Boxley]] in 1815, and [[Nat Turner]] in 1831, however, marked the growing resistance to slavery. Afraid of further uprisings, Virginia's government in the 1830s encouraged free Blacks to migrate to [[Liberia]].<ref name=fischer>{{harvnb|Fischer|Kelly|2000|pp=202–208}}</ref>

On October 16, 1859, abolitionist [[John Brown (abolitionist)|John Brown]] led a [[John Brown's Raid on Harpers Ferry|raid on Harpers Ferry, Virginia]], in an attempt to start a slave revolt across the southern states. The polarized national response to his raid, capture, trial, and execution that December marked a tipping point for many who believed slavery would need to be ended by force.<ref>{{cite magazine |url= https://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2011/spring/brown.html |title= John Brown: America's First Terrorist? |magazine= Prologue Magazine |publisher= U.S. National Archives |date=Spring 2011 |volume= 43 |number= 1 |first= Paul |last= Finkelman |access-date= April 24, 2021}}</ref> [[Abraham Lincoln]]'s 1860 election further convinced many southern supporters of slavery that his opposition to its expansion would ultimately mean the end of slavery across the country. The [[Battle of Fort Sumter|seizure of Fort Sumter]] by [[Confederate States of America|Confederate]] forces on April 14, 1861, prompted Lincoln to [[Proclamation 80|call for the federalization of 75,000 militiamen]].{{sfn|Jaffa|2000|pp=230-236, 357-358}}

[[File:Currier and Ives - The Fall of Richmond, Va. on the Night of April 2d. 1865 (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|The [[Confederate States of America|Confederacy]] used [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]] as their capital from May 1861 till April 1865, when they abandoned the city and set fire to [[Shockoe Slip|its downtown]].|alt=A color drawing of a city skyline in flames as a steady stream of people on horses or in horse-drawn carriages cross a long bridge over a river.]]
The [[Virginia Secession Convention of 1861]] voted on April 17 [[Ordinance of Secession|to secede]] on the condition it was approved in a referendum the next month. The convention voted to join the Confederacy, which named [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]] its capital on May 20.<ref name=Robertson>{{harvnb|Robertson|1993|pp=8–12}}</ref> During the May 23 referendum, armed pro-Confederate groups prevented the casting and counting of votes from areas that opposed secession. Representatives from 27 of these northwestern counties instead began the [[Wheeling Convention]], which organized a government loyal to the [[Union (Civil War)|Union]] and led to the separation of [[West Virginia]] as a new state.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.wvgazettemail.com/west-by-secession-virginia-the-wheeling-conventions-legal-vs-illegal-separation/article_c29e90c7-1863-51bc-8fe8-ae5ccca42134.html |title= West (by secession!) Virginia: The Wheeling Conventions, legal vs. illegal separation |agency= Associated Press |date= June 22, 2011 |first= Greg |last= Carroll |newspaper= The Free Lance-Star |access-date= April 24, 2021}}</ref>

The armies of the Union and Confederacy first met on July 21, 1861, in [[First Battle of Bull Run|Battle of Bull Run]] near [[Manassas, Virginia]], a bloody Confederate victory. Union General [[George B. McClellan]] organized the [[Army of the Potomac]], which [[Peninsula campaign|landed on the Virginia Peninsula]] in March 1862 and reached the outskirts of Richmond that June. With Confederate General [[Joseph E. Johnston]] wounded in fighting outside the city, command of his [[Army of Northern Virginia]] fell to [[Robert E. Lee]]. Over the next month, Lee [[Seven Days Battles|drove the Union army back]], and starting that September led [[Maryland campaign|the first of several invasions]] into Union territory. During the next three years of war, more battles were fought in Virginia than anywhere else, including the battles of [[Battle of Fredericksburg|Fredericksburg]], [[Battle of Chancellorsville|Chancellorsville]], [[Battle of Spotsylvania Court House|Spotsylvania]], and the concluding [[Battle of Appomattox Court House]], where Lee surrendered on April 9, 1865.{{sfn|Goodwin|2012|pp=4}}

===Reconstruction and segregation===
[[File:War time view of Norfolk Va Navy Yard 1918 (49090133192).jpg|thumb|With nearly 800,000 American&nbsp;soldiers passing through its terminals, the [[Hampton Roads]] Port of Embarkation at Newport News became the second-largest U.S. port of embarkation during [[World War I]].<ref name=embarkation>{{cite news |url= https://www.dailypress.com/news/dp-nws-wwi-port-of-embarkation-20170729-story.html |title= On this day in 1917, a giant WWI port of embarkation began to transform Hampton Roads |first= Mark St. John |last= Erickson |newspaper= Virginia Daily Press |date= July 29, 2017 |access-date= August 10, 2022}}</ref>|alt=Several World War I ships line a port crowded with warehouses, with a city skyline behind them.]]
Virginia was formally restored to the United States in 1870, due to the work of the [[Committee of Nine]].{{sfn|Heinemann|Kolp|Parent|Shade|2007|pp=249–250}} During the post-war [[Reconstruction era of the United States|Reconstruction era]], African Americans were able to unite in communities, particularly around [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]], [[Danville, Virginia|Danville]], and the [[Tidewater (region)|Tidewater region]], and take a greater role in Virginia society; many achieved some land ownership during the 1870s.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Medford|first=Edna Greene|author-link=Edna Greene Medford|title=Land and Labor: The Quest for Black Economic Independence on Virginia's Lower Peninsula, 1865–1880|journal=Virginia Magazine of History and Biography|volume=100|issue=4|date=October 1992|jstor=4249314|pages=567–582}}</ref>{{sfn|Davis|2006|pp=328–329}} Virginia [[Virginia Constitutional Convention of 1868|adopted a constitution in 1868]] which guaranteed political, civil, and [[Voting rights in the United States|voting rights]], and provided for free public schools.{{sfn|Morgan|1992|pp=160–166}} However, with many railroad lines and other infrastructure destroyed during the Civil War, the Commonwealth was deeply in debt, and in the late 1870s redirected money from public schools to pay bondholders. The [[Readjuster Party]] formed in 1877 and won legislative power in 1879 by uniting Black and white Virginians behind a shared opposition to debt payments and the perceived [[planter class|plantation elites]].{{sfn|Dailey|Gilmore|Simon|2000|pp=90–96}}

The Readjusters focused on building up schools, like [[Virginia Tech]] and [[Virginia State University|Virginia State]], and successfully forced [[West Virginia]] to share in the pre-war debt.<ref>{{cite book |last= Tarter |first= Brent |title= A Saga of the New South: Race, Law, and Public Debt in Virginia |location= Charlottesville |publisher= University of Virginia Press |year= 2016 |pages= 14, 71 |isbn= 978-0-8139-3876-9 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=DJyBCwAAQBAJ}}</ref> But in 1883, they were divided by a proposed repeal of [[anti-miscegenation laws]], and days before that year's election, a [[Danville Massacre|riot in Danville]], involving armed policemen, left four Black men and one white man dead.<ref>{{cite journal |last= Dailey |first= Jane |title= Deference and Violence in the Postbellum Urban South: Manners and Massacres in Danville, Virginia |journal= The Journal of Southern History |volume= 63 |number= 3 |year= 1997 |pages= 553–590 |doi= 10.2307/2211650 |jstor= 2211650 |url= https://www.jstor.org/stable/2211650. |access-date= May 13, 2021 | issn = 0022-4642|url-access= subscription }}</ref> These events motivated a push by white supremacists to seize political power through [[Voter suppression in the United States|voter suppression]], and segregationists in the [[Democratic Party of Virginia|Democratic Party]] won the legislature that year and [[Solid South|maintained control]] for decades.{{sfn|Dailey|Gilmore|Simon|2000|pp=99–103}} They passed [[Jim Crow laws]] that established a [[Racial segregation in the United States|racially segregated society]], and in 1902 rewrote the [[Constitution of Virginia|state constitution]] to include a [[Poll tax (United States)|poll tax]] and other voter registration measures that effectively [[Disfranchisement after the Reconstruction era|disenfranchised]] most African Americans and many poor whites.{{sfn|Wallenstein|2007|pp=253–254}}

New economic forces meanwhile industrialized the Commonwealth. Virginian [[James Albert Bonsack]] invented the tobacco cigarette rolling machine in 1880 leading to new large-scale production centered around Richmond. Railroad magnate [[Collis Potter Huntington]] founded [[Newport News Shipbuilding]] in 1886, which was responsible for building 38 warships for the [[U.S. Navy]] between 1907 and 1923.{{sfn|Styron|2011|pp=42–43}} During [[World War I]], German submarines attacked ships outside the port,{{sfn|Feuer|1999|pp=50–52}} which was a major site for transportation of soldiers and supplies.<ref name=embarkation/> After the war, a homecoming parade to honor African-American troops was [[1919 Norfolk race riot|attacked in July 1919]] by the city's police as part of a renewed white-supremacy movement, known as [[Red Summer]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://roanoke.com/opinion/editorials/editorial-remembering-the-red-summer-of-1919/article_25cd5f5c-8588-58af-84c9-835d381df8ec.html |title= Editorial: Remembering the Red Summer of 1919 |newspaper= The Roanoke Times |date= July 21, 2019 |access-date= June 23, 2021}}</ref> The shipyard continued building warships in [[World War II]], and quadrupled its pre-war labor force to 70,000 by 1943. The [[Radford Army Ammunition Plant|Radford Arsenal]] outside [[Blacksburg, Virginia|Blacksburg]] also employed 22,000&nbsp;workers making explosives,<ref>{{cite magazine |first= Charles |last= Johnson |title= V for Virginia: The Commonwealth Goes to War |magazine= Virginia Magazine of History and Biography |volume= 100 |number= 3 |date= July 1992 |pages= 365–398 |jstor= 4249293 |url= https://www.jstor.org/pss/4249293}}</ref> while the [[Torpedo Factory Art Center|Torpedo Factory]] in [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]] had over 5,050.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/an-art-center-now-alexandrias-torpedo-factory-began-life-making-weapons/2014/08/30/31a55ec0-2e0f-11e4-994d-202962a9150c_story.html |title= An art center now, Alexandria's Torpedo Factory began life making weapons |newspaper= The Washington Post |first= John |last= Kelly |date= August 30, 2014 |access-date= August 22, 2024}}</ref>

===Civil rights to present===
[[File:RVA 2020 MDPC (50041262732).jpg|thumb|Protests in 2020 focused on [[List of Confederate monuments and memorials in Virginia|Confederate monuments in the state]].|alt=A bronze statue of a man riding a horse on a tall pedestal that is covered in colorful graffiti.]]
High-school student [[Barbara Rose Johns]] started a strike in 1951 at her underfunded and segregated school in [[Prince Edward County, Virginia|Prince Edward County]]. The protests led [[Spottswood William Robinson III|Spottswood Robinson]] and [[Oliver Hill (attorney)|Oliver Hill]] to file [[Davis v. County School Board of Prince Edward County|a lawsuit against the county]]. Their case joined ''[[Brown v. Board of Education]]'' at the Supreme Court, which rejected the doctrine of "[[separate but equal]]" in 1954. The segregationist establishment, led by Senator [[Harry F. Byrd]] and his [[Byrd Organization]], reacted with a strategy called "[[massive resistance]]", and the General Assembly passed [[Stanley Plan|a package of laws]] in 1956 that cut off funding to local schools that [[Desegregation in the United States|desegregated]], causing some to close. Courts ruled the strategy unconstitutional, and on February 2, 1959, Black students [[racial integration|integrated]] schools in [[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington]] and [[Norfolk, Virginia|Norfolk]], where they were known as the [[Norfolk 17]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://boundarystones.weta.org/2013/02/02/it-happened-here-first-arlington-students-integrate-virginia-schools |title= It Happened Here First: Arlington Students Integrate Virginia Schools |date= February 2, 2013 |first= Mark |last= Jones |website= WETA |access-date= December 2, 2021}}</ref> Rather than integrate, county leaders in Prince Edward shut their school system in June 1959. When [[Griffin v. County School Board of Prince Edward County|litigation again reached the Supreme Court]], it ordered the county to reopen and integrate its schools, which finally happened in September 1964.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/nov/27/integration-public-schools-massive-resistance-virginia-1950s |title= In the 1950s, rather than integrate its public schools, Virginia closed them |newspaper= The Guardian |first1= Susan |last1= Smith-Richardson |first2= Lauren |last2= Burke |date= November 27, 2021 |access-date= December 2, 2021}}</ref>{{sfn|Wallenstein|2007|pp=340–341, 350–357}}

Federal passage of the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964|Civil Rights Act]] (1964) and [[Voting Rights Act of 1965|Voting Rights Act]] (1965), and their later enforcement by the [[United States Department of Justice|Justice Department]], helped end racial segregation in Virginia and overturn [[Jim Crow laws]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://richmond.com/news/local/civil-rights-progress-in-va-but-barriers-remain/article_41f067ac-cb6f-5222-a666-298f5d72bac0.html |title= Civil rights progress in Va., but barriers remain |first= Michael Paul |last= Williams |newspaper= The Richmond Times-Dispatch |date= June 28, 2014 |access-date= October 1, 2021}}</ref> In 1967, the Supreme Court struck down the state's ban on [[Interracial marriage in the United States|interracial marriage]] with ''[[Loving v. Virginia]]''. In 1968, Governor [[Mills Godwin]] called a commission to rewrite the state constitution. The new constitution, which banned discrimination and removed articles that now violated federal law, [[1970 Virginia ballot measures|passed in a referendum]] and went into effect in 1971.<ref name=constitution_1970>{{cite news |url= https://www.virginiabusiness.com/article/virginias-latest-constitution-turns-50/ |title= Virginia's latest constitution turns 50 |magazine= Virginia Business |date= June 30, 2021 |first= Mason |last= Adams |access-date= October 1, 2021}}</ref> In 1989, [[Douglas Wilder]] became the first African American elected as governor in the United States, and in 1992, [[Bobby Scott (politician)|Bobby Scott]] became the first Black congressman from Virginia since 1888.{{sfn|Heinemann|Kolp|Parent|Shade|2007|pp=359–366}}<ref>{{cite web |url= https://virginiahistory.org/learn/historical-book/chapter/voting-rights |title= Voting Rights |website= Virginia Museum of History & Culture |year= 2021 |access-date= May 13, 2021}}</ref>

The expansion of federal government offices into Northern Virginia's suburbs during the [[Cold War]] boosted the region's population and economy.{{sfn|Accordino|2000|pp=76–78}} The [[Central Intelligence Agency]] outgrew their offices in [[Foggy Bottom]] during the [[Korean War]], and moved to [[Langley, Virginia|Langley]] in 1961, in part due to a decision by the [[United States National Security Council|National Security Council]] that the agency relocate outside the District of Columbia.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://ghostsofdc.org/2013/10/02/cia-langley-virginia/ |title= Three Things About the CIA's Langley Headquarters |website = Ghosts of D.C. |date= October 2, 2013 |access-date= December 2, 2021}}</ref> [[The Pentagon]], built in [[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington]] during [[World War II]] as the headquarters of the Department of Defense, was struck by a hijacked plane in the [[September 11, 2001 attacks]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Caplan |first=David |url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/fbi-releases-batch-911-pentagon-photos/story?id=46484696 |title=FBI re-releases 9/11 Pentagon photos |website= ABC News |date=March 31, 2017 |access-date=June 5, 2020}}</ref> Mass shootings at [[Virginia Tech shooting|Virginia Tech in 2007]] and in [[2019 Virginia Beach shooting|Virginia Beach in 2019]] led to passage of gun control measures in 2020.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.roanoke.com/news/local/northam-signs-history-making-batch-of-gun-control-bills/article_af8f9c9f-529f-502e-b225-b8c538036b69.html |title= Northam signs history-making batch of gun control bills |newspaper= The Roanoke Times |first= Amy |last= Friedenberger |date= April 10, 2020 |access-date= June 15, 2020}}</ref> Racial injustice and the presence of [[List of Confederate monuments and memorials in Virginia|Confederate monuments in Virginia]] have also led to large demonstrations, including in August 2017, when a white supremacist [[Charlottesville car attack|drove his car into protesters]], killing one, and in June 2020, when protests that were part of the larger [[Black Lives Matter]] movement brought about the [[Removal of Confederate monuments and memorials#Virginia|removal of Confederate statues]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/jeb-stuart-richmond/2020/07/07/bbfe4ff8-bfd3-11ea-b4f6-cb39cd8940fb_story.html |title= Gen. Robert E. Lee is the only Confederate icon still standing on a Richmond avenue forever changed |newspaper= The Washington Post |first1= Gregory S. |last1= Schneider |first2= Laura |last2= Vozzella |date= July 7, 2020 |access-date= July 7, 2020}}</ref>

==Geography==
{{Main|Environment of Virginia}}
[[File:Virginia geographic map-en.svg|thumb|upright=1.2|Virginia is shaped by the [[Blue Ridge Mountains]], the [[Chesapeake Bay]] and its watershed, and the [[parallel 36°30′ north]].|alt=A topographic map of Virginia, with text identifying cities and natural features.]]
Virginia is located in the [[Mid-Atlantic (United States)|Mid-Atlantic]] and [[Southeastern United States|Southeastern]] regions of the United States.<ref>{{cite web |title=Mid-Atlantic Home : Mid–Atlantic Information Office: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics |url=https://www.bls.gov/regions/mid-atlantic/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190408092405/https://www.bls.gov/regions/mid-atlantic/ |archive-date=April 8, 2019 |access-date=July 27, 2017 |website=www.bls.gov}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=January 3, 2012 |title=United States Regions |url=https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/united-states-regions/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327193614/https://www.nationalgeographic.org/maps/united-states-regions/ |archive-date=March 27, 2019 |access-date=April 29, 2017 |website=National Geographic Society}}</ref> Virginia has a total area of {{convert|42774.2|sqmi|km2|1}}, including {{convert|3180.13|sqmi|km2|1}} of water, making it the 35th-[[List of U.S. states by area|largest state]] by area.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.census.gov/prod/cen2000/phc3-us-pt1.pdf |page= 71 |website= [[United States Census Bureau]] |date= April 2004 |title= 2000 Census of Population and Housing |access-date= November 3, 2009 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20171203135357/https://www.census.gov/prod/cen2000/phc3-us-pt1.pdf |archive-date= December 3, 2017 |url-status= live}}</ref> It is bordered by [[Maryland]] and [[Washington, D.C.]] to the northeast; by the [[Atlantic Ocean]] to the east; by [[North Carolina]] to the south; by [[Tennessee]] to the southwest; by [[Kentucky]] to the west; and by [[West Virginia]] to the northwest. Virginia's boundary with Maryland and Washington, D.C., the low-water mark of the south shore of the [[Potomac River]], has been an issue for [[water right]]s.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://nsglc.olemiss.edu/SandBar/SandBar2/2.4supreme.htm|title=Supreme Court Rules for Virginia in Potomac Conflict|website=The Sea Grant Law Center|publisher=[[University of Mississippi]]|year=2003|access-date=November 24, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100610050345/http://nsglc.olemiss.edu/SandBar/SandBar2/2.4supreme.htm|archive-date=June 10, 2010|url-status=live}}</ref>

Virginia's southern border [[Royal Colonial Boundary of 1665|was defined in 1665]] as [[Parallel 36°30′ north#In the United States|36°30' north latitude]]. Surveyors marking the border with North Carolina in the 18th century however started about {{convert|3.5|miles|km}} to the north and drifted an additional 3.5&nbsp;miles by [[North Carolina–Tennessee–Virginia Corners|the border's westernmost point]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.pilotonline.com/2017/01/02/along-north-carolina-virginia-border-a-tiny-turn-in-the-map-and-a-history-of-lies-and-controversy/ |title= Along North Carolina-Virginia border, a tiny turn in the map and a history of lies and controversy |first= Jeff |last= Hampton |newspaper= The Virginian Pilot |date= August 9, 2019 |access-date= January 2, 2024}}</ref> After [[Tennessee]] joined the U.S. in 1796, new surveyors worked in 1802 and 1803 to reset their border with Virginia as a line from the summit of [[White Top Mountain]] to the top of [[Tri-State Peak]] in the [[Cumberland Mountains]]. However, deviations in that border were identified when it was re-marked in 1856, and the Virginia General Assembly proposed a new surveying commission in 1871. Representatives from Tennessee preferred to keep the less-straight 1803 line, and in 1893, the [[U.S. Supreme Court]] ruled for them [[Virginia v. Tennessee|against Virginia]].{{sfn|Van Zandt|1976|pp=92–95}}{{sfn|Smith|2015|pp=71–72}} One result is how the city of [[Bristol, Virginia|Bristol]] is divided in two between the states.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.heraldcourier.com/news/pieces-of-the-past-supreme-court-looked-at-controversy-over/article_37075b77-6b6c-5a8b-a33d-4f74b5d3a0f1.html |title= Pieces of the Past: Supreme Court looked at controversy over Bristol border location |first1= Dalena |last1= Mathews |first2= Robert |last2= Sorrell |newspaper= Bristol Herald Courier |date= October 6, 2018 |access-date= September 16, 2019}}</ref>

===Geology and terrain===
{{Main|Geology of Virginia}}
[[File:Great Falls in purple.jpg|thumb|upright=0.75|[[Great Falls (Potomac River)|Great Falls]] is on the [[Atlantic Seaboard Fall Line|fall line]] of the [[Potomac River]], and its rocks date to the late [[Precambrian]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://epod.usra.edu/blog/2007/10/great-falls-national-park-on-the-potomac-river.html |title= Great Falls National Park on the Potomac River |website= Earth Science Picture of the Day |first= David |last= Noll |date= October 29, 2007 |access-date= May 28, 2021}}</ref>|alt=Rapids in a wide, rocky river under blue sky with clouds colored purple by the sunset.]]
The [[Chesapeake Bay]] separates the contiguous portion of the Commonwealth from the two-county peninsula of Virginia's [[Eastern Shore of Virginia|Eastern Shore]]. The bay was formed from the [[Ria|drowned river valley]] of the ancient [[Susquehanna River]].<ref name=bay>{{cite web |url= https://www.nps.gov/locations/chesapeakebaywatershed/index.htm |title= Geological Formation | publisher= National Park Service |date= August 8, 2018 |access-date= July 13, 2021}}</ref> Many of [[List of rivers of Virginia|Virginia's rivers]] flow into the Chesapeake Bay, including the [[Potomac River|Potomac]], [[Rappahannock River|Rappahannock]], [[York River (Virginia)|York]], and [[James River|James]], which create three peninsulas in the bay, traditionally referred to as "necks" named [[Northern Neck]], [[Middle Peninsula]], and the [[Virginia Peninsula]] from north to south.{{sfn|Burnham|Burnham|2018|pp=1}} [[Sea level rise]] has eroded the land on Virginia's islands, which include [[Tangier, Virginia|Tangier Island]] in the bay and [[Chincoteague, Virginia|Chincoteague]], one of [[Virginia Barrier Islands|23 barrier islands]] on the Atlantic coast.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.newyorker.com/news/dispatch/tangier-the-sinking-island-in-the-chesapeake |title= Tangier, the Sinking Island in the Chesapeake |magazine= The New Yorker |first= Carolyn |last= Kormann |date= June 8, 2018 |access-date= May 22, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://roadtrippers.com/magazine/virginia-barrier-islands/ |title= Shifting sands: Virginia's barrier islands are constantly on the move |first= Amy Brecount |last= White |magazine= Roadtrippers |date= April 16, 2020 |access-date= May 22, 2020}}</ref>

The [[Tidewater (geographic term)|Tidewater]] is a [[Atlantic coastal plain|coastal plain]] between the Atlantic coast and the [[Atlantic Seaboard fall line|fall line]]. It includes the Eastern Shore and major [[estuary|estuaries]] of Chesapeake Bay. The Piedmont is a series of [[sedimentary rock|sedimentary]] and [[igneous rock]]-based [[foothills]] east of the mountains.{{sfn|Pazzaglia|2006|pp=135–138}} The region, known for its heavy clay soil, includes the [[Southwest Mountains]] around [[Charlottesville, Virginia|Charlottesville]].<ref name=agriculture>{{cite web| url=http://www.deq.state.va.us/vanaturally/guide/agriculture.html| title=Virginia's Agricultural Resources| website=Natural Resource Education Guide| publisher=Virginia Department of Environmental Quality| date=January 21, 2008| access-date=February 8, 2008| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081020193915/http://www.deq.state.va.us/vanaturally/guide/agriculture.html| archive-date=October 20, 2008| url-status=live}}</ref> The [[Blue Ridge Mountains]] are a [[physiographic regions of the world|physiographic province]] of the [[Appalachian Mountains]] with the highest points in the Commonwealth, the tallest being [[Mount Rogers (Virginia)|Mount Rogers]] at {{convert|5729|ft|m}}.<ref name=mtrogers>{{harvnb|Burnham|Burnham|2018|pp=277}}</ref> The [[Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians|Ridge-and-Valley region]] is west of the mountains, [[carbonate rock]] based, and includes the [[Massanutten Mountain]] ridge and the [[Great Appalachian Valley]], which is called the [[Shenandoah Valley]] in Virginia, named after the [[Shenandoah River|river of the same name]] that flows through it.<ref name=regions>{{cite web|url=http://geology.blogs.wm.edu/valley-ridge/ |title=Physiographic Regions of Virginia |website=The Geology of Virginia |publisher=[[College of William and Mary]] |date=July 2015 |access-date=June 5, 2020}}</ref> The [[Cumberland Plateau]] and [[Cumberland Mountains]] are in the southwest corner of Virginia, south of the [[Allegheny Plateau]]. In this region, rivers flow northwest into the [[Ohio River]] basin.{{sfn|Palmer|1998|pp=49–51}}

[[Virginia seismic zones|Virginia's seismic zones]] have not had a history of regular [[earthquake]] activity. Earthquakes are rarely above 4.5 in [[Richter magnitude scale|magnitude]]. The Commonwealth's largest earthquake in at least a century, at a magnitude of 5.8, [[2011 Virginia earthquake|struck central Virginia on August 23, 2011]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.dailypress.com/news/dp-xpm-20110823-2011-08-23-dp-nws-earthquake-regional-20110823-story.html |title= Virginia earthquake largest recorded in commonwealth |first= Peter |last= Frost |newspaper= The Daily Press |date= August 23, 2011 |access-date= May 22, 2020}}</ref> 35{{nbsp}}million years ago, a [[bolide]] impacted what is now eastern Virginia. The resulting [[Chesapeake Bay impact crater]] may explain what [[earthquake]]s and [[subsidence]] the region does experience.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2001/11/1113_chesapeakcrater.html|title=Chesapeake Bay Crater Offers Clues to Ancient Cataclysm|first=Hillary|last=Mayell|publisher=[[National Geographic Society]]|date=November 13, 2001|access-date=March 11, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303190052/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2001/11/1113_chesapeakcrater.html|archive-date=March 3, 2016}}</ref> A meteor impact is also theorized as the source of [[Lake Drummond]], the largest of the two natural [[List of lakes of Virginia|lakes in the state]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.dailypress.com/news/dp-xpm-20090408-2009-04-08-0904070065-story.html |title= Lake Drummond's Name and Origin Still a Mystery to Some |first= Scott |last= Harper |newspaper= The Virginian-Pilot Daily Press |date= April 8, 2009 |access-date= May 27, 2021}}</ref>

The Commonwealth's carbonate rock is filled with more than 4,000 [[limestone cave]]s, ten of which are open for tourism, including the popular [[Luray Caverns]] and [[Skyline Caverns]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonian.com/2017/10/12/6-spectacular-caves-youll-want-explore-shenandoah/|title=6 Spectacular Caves You'll Want to Explore in the Shenandoah |first= Dale |last= Leatherman |date= October 12, 2017 |magazine= Washingtonian Magazine |access-date= June 5, 2020}}</ref> Virginia's iconic [[Natural Bridge (Virginia)|Natural Bridge]] is the remaining roof of a collapsed limestone cave.<ref>{{cite book |last1= Kelly |first1= James C. |last2= Rasmussen |first2= William Meade Stith |title= The Virginia Landscape: A Cultural History |year= 2000 |access-date= May 12, 2021 |isbn= 978-1-57427-110-2 |publisher= Howell Press |location= Charlottesville |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=7pBOAAAAYAAJ |page= 12}}</ref> [[Coal mining in the United States|Coal mining]] takes place in the three mountainous regions.<ref name=mining>{{cite web|url=http://www.dmme.virginia.gov/commercedocs/COAL.pdf|title=Coal|publisher=Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals, and Energy|date=July 31, 2008|access-date=February 26, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150103143221/http://www.dmme.virginia.gov/commercedocs/COAL.pdf|archive-date=January 3, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> More than 72{{nbsp}}million tons of other non-fuel resources, such as [[slate]], [[kyanite]], sand, or gravel, were mined in Virginia {{As of|2020|alt=in 2020}}.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.dmme.virginia.gov/dmm/PDF/DATA/Production.xls |title= Comparison of Annually Reported Tonnage Data |publisher= Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy |date= April 7, 2021 |access-date= May 12, 2021 |format= XLS |archive-date= July 5, 2014 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140705140805/http://www.dmme.virginia.gov/DMM/PDF/DATA/Production.xls }}</ref> The largest known deposits of [[uranium]] in the U.S. are under [[Coles Hill uranium deposit|Coles Hill, Virginia]]. Despite [[Virginia Uranium, Inc. v. Warren|a challenge that reached the U.S. Supreme Court twice]], the state has banned its mining since 1982 due to environmental and public health concerns.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.virginiamercury.com/blog-va/uranium-ban-upheld-as-supreme-court-of-va-declines-to-reopen-lower-court-ruling/ |title= Uranium mining ban upheld as Supreme Court of Va. declines to reopen lower court ruling |newspaper= The Virginia Mercury |first= Sarah |last= Vogelsong |date= September 30, 2021 |access-date= January 14, 2022}}</ref>

===Climate===

{{Main|Climate of Virginia}}
{{See also|Climate change in Virginia}}
{{climate chart|Virginia state-wide averages 1895–2023
|25.2|44.7|3.3
|26.3|47.5|3.1
|33.6|56.4|3.7
|42.0|66.6|3.4
|51.4|75.5|4.0
|59.8|82.4|4.1
|64.1|85.8|4.6
|62.8|84.1|4.3
|56.3|78.6|3.7
|44.5|68.4|3.2
|34.6|57.1|2.9
|27.4|47.2|3.3
|float=right
|units=imperial
|source=[[#CITEREFNOAA|U.S. Climate Divisional Dataset]]
}}

Virginia has a [[humid subtropical climate]] that transitions to [[Humid continental climate|humid continental]] west of the [[Blue Ridge Mountains]].{{sfn|Hamilton|2016|pp=12–13}} Seasonal extremes vary from average lows of {{convert|25|°F|°C|0}} in January to average highs of {{convert|86|°F|°C|0}} in July.<ref name=noaa/> The Atlantic Ocean and [[Gulf Stream]] have a strong effect on eastern and southeastern coastal areas, making the climate there warmer but also more constant. Most of Virginia's recorded extremes in temperature and precipitation have occurred in the Blue Ridge Mountains and areas west.<ref name=Burnham/> Virginia receives an average of {{convert|43.47|in|cm|0}} of precipitation annually,<ref name=noaa>{{cite web |url= https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/cag/statewide/time-series/44/pcp/ann/1/1895-2023?base_prd=true&begbaseyear=1895&endbaseyear=2023 |title= Climate at a Glance |date= January 2024 |website= NOAA National Centers for Environmental information |author= U.S. Climate Divisional Dataset |access-date= January 11, 2024 |ref=CITEREFNOAA}}</ref> with the [[Shenandoah Valley]] being the state's driest region.<ref name=Burnham/>

Virginia has around 35–45 days with thunderstorms annually, and storms are common in the late afternoon and evenings between April and September.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.dcmilitary.com/pentagram/news/news_notes/severe-weather-awareness-for-spring-summer/article_434e2ce1-5441-5b2f-9113-d61f3ff1702f.html |title= Severe weather awareness for spring, summer  |website= Pentagram |first= Jim |last= Dresbach |date= April 11, 2019 |access-date= May 29, 2020}}</ref> These months are also the most common for [[tornado]]es,<ref>{{cite news |url= https://wset.com/news/local/annual-tornado-drill-in-virginia-will-be-held-march-17 |title= Annual tornado drill in Virginia will be held March 17 |agency= Associated Press |date= February 12, 2020 |website= WSET-TV |access-date= May 29, 2020}}</ref> twelve of which touched down in the Commonwealth in 2024.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.spc.noaa.gov/climo/summary/?month=00&year=2024&state=VA |title= Annual Severe Weather Report Summary |website= NOAA / National Weather Service |date= December 31, 2024 |access-date= June 16, 2025}}</ref> [[List of Virginia hurricanes|Hurricanes]] and tropical storms can occur from August to October. The deadliest natural disaster in Virginia was [[Hurricane Camille#Virginia|Hurricane Camille]], which killed over 150 people in 1969 mainly in inland [[Nelson County, Virginia|Nelson County]].<ref name=Burnham/><ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2019/08/19/virginias-deadliest-natural-disaster-unfolded-years-ago-hurricane-camille/ |title= Virginia's deadliest natural disaster unfolded 50 years ago from Hurricane Camille |first= Jeff |last= Halverson |date= August 19, 2019 |newspaper= The Washington Post |access-date= May 29, 2020}}</ref> Between December and March, [[cold-air damming]] caused by the Appalachian Mountains can lead to significant snowfalls across the state, such as the [[January 2016 United States blizzard|January 2016 blizzard]], which created the state's highest recorded one-day snowfall of {{convert|36.6|in|cm}} near [[Bluemont, Virginia|Bluemont]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capital-weather-gang/wp/2018/02/07/your-primer-to-understanding-mid-atlantic-cold-air-damming-and-the-wedge/ |title= Your primer to understanding Mid-Atlantic cold air damming and 'the wedge' |first= Jeff |last= Halverson |newspaper= The Washington Post |date= February 7, 2018 |access-date= May 29, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://patch.com/virginia/vienna/snowiest-day-record-day-fairfax-co-saw-25-5-inches-fall |title= Snowiest Day On Record: The Day Fairfax Co. Saw 25.5 Inches Fall |first= Emily |last= Leayman |website= Patch |date= January 22, 2020 |access-date= May 29, 2020}}</ref> On average, cities in Virginia can receive between {{convert|5.8|-|12.3|in|cm}} of snow annually, but recent winters have seen below-average snowfalls, and much of Virginia had no measurable snow during the 2022–2023 winter season.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/monthly-report/national/202202/supplemental/page-5 |title= Winter Snowfall Departure from Average |website= NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information |date= March 2022 |access-date= April 10, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://richmond.com/weather/we-give-our-virginia-winter-forecast-a-b/article_2b8c8e76-b869-11ed-8586-47e1d026fa8e.html |title= We give our Virginia winter forecast a B |first= Sean |last= Sublette |newspaper= The Richmond Times-Dispatch |date= March 1, 2023 |access-date= April 10, 2023}}</ref>

[[Climate change in Virginia]] is leading to higher temperatures year-round as well as more heavy rain and flooding events.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.wdbj7.com/content/news/Virginia-summers-getting-more-hot-and-humid-385709001.html |title= Virginia summers getting more hot and humid |first= Brent |last= Watts |website= WDBJ-TV |date= July 6, 2016 |access-date= May 29, 2020}}</ref> [[Urban heat island]]s can be found in many Virginia cities and suburbs, particularly in neighborhoods linked to historic [[redlining]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.virginiamercury.com/blog-va/there-may-be-a-link-between-urban-heat-islands-and-past-redlining-practices-study-finds/ |title= In Virginia and U.S., urban heat islands and past redlining practices may be linked, study finds |newspaper= The Virginia Mercury |first= Sarah |last= Vogelsong |date= January 15, 2020 |access-date= May 29, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/08/24/climate/racism-redlining-cities-global-warming.html |title= How Decades of Racist Housing Policy Left Neighborhoods Sweltering |first1= Brad |last1= Plumer |first2= Nadja |last2= Popovich |newspaper= The New York Times |date= August 24, 2020 |access-date= August 25, 2020}}</ref> The air in Virginia has statistically improved since 1998.<ref name=haze>{{cite news |url= https://www.roanoke.com/weather/weather-journal-you-really-can-see-more-clearly-on-hot-summer-days-than-you-used/article_08e9554d-1435-570a-926c-6e06b2d4ce1f.html |title= Weather Journal: You really can see more clearly on hot summer days than you used to |first= Kevin |last= Myatt |date= August 27, 2019 |newspaper= The Roanoke Star |access-date= May 29, 2020}}</ref> The closure and conversion of [[coal power plant]]s in Virginia and the Ohio Valley region has helped cut the amount of [[Particulate pollution|particulate matter]] in Virginia's air in half.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://energynews.us/2020/12/16/report-dominion-energy-must-start-planning-now-for-coal-plant-transition/ |title=  Report: Dominion Energy must start planning now for coal plant transition |website= Energy News Network |first= Elizabeth |last= McGowan |date= December 16, 2020 |access-date= April 2, 2021}}</ref><ref name=eiaco>{{Cite web |url= https://www.eia.gov/electricity/data/browser/#/topic/0?agg=2,0,1&fuel=vvvvu&geo=00000001&sec=g&freq=A&start=2001&end=2021&ctype=linechart&ltype=pin&rtype=s&pin=&rse=0&maptype=0 |title= Electricity Data Browser, Net generation for all sectors, Virginia, Fuel Type-Check all, Annual, 2001–23 |website = U.S. Energy Information Administration |access-date = May 1, 2024}}</ref> Current plans call for 30% of the Commonwealth's electricity to be renewable by 2030 and for all to be carbon-free by 2050.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://apnews.com/97033f76286b4fd0ad0f25fb4108e627 |title= Virginia to develop 4 new solar energy projects |first= Jimmy |last= O'Keefe |work= Associated Press |date= October 4, 2019 |access-date= November 22, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191122230741/https://apnews.com/97033f76286b4fd0ad0f25fb4108e627 |archive-date= November 22, 2019 |url-status= live}}</ref>

===Ecosystem===
{{See also|List of endangered species in Virginia}}
[[File:White-tailed buck in foggy morning at Shenandoah National Park.jpeg|thumb|Up to 7,000 [[white-tailed deer]], also known as Virginia deer, live in [[Shenandoah National Park]].<ref name=gildard>{{Cite book |last1= Gildart |first1= Robert C. |first2= Jane |last2= Gildart |title= Hiking Shenandoah National Park |edition= 5 |publisher= Falcon Guides |location= Guilford, Connecticut |year= 2016 |isbn= 978-1-4930-1685-3 |page= 3 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=kXSOCwAAQBAJ}}</ref>|alt=A red-brown colored deer with antlers stands in a meadow with high grasses.]]
Forests cover 62% of Virginia {{as of|2021|lc=on}}, of which 80% is considered [[hardwood]] forest, meaning that trees are primarily [[deciduous]] and [[Broad-leaved tree|broad-leaved]]. The other 20% is pine, with [[Pinus taeda|loblolly]] and [[Pinus echinata|shortleaf pine]] dominating much of central and eastern Virginia.<ref name=stateoftheforest>{{cite web |url= https://rga.lis.virginia.gov/Published/2022/RD282 |title= State of the Forest Annual Report on Virginia's Forests – 2021 |date= 2022 |first= Rob |last= Farrell|publisher= Virginia Department of Forestry |access-date= February 7, 2023}}</ref> In the western and mountainous parts of the Commonwealth, oak and hickory are most common, while lower altitudes are more likely to have small but dense stands of hemlocks and mosses in abundance.<ref name=Burnham>{{harvnb|Burnham|Burnham|2018|pp=xvii–xxi, 64}}</ref> [[Gypsy moths in the United States|Spongy moth infestations]] in oak trees and the [[chestnut blight|blight in chestnut trees]] have decreased both of their numbers, leaving more room for hickory and the invasive [[Ailanthus altissima|tree of heaven]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.wdbj7.com/content/news/Gyspy-Moths-on-wide-destructive-path-in-Southwest-Virginia-390498551.html |title= Gyspy Moths on wide, destructive path in Southwest Virginia |website= WDBJ-TV |first= Justin |last= Ward |date= August 17, 2016 |access-date= May 14, 2020}}</ref><ref name=Burnham/> In the lowland tidewater and [[Piedmont (United States)|Piedmont]], yellow pines tend to dominate, with bald cypress wetland forests in the Great Dismal and Nottoway swamps.<ref name=stateoftheforest/> Other common trees include red spruce, [[Chamaecyparis thyoides|Atlantic white cedar]], [[Liriodendron tulipifera|tulip-poplar]], and the [[Cornus florida|flowering dogwood]], the [[List of U.S. state and territory trees|state tree and flower]].<ref>{{cite web |url= https://dof.virginia.gov/wp-content/uploads/Common-Native-Trees-ID_pub.pdf |title= Common Native Trees of Virginia |publisher= Virginia Department of Forestry |date= April 30, 2020 |access-date= August 17, 2021}}</ref> Plants like [[Asclepias|milkweed]], dandelions, daisies, ferns, and [[Parthenocissus quinquefolia|Virginia creeper]], which is featured on the [[Flag of Virginia|state flag]], are also common.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.pwconserve.org/plants/ |title= Wildflowers of Northern Virginia |website= Prince William Conservation Alliance |date= May 5, 2016 |access-date= August 17, 2021}}</ref> The [[G. Richard Thompson Wildlife Management Area|Thompson Wildlife Area]] in [[Fauquier County, Virginia|Fauquier]] is known for having one of the largest populations of [[Trillium grandiflorum|trillium wildflowers]] in North America.<ref name=Burnham/>

[[White-tailed deer]], one of 75 mammal species found in Virginia, rebounded from an estimated population of as few as 25,000 in the 1930s to over one million by the 2010s.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.richmond.com/sports/local/clarkson-deer-populations-abound-but-number-of-hunters-continues-to/article_3ac70bd5-8345-57e2-a6b2-0031130c926d.html |title= Clarkson: Deer populations abound, but number of hunters continues to decline |first= Tee |last= Clarkson |newspaper= The Richmond Times-Dispatch |date= March 3, 2018 |access-date= April 2, 2020}}</ref><ref name=mammals>{{cite web |url= https://vaswcd.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Envirothon-Mammals-of-VA.pdf |title= Virginia Master Naturalist Basic Training Course |publisher= Virginia Tech |first= John F. |last= Pagels |date= 2013 |access-date= May 28, 2021 |archive-date= August 31, 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210831195527/https://vaswcd.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Envirothon-Mammals-of-VA.pdf }}</ref> Native [[carnivora]]ns include [[American black bear|black bears]], who have a population of around five to six thousand in the state,<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.nps.gov/shen/learn/nature/black-bear.htm |title= American Black Bear |website= Shenandoah National Park |date= August 21, 2020 |access-date= May 31, 2021}}</ref> as well as [[bobcat]]s, [[coyote]]s, both [[gray fox|gray]] and [[red fox]]es, [[raccoon]]s, [[weasel]]s and [[skunk]]s. Rodents include [[groundhog]]s, [[nutria]], [[beaver]]s, both [[Eastern gray squirrel|gray squirrels]] and [[fox squirrel]]s, chipmunks, and [[Allegheny woodrat]]s, while the seventeen bat species include brown bats and the [[Virginia big-eared bat]], the [[List of U.S. state mammals|state mammal]].<ref name=dwr_list>{{cite web |url=https://dwr.virginia.gov/wildlife/information/|title= Wildlife Information |publisher=Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources|date= June 2, 2016 |access-date=July 4, 2020}}</ref><ref name=mammals/> The [[Virginia opossum]] is the only [[marsupial]] native to the United States and Canada,<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091215202320.htm |title= Ancient origins of modern opossum revealed |date= December 17, 2009 |author= University of Florida |website= Science Daily |access-date= April 2, 2020}}</ref> and the native [[Appalachian cottontail]] was recognized in 1992 as a distinct species of rabbit, one of three found in the state.<ref>{{Cite iucn | author = Barry, R. | author2 = Lazell, J. | name-list-style = amp | title = ''Sylvilagus obscurus'' | volume = 2008 | article-number = e.T41301A10434606 | date = 2008 | doi = 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2008.RLTS.T41301A10434606.en}}</ref> Whales, dolphins, and porpoises have been recorded in Virginia's coastal waters, with [[bottlenose dolphins]] being the most frequent [[aquatic mammal]]s.<ref name=mammals/>

[[File:FC Osprey.jpg|thumb|left|[[Osprey]] nest at [[False Cape State Park]] on a wooden platform designed to encourage their return to the area|alt=A gray and white bird of prey on the edge of a large nest with water in the distance.]]
[[List of birds of Virginia|Virginia's bird fauna]] comprises 422 counted species, of which 359 are regularly occurring and 214 have bred in Virginia, while the rest are mostly [[Bird migration|winter residents or transients]].<ref name=Terwilliger>Karen Terwilliger, ''A Guide to Endangered and Threatened Species in Virginia'' (Virginia Department of Game & Inland Fisheries/McDonald & Woodward: 1995), p. 158.</ref> [[Water birds]] include sandpipers, wood ducks, and [[Virginia rail]], while common inland examples include warblers, woodpeckers, and cardinals, the [[List of U.S. state birds|state bird]]. Birds of prey include osprey, [[broad-winged hawk]]s, and [[barred owl]]s.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.audubon.org/news/birding-virginia |title= Birding in Virginia |website= National Audubon Society |first= Mel |last= White |date= April 28, 2016 |access-date= May 28, 2021}}</ref> There are no [[Endemic species|endemic]] bird species.<ref name=Terwilliger/> [[National Audubon Society|Audubon]] recognizes 21 [[Important Bird Area]]s in the state.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.audubon.org/important-bird-areas/state/virginia |title= Important Bird Areas: Virginia |access-date= July 4, 2020 |website= National Audubon Society |date= 2020}}</ref> [[Peregrine falcon]]s, whose numbers dramatically declined due to [[DDT]] poisoning in the middle of the 20th century, are the focus of conservation efforts in the state and a reintroduction program in [[Shenandoah National Park]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.bayjournal.com/archives/peregrine-falcons-slow-to-return-to-appalachia/article_28e00ba7-e86e-518d-8e06-5f025b618ae7.html |title= Peregrine falcons slow to return to Appalachia |first= William H. |last= Funk |newspaper= The Chesapeake Bay Journal |date= October 8, 2017 |access-date= April 2, 2020}}</ref>

Virginia has 226 species of [[freshwater fish]] from 25 families, a diversity attributable to the area's varied and humid climate, topography, interconnected river system, and lack of [[Pleistocene glaciation|Pleistocene glaciers]]. Common examples on the [[Cumberland Plateau]] and higher-elevation regions include [[Eastern blacknose dace]], [[sculpin]], [[smallmouth bass]], [[redhorse sucker]], [[Kanawha darter]], and [[brook trout]], the [[List of U.S. state fish|state fish]]. Downhill in the Piedmont, [[stripeback darter]] and [[Roanoke bass]] become common, as do [[swampfish]], [[bluespotted sunfish]], and [[pirate perch]] in the [[Tidewater (region)|Tidewater]].<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4M6wDwAAQBAJ|title=Field Guide to Freshwater Fishes of Virginia|author1=Paul E. Bugas Jr.|author2=Corbin D. Hilling|author3=Val Kells|author4=Michael J. Pinder|author5=Derek A. Wheaton|author6=Donald J. Orth|date=2019|publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press|pages=13–16|isbn=978-1-4214-3307-3}}</ref> The [[Chesapeake Bay]] hosts clams, oysters, and 350&nbsp;species of [[saltwater fish|saltwater]] and [[Coastal fish|estuarine fish]], including the bay's most abundant finfish, the [[Bay anchovy]], as well as the invasive [[blue catfish]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/as-blue-catfish-multiply-in-chesapeake-bay-watermen-pursue-new-catch/2019/06/10/5b5df3f2-8973-11e9-a870-b9c411dc4312_story.html |title= As blue catfish multiply in Chesapeake Bay, watermen pursue new catch |first1= Christina |last1= Tkacik |first2= Scott |last2= Dance |newspaper= The Washington Post |date= June 10, 2019 |access-date= June 2, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= https://chesapeakebaymagazine.com/spring-feeding/ |title= Spring Feeding |magazine= Chesapeake Bay Magazine |date= March 26, 2019 |first= John Page |last= Williams |access-date= April 11, 2021}}</ref> An estimated 238&nbsp;million [[Callinectes sapidus|Chesapeake blue crabs]] live in the bay {{as of|2025|lc=on}}.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2025/06/09/blue-crabs-chesapeake-bay-population-drop/ |title= Chesapeake Bay's blue crab population falls to 'distressing low' |first= Dana |last= Hedgpeth |date= June 9, 2025 |newspaper= The Washington Post |access-date= June 10, 2025}}</ref> There are 34 native species of crayfish, like the [[Big Sandy crayfish|Big Sandy]].<ref>{{cite web |url= https://loudounwildlife.org/2016/07/crayfish/ |title= Crayfish |first= Emily |last= Bzdyk |date= July 1, 2016 |website= Loudoun Wildlife |volume= 21 |issue= 2 |access-date= May 27, 2021}}</ref><ref name=Burnham/> Amphibians found in Virginia include the [[Cumberland Plateau salamander]] and [[Eastern hellbender]],<ref>Jeffrey C. Beane, Alvin L. Braswell, William M. Palmer, Joseph C. Mitchell & Julian R. Harrison III, ''Amphibians and Reptiles of the Carolinas and Virginia'' (2d ed.: University of North Carolina Press, 2010), pp. 51, 102.</ref> while the [[northern watersnake]] is the most common of the 32&nbsp;snake species.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.nbc12.com/2019/05/03/snakes-virginia-meet-youll-mostly-likely-see-this-season/ |title= Snakes in Virginia: Meet 6 you'll most likely see this season |first= Rex |last= Springston |newspaper= Virginia Mercury |date= May 3, 2019 |access-date= September 1, 2021}}</ref>

=== Protected lands ===
{{See also|List of Virginia state parks}}
[[File:Shenandoah 2020.jpg|thumb|[[Oak]] trees produce a haze of [[isoprene]], which helps give the [[Blue Ridge Mountains]] their signature color.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.ourstate.com/why-are-the-blue-ridge-mountains-blue/ |title= Why Are the Blue Ridge Mountains Blue? |magazine= Our State |first= Katie |last= Quine |date= November 2, 2015 |access-date= May 30, 2021}}</ref>|alt=Five mountain ridges in shades of dark blue below an orange and yellow sunset.]]
{{As of|2019}}, roughly 16.2% of land in the Commonwealth is protected by federal, state, and local governments and non-profits.<ref name=protectedland>{{cite web |url= https://www.dcr.virginia.gov/land-conservation/protected-lands |title= Virginia's Protected Lands |website= Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation |date= 2021 |access-date= May 29, 2021}}</ref> Federal lands account for the majority, with thirty [[National Park Service]] units, such as [[Great Falls Park]] and the [[Appalachian Trail]], and one national park, [[Shenandoah National Park|Shenandoah]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nps.gov/state/va/index.htm|title=Virginia|publisher=[[National Park Service]]|access-date=July 4, 2020}}</ref> Almost forty percent of Shenandoah's total {{convert|199,173|acre|km2|0}} area has been designated as wilderness under the [[National Wilderness Preservation System]].{{sfn|Carroll|Miller|2002|p=158}} The [[United States Forest Service|U.S. Forest Service]] administers the [[George Washington and Jefferson National Forests]], which cover more than {{convert|1.6|e6acre|km2}} within Virginia's mountains, and continue into [[West Virginia]] and [[Kentucky]].<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.fs.usda.gov/r08/gwj |title= The George Washington and Jefferson National Forests |website= United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service |date= 2021 |access-date= May 29, 2021}}</ref> The [[Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge]] also extends into North Carolina, as does the [[Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge]], which marks the beginning of the [[Outer Banks]].{{sfn|Smith|2008|pp=152–153, 356}}

State agencies control about one-third of protected land in the state,<ref name=protectedland/> and the [[Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation]] manages over {{convert|75,900|acre|km2|1}} in forty [[List of Virginia state parks|Virginia state parks]] and {{convert|59,222|acre|km2|1}} in 65 [[Virginia Natural Area Preserve System|Natural Area Preserves]], plus three undeveloped parks.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.dcr.virginia.gov/state-parks/fun-facts|title=Fun Facts|publisher=Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation|date=May 17, 2021|access-date=May 27, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.dcr.virginia.gov/natural-heritage/natural-area-preserves/ |title= Virginia Natural Area Preserves |website= Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation |date= November 20, 2020 |access-date= May 27, 2021}}</ref> [[Breaks Interstate Park]] crosses the Kentucky border and is one of only two inter-state parks in the United States.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.knoxnews.com/story/entertainment/2018/01/12/breaks-centuries-struggle-breaks-interstate-park/1012506001/|title=That's the Breaks: Documentary chronicles significant natural area on Virginia-Kentucky border|work=Knoxville News Sentinel|date=January 12, 2018|first=Randall|last=Brown}}</ref> Sustainable logging is allowed in 26 [[List of Virginia state forests|state forests]] managed by the [[Virginia Department of Forestry]] totaling {{convert|71,972|acre|km2|1}},<ref name=forests>{{cite web|url=https://dof.virginia.gov/about/|title=About the Virginia Department of Forestry |website=Virginia Department of Forestry |access-date=May 29, 2021}}</ref> as is hunting in 44 [[Virginia Wildlife Management Areas|Wildlife Management Areas]] run by the [[Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources]] covering over {{convert|205000|acre|km2|1}}.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.outdoorsrambler.com/post/2019/05/23/virginias-newest-wildlife-management-areas-are-shining-examples-of-howwhere-to-buy |title= Virginia's Newest Wildlife Management Areas are Shining Examples of How/Where to Buy |website= Outdoors Rambler |first= Ken |last= Perrotte |date= May 23, 2019 |access-date= May 27, 2021}}</ref> The [[Chesapeake Bay]] is not a national park, but is protected by both state and federal legislation and the inter-state [[Chesapeake Bay Program]].<ref>{{cite press release |url= https://www.cbf.org/news-media/newsroom/2020/federal/enactment-of-historic-legislation-is-major-victory-for-chesapeake-bay.html |title= Enactment of Historic Legislation is Major Victory for Chesapeake Bay |website= Chesapeake Bay Foundation |date= October 30, 2020 |access-date= May 29, 2021}}</ref>

===Cities and towns===
{{See also|Political subdivisions of Virginia|Virginia statistical areas}}
[[File:Population density of Virginia counties (2020).png|thumb|upright=1.35|The population density of Virginia counties and cities as of 2020|alt=Map of Virginia counties colored by population density, ranging from pale yellow, to green, to dark blue.]]
Virginia is divided into 95{{nbsp}}[[List of counties in Virginia|counties]] and 38{{nbsp}}[[independent city (United States)|independent cities]], which the [[United States Census Bureau|U.S. Census Bureau]] describes as [[county-equivalent]]s.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/2010/geo/state-local-geo-guides-2010/virginia.html |title= Virginia Basic Information |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]] |date= June 25, 2018 |access-date= June 5, 2020}}</ref> This general method of treating cities and counties on par with each other is unique to Virginia and stretches back to the influence of [[Williamsburg, Virginia|Williamsburg]] and [[Norfolk, Virginia|Norfolk]] in the colonial period.{{sfn|Library of Virginia|1994|pp=183}} Only three other [[Independent city (United States)#Other states|independent cities]] exist elsewhere in the US.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.virginiabusiness.com/index.php/opinion/article/unique-structural-issues-make-progress-in-virginia-difficult/201616/|title=Unique structural issues make progress in Virginia difficult|date=September 28, 2009|first=Bernie|last=Niemeier|work=Virginia Business|access-date=October 3, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511132428/http://www.virginiabusiness.com/index.php/opinion/article/unique-structural-issues-make-progress-in-virginia-difficult/201616/|archive-date=May 11, 2011}}</ref> The differences between counties and cities in Virginia are small and have to do with how each assess new taxes, whether a referendum is necessary to issue bonds, and with the application of [[Dillon's Rule]], which limits the authority of cities and counties to countermand acts expressly allowed by the [[Virginia General Assembly|General Assembly]].<ref name=arlcity>{{cite news |url= https://wamu.org/story/17/07/14/no-longer-county-boy-arlington-official-says-county-become-city/ |title= No Longer A County Boy: Arlington Official Says County Should Become A City |date= July 14, 2017 |access-date= April 21, 2021 |first= Martin |last= Austermuhle |website= WAMU 88.5}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/why-arlington-and-fairfax-cant-tax-plastic-bags--and-why-that-might-change/2019/12/09/0913fd32-1544-11ea-9110-3b34ce1d92b1_story.html |title= Virginia Democrats poised to relax Dillon Rule |newspaper= The Washington Post |date= December 10, 2019 |first= Patricia |last= Sullivan |access-date= June 7, 2020}}</ref> Counties can also have [[List of towns in Virginia|incorporated towns]], and while there are no further [[Administrative divisions of Virginia|administrative subdivisions]], the Census Bureau recognizes several hundred [[List of unincorporated communities in Virginia|unincorporated communities]].

[[File:Rosslyn aerial view, September 2018.JPG|thumb|[[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington County]] in [[Northern Virginia]] was once part of [[Washington, D.C.]]|alt=An aerial view of several tall glassy office buildings.]]
Over three million people, 35% of Virginians, live in the twenty jurisdictions collectively defined as [[Northern Virginia]], part of the larger [[Washington metropolitan area]] and the [[Northeast megalopolis]].<ref name=msa>{{cite web |url= https://www.census.gov/data/datasets/time-series/demo/popest/2020s-total-metro-and-micro-statistical-areas.html |title= Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas Population Totals and Components of Change: 2020–2023 |website= U.S. Census Bureau |date= March 11, 2024 |access-date= June 24, 2024 |ref=CITEREFMSA}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/all-hail-the-northeast-megalopolis-the-census-bureau-region-home-to-roughly-1-in-6-americans/3226966/ |title=  All Hail the Northeast Megalopolis, the Census Bureau Region Home to Roughly 1 in 6 Americans |website= NBC4 Washington |first= Maggie |last= More |date= December 6, 2022 |access-date= December 9, 2022}}</ref> [[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax County]], with more than 1.1{{nbsp}}million residents, is Virginia's most populous jurisdiction,<ref name=wapo2018pop>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/virginias-growth-is-most-robust-in-washington-suburbs/2018/01/25/8de356f0-0134-11e8-93f5-53a3a47824e8_story.html|title=Virginia's population growth is most robust in Washington suburbs|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=January 25, 2018|access-date=May 6, 2020|first=Antonio|last=Olivo}}</ref> and has a major urban business and shopping center in [[Tysons, Virginia|Tysons]], Virginia's largest office market.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://wtop.com/business-finance/2017/08/booming-tysons-looming-problem/ |website= WTOP |title= Booming Tysons, looming problems: Office vacancies, traffic headaches and more |first= Jeff |last= Clabaugh |date= August 9, 2017 |access-date= June 7, 2020}}</ref> Neighboring [[Prince William County, Virginia|Prince William County]], with over 450,000&nbsp;residents, is Virginia's second-most populous county and home to [[Marine Corps Base Quantico]], the [[FBI Academy]], and [[Manassas National Battlefield Park]]. [[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington County]] is the smallest self-governing county in the U.S. by land area,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/22/AR2005112202165_pf.html|title=Silent Streams|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|first=Mary|last=Battiata|date=November 27, 2005|access-date=April 12, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081012131623/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/22/AR2005112202165_pf.html|archive-date=October 12, 2008|url-status=live}}</ref> and local politicians have proposed reorganizing it as an independent city due to its high density.<ref name=arlcity/> [[Loudoun County, Virginia|Loudoun County]] is the fastest-growing county in the state.<ref name=wapo2018pop/><ref>{{cite news|url=https://wtop.com/loudoun-county/2019/12/loudoun-county-one-of-the-fastest-growing-in-the-country/|title=Loudoun County one of the fastest growing in the country|first=Kyle|last=Cooper|work=WTOP|date=December 31, 2019|access-date=May 6, 2020}}</ref> In western Virginia, [[Roanoke, Virginia|Roanoke]] city and [[Montgomery County, Virginia|Montgomery County]], part of the [[Blacksburg–Christiansburg metropolitan area]], both have surpassed a population of 100,000 since 2018.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.roanoke.com/news/local/new-population-estimates-montgomery-county-passes-roanoke/article_b4ad525d-96ad-55dd-978b-d82f58db46c0.html |title= New population estimates: Montgomery County passes Roanoke |first= Yann |last= Ranaivo |newspaper= The Roanoke Star |date= January 31, 2020 |access-date= May 6, 2020}}</ref>

On the western edge of the [[Tidewater (region)|Tidewater region]] is Virginia's capital, [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]], which has a population of around 230,000 in its city proper and over 1.3{{nbsp}}million in its metropolitan area. On the eastern edge is the [[Hampton Roads]] metropolitan area, where over 1.7{{nbsp}}million reside across six counties and nine cities, including the Commonwealth's three most populous independent cities: [[Virginia Beach, Virginia|Virginia Beach]], [[Chesapeake, Virginia|Chesapeake]], and [[Norfolk, Virginia|Norfolk]].<ref name=msa/><ref name=agesex>{{cite web|url=https://data.census.gov/table?g=0400000US51,51$0500000&y=2021&tid=ACSST1Y2021.S0101&moe=false&tp=true|title=American Community Survey: Age and Sex|website=U.S. Census Bureau|date=July 1, 2021|access-date=January 4, 2023}}</ref> Neighboring [[Suffolk, Virginia|Suffolk]], which includes a portion of the [[Great Dismal Swamp]], is the largest city by area at {{convert|429.1|sqmi|km2}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.suffolkva.us/1065/History |title=All About Suffolk |publisher=[[Suffolk, Virginia|Suffolk]] |date=February 12, 2007 |access-date=February 19, 2008}}</ref> One reason for the concentration of independent cities in the Tidewater region is that several rural counties there re-incorporated as cities or consolidated with existing cities to try to hold on to their new suburban neighborhoods that started [[suburbanization|booming in the 1950s]], since cities like Norfolk and [[Portsmouth, Virginia|Portsmouth]] were able to annex land from adjoining counties until a moratorium in 1987.<ref>{{cite journal |url= https://www.virginialawreview.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/1551.pdf |last= Roberts |first= David K |title= Separate, but Equal? Virginia's 'Independent' Cities and the Purported Virtues of Voluntary Interlocal Agreements |journal= Virginia Law Review |volume= 95 |number= 6 |year= 2009 |pages= 1551–97 |access-date= May 7, 2024}}</ref> Others, like [[Poquoson, Virginia|Poquoson]], became cities to try to preserve [[racial segregation]] during the desegregation era of the 1970s.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://wydaily.com/our-community/2022/03/10/why-do-we-call-it-poquoson/ |title= Why Do We Call It... Poquoson? |first= Nancy |last= Sheppard |newspaper= WYDaily |date= March 10, 2022 |access-date= May 7, 2024}}</ref>

{{Largest cities
| country = Virginia
| kind = Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas
| stat_ref = [[#CITEREFMSA|U.S. Census Bureau MSA Population Estimates 2023]]
| list_by_pop = Virginia statistical areas
| city_1 = Northern Virginia
| pop_1 = 3,154,735
| city_2 = Hampton Roads
| pop_2 = 1,727,503
| city_3 = Greater Richmond Region{{!}}Richmond
| pop_3 = 1,349,732
| city_4 = Roanoke metropolitan area{{!}}Roanoke
| pop_4 = 314,314
| city_5 = Lynchburg metropolitan area{{!}}Lynchburg
| pop_5 = 264,590
| city_6 = Charlottesville, Virginia metropolitan area{{!}}Charlottesville
| pop_6 = 225,127
| city_7 = Blacksburg–Christiansburg metropolitan area{{!}}Blacksburg–Christiansburg
| pop_7 = 181,428
| city_8 = Harrisonburg metropolitan area{{!}}Harrisonburg
| pop_8 = 137,650
| city_9 = Staunton–Waynesboro metropolitan area{{!}}Staunton–Waynesboro
| pop_9 = 127,344
| city_10 = Winchester, VA–WV MSA{{!}}Winchester
| pop_10 = 123,611
| city_11 = Danville, Virginia{{!}}Danville
| pop_11 = 101,408
| city_12 = Kingsport–Bristol–Bristol, Tennessee-Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area{{!}}Bristol
| pop_12 = 92,290
| city_13 = Martinsville, Virginia{{!}}Martinsville
| pop_13 = 63,465
| city_14 = Tazewell, Virginia{{!}}Tazewell
| pop_14 = 39,120
| city_15 = Lake of the Woods, Virginia{{!}}Lake of the Woods
| pop_15 = 38,574
}}

==Demographics==

{{Main|Demographics of Virginia}}
{{US Census population
|1790= 691737
|1800= 807557
|1810= 877683
|1820= 938261
|1830= 1044054
|1840= 1025227
|1850= 1119348
|1860= 1219630
|1870= 1225163
|1880= 1512565
|1890= 1655980
|1900= 1854184
|1910= 2061612
|1920= 2309187
|1930= 2421851
|1940= 2677773
|1950= 3318680
|1960= 3966949
|1970= 4648494
|1980= 5346818
|1990= 6187358
|2000= 7078515
|2010= 8001024
|2020= 8631393
|estyear= 2024
|estimate= 8811195
|align-fn=center
|footnote=1790–2020,<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www2.census.gov/library/visualizations/2000/dec/2000-resident-population/virginia.pdf |title= Resident Population and Apportionment of the U.S. House of Representatives |publisher=United States Census Bureau |date= December 27, 2000 |access-date= May 3, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Historical Population Change Data (1910–2020) |url=https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/dec/popchange-data-text.html |website=Census.gov |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=May 1, 2021 |archive-date=April 29, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210429012609/https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/dec/popchange-data-text.html }}</ref> 2024<ref name=QuickFacts/>
}}

The [[2020 United States census|2020 census]] found the state resident population was 8,631,393, a 7.9% increase since the [[2010 United States census|2010 census]]. Another 23,149&nbsp;Virginians live overseas, giving the state a total population of 8,654,542. Virginia has the fourth-largest overseas population of U.S. states due to its federal employees and military personnel.<ref name="Bureau 2021">{{cite web |website= U.S. Census Bureau |title= 2020 Census Apportionment Results |date= April 26, 2021 |url= https://www.census.gov/data/tables/2020/dec/2020-apportionment-data.html |access-date= April 27, 2021}}</ref> The [[fertility rate]] in Virginia {{as of|2020|lc=on}} was 55.8 per 1,000 females between the ages of 15 and 44,<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.marchofdimes.org/peristats/data?reg=99&top=2&stop=1&lev=1&slev=4&obj=1&sreg=51 |title= Fertility Rate: Virginia, 2010–2020 |date= January 2022 |access-date= January 4, 2022 |website= March of Dimes}}</ref> and the [[List of U.S. states and territories by median age|median age]] {{as of|2021|lc=on}} was the same as the national average of 38.8&nbsp;years old.<ref name=agesex/> The geographic [[center of population]] is located northwest of [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]] in [[Hanover County, Virginia|Hanover County]], {{As of|2020|lc=on}}.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/centers-population.html |title= Centers of Population |website= U.S. Census Bureau |date= November 16, 2021 |access-date= January 4, 2023}}</ref>

Though still growing naturally as births outnumber deaths, Virginia has had a negative [[net migration rate]] since 2013, with 8,995&nbsp;more people leaving the state than moving to it in 2021. This is largely credited to high home prices in Northern Virginia,<ref>{{cite news |url= https://cardinalnews.org/2023/01/25/youngkin-is-worried-about-people-moving-out-of-virginia-heres-how-big-that-out-migration-is/ |title= Youngkin is worried about people moving out of Virginia. Here's how big that out-migration is. |website= Cardinal News |first= Dwayne |last= Yancey |date= January 25, 2023 |access-date= February 7, 2023}}</ref> which are driving residents there to relocate south; [[Raleigh, North Carolina|Raleigh]] is their top destination.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonian.com/2023/02/14/is-richmond-turning-into-the-new-bedroom-community-for-dc-workers/ |title= Is Richmond Turning Into the New Bedroom Community for DC Workers? |website= Washingtonian |first= Mimi |last= Montgomery |date= February 14, 2023 |access-date= February 16, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.axios.com/local/richmond/2023/01/16/northern-virginia-nova-richmond |title= Northern Virginia residents are relocating to Richmond in droves |date= January 17, 2023 |first= Karri |last= Peifer |website= Axios |access-date= February 22, 2023}}</ref> Aside from Virginia, the top birth state for Virginians is [[New York (state)|New York]], with the [[Northeastern United States|Northeast]] accounting for the largest number of domestic migrants into the state by region.<ref name=nytmigrationanddiaspora>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/08/13/upshot/where-people-in-each-state-were-born.html?_r=2&abt=0002&abg=1#Virginia|title=Where We Came From and Where We Went, State by State|first1=Gregor|last1=Aisch|first2=Robert|last2=Gebeloff|first3=Kevin|last3=Quealy|newspaper=The New York Times|date=August 14, 2014|access-date=February 23, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190301065745/https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/08/13/upshot/where-people-in-each-state-were-born.html?_r=2&abt=0002&abg=1#Virginia|archive-date=March 1, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> About twelve percent of residents were born outside the United States {{as of|2020|lc=on}}. [[El Salvador]] is the most common foreign country of birth, with [[India]], [[Mexico]], [[South Korea]], the [[Philippines]], and [[Vietnam]] as other common birthplaces.<ref name=nova_immigrants>{{cite web |url= https://www.thecommonwealthinstitute.org/2020/07/29/a-profile-of-our-immigrant-neighbors-in-northern-virginia/ |title= A Profile of Our Immigrant Neighbors in Northern Virginia |website= The Commonwealth Institute |date= July 29, 2020 |access-date= May 2, 2021}}</ref>

===Race and ethnicity===
The state's most populous racial group, [[non-Hispanic whites]], has declined as a proportion of the population from 76% in 1990 to 58.6% in 2020.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/demographics-are-destiny-virginia-flna8c11525607 |website= U.S. Census Bureau |title= Demographics are destiny in Virginia |first= Domenico |last= Montanaro |date= November 4, 2013 |access-date= September 1, 2021}}</ref><ref name=race2020>{{cite web |url= https://www.census.gov/library/visualizations/interactive/race-and-ethnicity-in-the-united-state-2010-and-2020-census.html |title= Race and Ethnicity in the United States: 2010 Census and 2020 Census |publisher= U.S. Census Bureau |date= August 17, 2021 |access-date= September 1, 2021 |ref= CITEREFethnicity}}</ref> Immigrants from Britain and Ireland settled throughout the Commonwealth during the colonial period,{{sfn|Miller|Schrier|Boling|Doyle|2003|pp=6, 147}} when roughly three-fourths of immigrants came as [[indentured servant]]s.<ref>{{cite book |last= Masur |first= Louis P. |title= The Sum of Our Dreams: A Concise History of America |year= 2020 |publisher= Oxford University Press |location= New York |pages= 4–5 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=fobxDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA4 |isbn= 978-0-19-069257-5}}</ref> The Appalachian mountains and [[Shenandoah Valley]] have many settlements that were populated by [[Shenandoah Germans|German]] and [[Scotch-Irish Americans|Scotch-Irish immigrants]] in the 18th and 19th centuries, often following the [[Great Wagon Road]].<ref name=dutch/><ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.princewilliamtimes.com/news/virginia-is-for-irish-lovers/article_3f1da178-4734-11e9-8302-ebb4c2629721.html |title= Virginia is for Irish lovers? |first= Rosemarie |last= O'Connor |agency= Capital News Service |date= March 17, 2019 |website= Prince William Times |access-date= September 28, 2023}}</ref> Over ten percent of Virginians have German ancestry {{as of|2020|lc=on}}.<ref name=ancestry>{{cite web |url= https://data.census.gov/table?t=Ancestry&g=0400000US51,51$0500000&d=ACS+5-Year+Estimates+Data+Profiles&tid=ACSDP5Y2020.DP02&moe=false&tp=true |title= Selected Social Characteristics |website= American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates |publisher= [[U.S. Census Bureau]] |year= 2020 |access-date= December 23, 2022 |ref=CITEREFancestry}}</ref>

[[File:L-15-12-22-A-040 (23285802904).jpg|thumb|left|New citizens attend a naturalization ceremony in [[Northern Virginia]], where 25% of residents are foreign-born, almost twice the overall state average.<ref name=nova_immigrants/>|alt=Dozens of adults sit in auditorium rows, many waving small American flags]]
The largest minority group in Virginia are Blacks and African Americans, about one-fifth of the population.<ref name=race2020/> Virginia was a major destination of the [[Atlantic slave trade]]. The [[Igbo American|Igbo]] ethnic group of what is now southern [[Nigeria]] were the largest African group among slaves in Virginia.<ref>{{harvnb|Pinn|2009|p=175}}; {{harvnb|Chambers|2005|pp=10–14}}</ref> Blacks in Virginia also have more European ancestry than those in other southern states, and DNA analysis shows many have asymmetrical male and female ancestry from before the Civil War, evidence of European fathers and African or Native American mothers.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://psmag.com/news/how-slavery-changed-the-dna-of-african-americans |title= How Slavery Changed the DNA of African Americans |magazine= Pacific Standard |first= Michael |last= White |date= December 20, 2017 |access-date= March 25, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |title= The Genetic Ancestry of African Americans, Latinos, and European Americans across the United States |first1= Katarzyna |last1= Bryc |first2= Eric Y. |last2= Durand |first3= J. Michael |last3= Macpherson |first4= David |last4= Reich |first5= Joanna L. |last5= Mountain |journal= American Journal of Human Genetics |doi= 10.1016/j.ajhg.2014.11.010 |pmid= 25529636 |date= January 8, 2015 |volume = 96|issue = 1|pages = 37–53|pmc = 4289685|doi-access= free}}</ref> Though the Black population was reduced by the [[Great Migration (African American)|Great Migration]] to northern industrial cities in the first half of the 20th century, since 1965 there has been a reverse migration of Blacks [[New Great Migration|returning south]].<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/Files/rc/reports/2004/05demographics_frey/20040524_Frey.pdf |first=William H. |last=Frey |title=The New Great Migration: Black Americans' Return to the South, 1965–2000 |journal=The Living Cities Census Series |date=May 2004 |pages=1–3 |access-date=September 10, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071103165633/http://www3.brookings.edu/~/media/Files/rc/reports/2004/05demographics_frey/20040524_Frey.pdf |archive-date=November 3, 2007}}</ref> The Commonwealth has the highest number of Black-white [[Interracial marriage in the United States|interracial marriages in the US]],<ref name=blackwhite>{{cite news|url=https://www.pilotonline.com/news/article_107293b2-cb53-5d2f-8b38-aca42251c6e3.html|title=Virginia ranks highest in U.S. for black-white marriages|newspaper=The Virginian-Pilot|date=March 17, 2012|first=Denise M.|last=Watson|access-date=April 20, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140421082321/http://hamptonroads.com/2012/03/virginia-ranks-highest-us-blackwhite-marriages|archive-date=April 21, 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> and 8.2% of Virginians describe themselves as [[Multiracial people|multiracial]].<ref name=QuickFacts/>

More recent immigration since the late 20th century has resulted in new communities of Hispanics and Asians. {{As of|2020}}, 10.5% of Virginia's total population describe themselves as [[Hispanic and Latino Americans|Hispanic or Latino]], and 8.8% as [[Asian people|Asian]].<ref name=QuickFacts/> The state's Hispanic population rose by 92% from 2000 to 2010, with two-thirds of Hispanics in the state living in [[Northern Virginia]].<ref name=demographics>{{cite news|url=http://hamptonroads.com/2011/02/virginians-census-8-million-total-1m-fairfax-county |title=Virginians in the census: 8 million total, 1M in Fairfax County |work=[[The Virginian-Pilot]] |agency=[[Associated Press]] |date=February 3, 2011 |access-date=February 4, 2011 |first=John |last=Raby |ref=CITEREFdemographics |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110204203509/http://hamptonroads.com/2011/02/virginians-census-8-million-total-1m-fairfax-county |archive-date=February 4, 2011}}</ref> Northern Virginia also has a significant population of [[Vietnamese American]]s, whose major wave of immigration followed the [[Vietnam War]].<ref>{{cite journal|title=Vietnamese American Place Making in Northern Virginia|first=Joseph|last=Wood|journal=Geographical Review|volume=87|issue=1|date=January 1997|pages=58–72|doi=10.2307/215658|jstor=215658}}</ref> [[Korean American]]s have migrated there more recently,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.wtop.com/?nid=722&sid=1374240|title=Centreville: The New Koreatown?|work=Fairfax County Times|first=Layla|last=Wilder|date=March 28, 2008|access-date=November 30, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611210442/http://www.wtop.com/?nid=722&sid=1374240|archive-date=June 11, 2011|url-status=live}}</ref> while about 45,000 [[Filipino American]]s have settled in the Hampton Roads area.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://hamptonroads.com/2008/06/locals-celebrate-philippine-independence-day|title=Locals celebrate Philippine Independence Day|work=[[The Virginian-Pilot]]|date=June 12, 2008|first=Nora|last=Firestone|access-date=September 30, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080617220659/http://hamptonroads.com/2008/06/locals-celebrate-philippine-independence-day|archive-date=June 17, 2008|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:345th Tax Tribute Ceremony, Richmond - 11-23-22 - 028.jpg|thumb|Governor [[Glenn Youngkin]] receiving a ceremonial tribute from representatives of the [[Mattaponi]] and [[Pamunkey]] tribes, a Thanksgiving tradition since 1677.<ref name=taxtribute/>|alt=An older white man in a dark blue blazer smiles as he is presented with a dead deer hanging upside down held by two men in contemporary Native American attire.]]
[[Native American tribes in Virginia|Tribal membership in Virginia]] is complicated by the legacy of the state's "[[Racial Integrity Act of 1924|pencil genocide]]" of intentionally categorizing Native Americans and Blacks together, and many tribal members do have African or European ancestry, or both.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://time.com/5141434/virginia-indian-recognition-pocahontas-exception/ |title= From the 'Pocahontas Exception' to a 'Historical Wrong': The Hidden Cost of Formal Recognition for American Indian Tribes |magazine= Time Magazine |first=  Arica L. |last= Coleman |date= February 9, 2018 |access-date= April 29, 2021}}</ref> In 2020, the U.S. Census Bureau found that only 0.5% of Virginians were exclusively [[Native Americans in the United States|American Indian]] or [[Alaska Native]], though 2.1% were in some combination with other ethnicities.<ref name=race2020/> The state government has [[State-recognized tribes in the United States|extended recognition]] to eleven tribes. Seven tribes also have federal recognition.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://chesapeakebaymagazine.com/seven-virginia-tribes-celebrate-federal-recognition-on-york-river/ |title= Seven Virginia Tribes Celebrate Federal Recognition on York River |magazine= Chesapeake Bay Magazine |first= Meg |last= Walburn Viviano |date= October 8, 2018 |access-date= May 18, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.voanews.com/usa/us-recognizes-6-virginia-native-american-tribes |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191228110134/https://www.voanews.com/usa/us-recognizes-6-virginia-native-american-tribes |archive-date= December 28, 2019 |title= US Recognizes 6 Virginia Native American Tribes |website= Voice of America |first= Cecily |last= Hilleary |date=January 31, 2018|access-date=April 29, 2020}}</ref> The [[Pamunkey]] and [[Mattaponi]] have reservations on tributaries of the [[York River (Virginia)|York River]] in the [[Tidewater region of Virginia|Tidewater region]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.whsv.com/content/news/After-centuries-in-Virginia-tribe-still-waiting-for-US-recognition-509597531.html |title= After centuries in Virginia, tribe still waiting for U.S. recognition |first1= Madison |last1= Manske |first2= Alexandra |last2= Zernik |agency= Capital News Service |date= May 7, 2019 |access-date= April 29, 2020 |website= WHSV-TV}}</ref>

{|class="toccolours" style="border-spacing: 1px; margin:1em auto 1em auto"
!style="background:lavender; padding-right:3px; padding-left:3px;"|Largest race by county or city
!style="background:lavender; padding-right:3px; padding-left:3px;"|Race and ethnicity ([[#CITEREFethnicity|2020]])
!style="background:lavender; padding-right:6px; padding-left:6px;"|Alone
!style="background:lavender; padding-right:6px; padding-left:6px;"|Total
|-
|rowspan=6 style="text-align:center; width:280px;" |[[File:Virginia Counties by race (2020 census).svg|270px|Map of racial plurality in Virginia by county as of the [[2020 United States census|2020 U.S. census]]]]
{|class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="line-height:1.3em; border:0; margin-top:0em; background:transparent; width:100%"
|+Legend
|-
|style="border:0px; vertical-align:top;"|Non-Hispanic White{{legend|#e6b8af|30–39%}}
{{legend|#dd7e6b|40–49%}}
{{legend|#cc4125|50–59%}}
{{legend|#a61c00|60–69%}}
{{legend|#85200c|70–79%}}
{{legend|#5b0f00|80–89%}}
{{legend|#410b00|90–99%}}
|style="border:0px; vertical-align:top;"|Black or African American{{legend|#ffe599|40–49%}}
{{legend|#ffd966|50–59%}}
{{legend|#f1c232|60–69%}}
{{legend|#bf9000|70–79%}}
|style="border:0px; vertical-align:top;"|Hispanic or Latino{{legend|#a2c4c9|40–49%}}
|}
|Non-Hispanic White
|align=center|58.6%
|align=center|62.8%
|-
|Black or African American
|align=center|18.3%
|align=center|20.1%
|-
|Hispanic or Latino (of any race)
|
|10.5%
|-
|Asian
|align=center|7.1%
|align=center|8.6%
|-
|American Indian and Alaska Native
|align=center|0.2%
|align=center|1.5%
|-
|Other
|align=center|0.6%
|align=center|1.5%
|-
|colspan=3 style="padding-bottom:0.75em;" |
|-
!style="background:lavender; padding-right:3px; padding-left:3px;"|Largest ancestry by county or city
!style="background:lavender; padding-right:3px; padding-left:3px;"|Ancestry ([[#CITEREFancestry|2020&nbsp;est.]])
!colspan=2 style="background:lavender; padding-right:3px; padding-left:3px;"|Total
|-
|rowspan=5 style="text-align:center; width:280px;"|
[[File:Virginia Ancestries by County 2020.svg|270px|Virginia counties colored either red, blue, yellow, green, or purple based on the populations most common ancestry. The south-east is predominantly purple for African American, while the west is mostly red for American. The north has yellow for German, with two small areas green for Irish. Yellow is also found in spots in the west. A strip in the middle is blue for English.]]
<br />
<span style="line-height: 1.3em">[[American Community Survey]] five-year estimate</span>
|{{legend|green|Irish or Scotch-Irish}}
|colspan=2 align=center|10.4%
|-
|{{legend|#fc0|German}}
|colspan=2 align=center|10.3%
|-
|{{legend|#2a7fff|English}}
|colspan=2 align=center|9.8%
|-
|{{legend|#a00|American}}
|colspan=2 align=center|9.4%
|-
||{{legend|#5a2ca0|Subsaharan African}}
|colspan=2 align=center|2.3%
|}

===Languages===
[[File:Monologue with 93 year old white male, Tangier Island, Virginia.ogg|thumb|start=00:16|A recording of a resident of [[Tangier, Virginia|Tangier Island]] who was born in the late 1800s, showcasing the island's unique accent]]
According to U.S. Census data {{As of|2022|lc=on}} on Virginia residents aged five and older, 83% (6,805,548) speak [[English language|English]] at home as a [[first language]]. [[Spanish language|Spanish]] is the next most commonly spoken language, with 7.5% (611,831) of Virginia households, though age is a factor; 8.7% (120,560) of Virginians under age eighteen speak Spanish. [[Arabic language|Arabic]] was the third most commonly spoken language with around 0.8% of residents, followed by [[Chinese language]]s  and [[Vietnamese language|Vietnamese]] each with over 0.7%, and then [[Korean language|Korean]] and [[Tagalog language|Tagalog]], just under 0.7% and 0.6% respectively.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.migrationpolicy.org/data/state-profiles/state/language/VA |title= State Immigration Data Profiles: Virginia |website= Migration Policy Institute |date= July 1, 2023 |access-date= August 1, 2024}}</ref>

English was passed as the Commonwealth's official language by statutes in 1981 and again in 1996, though the status is not mandated by the constitution.{{sfn|Joseph|2006|p=63}} While a more homogenized [[American English]] is found in urban areas, and the use of Southern accents in general has been on the decline in speakers born since the 1960s,<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.npr.org/2023/09/17/1200026181/are-southern-accents-disappearing-linguists-say-yes |title= Are Southern accents disappearing? Linguists say yes |date= September 17, 2023 |website= NPR |first= Ayesha |last= Rascoe |access-date= November 3, 2023}}</ref> various accents are still present.<ref name=pleasant/> The [[Piedmont region of Virginia|Piedmont]] region is known for its non-rhotic dialect's strong influence on [[Southern American English]], and a [[BBC America]] study in 2014 ranked it as one of the most identifiable accents in American English.<ref>{{cite news |url= http://www.bbcamerica.com/anglophenia/2014/09/8-american-dialects-brits-dont-know |title= 8 American Dialects Most Brits Don't Know About |website= BBC America |first= Laurence |last= Brown |date= September 2014 |access-date= July 26, 2022 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210308132026/https://www.bbcamerica.com/anglophenia/2014/09/8-american-dialects-brits-dont-know |archive-date= March 8, 2021}}</ref> The [[Tidewater accent]] evolved from the language that upper-class English typically spoke in the early Colonial period, while the [[Appalachian English|Appalachian accent]] has much more influence from the English spoken by Scottish and Irish immigrants from that time.<ref name=pleasant>{{cite news |url= https://augustafreepress.com/this-accent-is-one-of-the-most-pleasant-in-the-world/ |title= This accent is one of the most pleasant in the world |website= Augusta Free Press |date= December 10, 2019 |access-date= July 26, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/library/niceandcurious/manyvoices.htm|title=Virginia's Many Voices|first1=Edwin S.|last1=Clay III|first2=Patricia|last2=Bangs|publisher=[[Fairfax County, Virginia]]|date=May 9, 2005|access-date=November 28, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071221203242/http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/library/niceandcurious/manyvoices.htm|archive-date=December 21, 2007}}</ref> [[Appalachian stereotypes]] have, however, led to some from the region [[code-switching]] to a less distinct English accent.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://roanoke.com/opinion/commentary/davis-appalachian-code-switching/article_101de134-f6aa-52cc-a095-714f7389d1da.html |title= Davis: Appalachian code-switching |newspaper= The Roanoke Times |first= Chelyen |last= Davis |date= July 26, 2015 |access-date= November 3, 2023}}</ref> The English spoken on [[Tangier, Virginia|Tangier Island]] in the [[Chesapeake Bay]], preserved by the island's isolation, contains many phrases and euphemisms not found anywhere else and retains elements of [[Early Modern English]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20180206-the-tiny-us-island-with-a-british-accent |title= The tiny US island with a British accent |website= BBC |first1= Veena |last1= Rao |first2= Eliot |last2= Stein |date= February 7, 2018 |access-date= July 26, 2022}}</ref><ref name="Miller">{{cite news|url=http://www.nationalreview.com/article/215086/exotic-tangier-john-j-miller|title=Exotic Tangier|work=[[National Review]]|first=John J.|last=Miller|date=August 2, 2005|access-date=October 9, 2008}}</ref>

===Religion===
{{See also|Religion in early Virginia}}
{{Pie chart
| caption = '''Religious Tradition ([[#CITEREFprri2023|2023]])'''
| label1 = [[Irreligion in the United States|Unaffiliated]]
| value1 = 29
| label2 = [[Protestantism in the United States|Protestantism]]
| value2 = 46
| label3 = [[Catholic Church in the United States|Catholicism]]
| value3 = 16
| label4 = [[Jehovah's Witnesses]]
| value4 = 2
| label5 = [[Judaism in the United States|Judaism]]
| value5 = 2
| label6 = [[Eastern Orthodoxy in North America|Eastern Orthodoxy]]
| value6 = 1
| label7 = [[Islam in the United States|Islam]]
| value7 = 1
| label8 = [[Mormonism]]
| value8 = 1
| label9 = [[Unitarian Universalism]]
| value9 = 1
| other = 1
}}
Virginia enshrined [[Freedom of religion|religious freedom]] in [[Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom|a 1786 statute]]. Though the state is historically part of America's [[Bible Belt]], the 2023 [[Public Religion Research Institute]] (PRRI) survey estimated that 55% of Virginians either seldom or never attend religious services, ahead of the national average of 53.2%, and that the percent of Virginians unaffiliated with any particular religious body had increased from 21% in 2013 to 29% in 2023.<ref name=prri2023>{{cite web |url= https://ava.prri.org/#religious/2023/States/religion1/m/US-VA |title= PRRI – American Values Atlas |website= The American Values Atlas |year= 2023 |access-date= August 1, 2024 |ref=CITEREFprri2023}}</ref> The 2020 U.S. Religion Census conducted by the [[Association of Religion Data Archives]] (ARDA) similarly found that 55% of Virginians attend none of the state's 10,477&nbsp;congregations.<ref name=whopractices>{{cite news |url= https://www.coopercenter.org/research/who-practices-what-religion-where-virginia |title= Who Practices What Religion Where in Virginia? |date= June 8, 2021 |first1= Shonel |last1= Sen |first2= Rebecca |last2= Draughon |website= The Cooper Center |access-date= August 1, 2024}}</ref> Overall [[belief in God]] has also declined in [[Southern United States|the South region]], of which Virginia is a part, from 93% of respondents in [[Gallup, Inc.|Gallup]] surveys from 2013 to 2017, to 86% in 2022.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://news.gallup.com/poll/393737/belief-god-dips-new-low.aspx |title= Belief in God in U.S. Dips to 81%, a New Low |website= Gallup |date= June 17, 2022 |first= Jeffrey M. |last= Jones |access-date= August 1, 2024}}</ref>

Of the 45% of Virginians who were associated with religious bodies in the 2020 ARDA census, [[Evangelicalism|Evangelical Protestants]] made up the largest overall grouping, with 20.3% of the state's population, while 8.1% and 2% were [[Mainline Protestant|mainline]] and [[Black church|Black Protestant]] respectively. [[Baptists]], 84% of which are counted as Evangelical, included 9.4% of Virginians in that census.<ref name=arda2020>{{cite web |url= https://www.thearda.com/us-religion/census/congregational-membership?y=2020&y2=0&t=1&c=51 |title= Virginia - State Membership Report (2020) |website= The Association of Religion Data Archives |year= 2020 |access-date= August 1, 2024}}</ref> Their major division is between the [[Baptist General Association of Virginia]], which formed in 1823, and the [[Southern Baptist Conservatives of Virginia]], which split off in 1996. Other Protestant branches with over one percent of Virginians included [[Pentecostalism]] (1.8%), [[Presbyterianism]] (1.3%), [[Anglicanism]] (1.2%), and [[Adventism]] (1%).<ref name=arda2020/> The 2023 PRRI survey estimated that 46% of Virginians were Protestants, with 14% each as White Evangelical, White Mainline, and Black, though these numbers include individuals who report not attending services.<ref name=prri2023/>

[[File:Easter Sunrise Service at Arlington National Cemetery 2019.jpg|thumb|left|Since 1927, [[Arlington National Cemetery]] in [[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington County]] has hosted an annual nondenominational [[sunrise service]] every Easter.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.dcmilitary.com/pentagram/community/jbm-hh-chaplains-easter-sunrise-service-offers-chance-to-celebrate-grow/article_1fce8350-c3b8-5ea2-9cbc-93d1744d4819.html |title= JBM-HH chaplains: Easter Sunrise Service offers chance to celebrate, grow |first= Arthur |last= Mondale |website= Pentagram |date= March 24, 2016 |access-date= June 20, 2021}}</ref>|alt=An outdoor auditorium with seated guests lined with neoclassical columns and a closed archway on one side and banners hanging inside the arch.]]
[[Roman Catholicism in the United States|Catholics]] accounted for 10.3% in the 2020 ARDA census,<ref name=arda2020/> and 16% in the 2023 PRRI survey, which divided them into 9% White Catholic, 6% Hispanic Catholic, and 1% other.<ref name=prri2023/> Catholic churches are organized in either the [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Arlington|Diocese of Arlington]] or [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Richmond|Richmond]], while [[Episcopal Church (United States)|Episcopal churches]] are similarly in their [[Episcopal Diocese of Virginia|Diocese of Virginia]], [[Episcopal Diocese of Southern Virginia|Southern Virginia]], and [[Episcopal Diocese of Southwestern Virginia|Southwestern Virginia]]. Adherents of [[the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]] constitute just over one percent of the population, with 210&nbsp;[[The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Virginia|congregations in Virginia]] {{as of|2024|lc=on}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/facts-and-statistics/country/united-states/state/virginia|title=USA-Virginia|website=Mormon Newsroom|publisher=[[The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]]|access-date=August 1, 2024|first=Lance|last=Walker}}</ref> While the state's Jewish population is small, organized Jewish sites date to 1789 with [[Congregation Beth Ahabah]].{{sfn|Olitzky|1996|p=359}}

[[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax County]] is the state's most religiously diverse jurisdiction.<ref name=whopractices/> [[Fairfax Station, Virginia|Fairfax Station]] is the site of the [[Ekoji Buddhist Temple]], of the [[Jōdo Shinshū]] school, and the Hindu [[Durga Temple of Virginia]]. The [[All Dulles Area Muslim Society]], on the county's border in [[Sterling, Virginia|Sterling]], considers its eleven branches the country's second-largest [[Muslim]] mosque community.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.wusa9.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/ramadan-mubarak-goes-virtual-adams-center-northern-virginia/65-7ed1440b-8ce4-4bee-b47f-4f300ae51aa9 |title= DMV mosques adjust Ramadan observance during coronavirus pandemic |first= John |last= Henry |website= WUSA9 |date= April 24, 2020 |access-date= June 20, 2021}}</ref> [[McLean Bible Church]], with around 16,500&nbsp;weekly visitors, is among the top 25&nbsp;largest [[megachurch]]es in the U.S. and 8.4% of Virginians attend [[Nondenominational Christianity|nondenomination Christian]] churches like it, according to the 2020 ARDA census.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/30-biggest-american-megachurches-ranked/ |title= America's biggest megachurches, ranked |website= CBS News |first= Elisha |last= Fieldstadt |date= November 26, 2018 |access-date= August 2, 2024}}</ref><ref name=arda2020/> [[Lynchburg metropolitan area|Lynchburg]] and [[Roanoke metropolitan area|Roanoke]] ranked in that census as the two metropolitan areas with the highest rates of religious adherence, while the state-college-dominated [[Blacksburg–Christiansburg metropolitan area|Blacksburg–Christiansburg]] and [[Charlottesville, Virginia metropolitan area|Charlottesville]] were the lowest.<ref name=arda2020/> Two major Christian universities, [[Liberty University]] and the [[University of Lynchburg]], are based in Lynchburg, while [[Regent University]] is in [[Virginia Beach, Virginia|Virginia Beach]].

==Economy==
{{Main|Economy of Virginia}}
{{See also|Virginia locations by per capita income}}
[[File:Virginia Median Household Income 2015–2019.png|thumb|upright=1.35|Counties and cities by median household income between 2015 and 2019|alt=Map of Virginia counties colored by median household income, ranging from gray, to blue, to darker green.]]
Virginia's economy has diverse sources of income, including local and federal government, military, farming and high-tech. The state's [[List of U.S. states and territories by income|average per capita income]] in 2022 was $68,211,<ref>{{cite web |url= https://apps.bea.gov/itable/index.html?appid=70&stepnum=40&Major_Area=3&State=0&Area=XX&TableId=21&Statistic=3&Year=202&YearBegin=-1&Year_End=-1&Unit_Of_Measure=Levels&Rank=1&Drill=1&nRange=5&AppId=70 |publisher= U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis |title= SAINC1 State annual personal income summary: personal income, population, per capita personal income |date= March 31, 2023 |access-date= April 11, 2023}}</ref> and the [[List of U.S. states and territories by GDP|gross domestic product]] (GDP) was $654.5{{nbsp}}billion, both ranking as 13th-highest among U.S. states.<ref name=gdp>{{cite web |title=GDP by State |url=https://www.bea.gov/data/gdp/gdp-state |website=GDP by State &#124; U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) |publisher=Bureau of Economic Analysis |date= December 23, 2022 |access-date=February 7, 2023}}</ref> The [[COVID-19 recession]] caused jobless claims due to soar over 10% in early April 2020,<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.pilotonline.com/business/jobs/vp-bz-virginia-unemployment-rate-20200522-lttkk3pg75eyli24vqevglm7mu-story.html |title= Virginia's unemployment rate grows past 10 percent in April |first= Kimberly |last= Pierceall |newspaper= The Virginian-Pilot |date= May 22, 2020 |access-date= September 24, 2020}}</ref> returning to pre-pandemic levels in 2023.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.bls.gov/eag/eag.va.htm#eag_va.f.2 |title=  Economy at a Glance |website= U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics |date= March 19, 2021 |access-date= March 25, 2021}}</ref> In March 2025, the unemployment rate was 3.2%, which was the 11h-lowest nationwide.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.bls.gov/web/laus/laumstrk.htm |title= Unemployment Rates for States, Seasonally Adjusted |website= U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics |date= April 18, 2025 |access-date= May 1, 2025}}</ref>

Virginia has a [[median household income]] of $89,931, {{as of|2023|lc=on}}, 11th-highest nationwide,<ref name=mhi/> and a poverty rate of 10.2%, [[List of U.S. states and territories by poverty rate|10th-lowest nationwide]].<ref name=QuickFacts/> [[Montgomery County, Virginia|Montgomery County]] outside [[Blacksburg, Virginia|Blacksburg]] has the highest poverty rate in the state, with 28.5% falling below the [[Poverty thresholds (United States Census Bureau)|U.S. Census poverty thresholds]]. [[Loudoun County, Virginia|Loudoun County]] meanwhile has the highest median household income in the nation, and the wider [[Northern Virginia]] region is among the highest-income regions nationwide.<ref name=poverty>{{cite news |url= https://www.nbc12.com/2019/10/04/data-show-poverty-income-trends-virginia/ |title= Data show poverty and income trends in Virginia |first= Adam |last= Hamza |date= October 4, 2019 |access-date= March 5, 2020 |work= [[WWBT|NBC12]]}}</ref> {{As of|2022}}, eighteen of the hundred [[highest-income counties in the United States]], including the two highest, are located in Northern Virginia.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.yahoo.com/video/25-wealthiest-counties-us-180300049.html |title= 25 Wealthiest Counties in the US |website= Yahoo! News |date= December 1, 2022 |access-date= February 7, 2023}}</ref> Though [[List of U.S. states by median home price|median home prices]] in Virginia are generally above the national average, particularly in Northern Virginia, where they were 44.8% higher in May 2024, at $760,000,<ref>{{cite news |url= https://northernvirginiamag.com/home/real-estate/2024/06/25/median-may-home-price-in-nova-jumps-45k-from-2023/ |title= Median May Home Price in NoVA Jumps $45K from 2023 |website= Northern Virginia Magazine |first= Colleen |last= Kelleher |date= June 25, 2024 |access-date= October 18, 2024}}</ref> 69.1% of [[Housing in Virginia|Virginians own their home]] {{as of|2023|lc=on}}.<ref>{{Cite web |date= March 13, 2024 |title= Homeownership Rate for Virginia |url= https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/VAHOWN |access-date=October 17, 2024 |website= Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis}}</ref> The [[Hampton Roads]] region has the state's highest per capita number of homeless individuals, with 11 per 10,000, {{As of|2020|lc=on}}.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://endhomelessness.org/homelessness-in-america/homelessness-statistics/state-of-homelessness-dashboards/?State=Virginia |title= SOH: State and CoC Dashboards |website= National Alliance to End Homelessness |date= 2020 |access-date=March 15, 2023}}</ref> Though the [[List of U.S. states by Gini coefficient|Gini index]] shows Virginia has less [[income inequality]] than the national average,<ref>{{cite news |url= https://patch.com/virginia/leesburg/poverty-income-trends-virginia |title= Virginia Poverty Rate Stable, Loudoun County Has Top Income |website= Patch Leesburg |first= Deb |last= Belt |date= October 3, 2019 |access-date= March 6, 2020}}</ref> the state's middle class is also smaller than the majority of states.<ref name=247wallst>{{cite news |url= https://247wallst.com/special-report/2019/11/27/income-it-takes-to-be-considered-middle-class-in-every-state/11/ |title= Income It Takes to Be Considered Middle Class in Every State |first= Michael B. |last= Sauter |date= February 17, 2020 |website= 24/7 Wall St. |access-date= March 25, 2020}}</ref>

[[CNBC]] ranked Virginia as their 2024 [[America's Top States For Business|Top State for Business]], with its deductions being mainly for the high cost of business and living,<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.axios.com/local/richmond/2024/07/11/virginia-top-state-business-2024-north-carolina |title= Virginia bests North Carolina as the top state for business in 2024 |date= July 11, 2024 |first= Karri |last= Peifer |access-date= July 11, 2024 |website= Axios}}</ref> while ''[[Forbes]]'' magazine ranked it as the sixteenth best to start a business in.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.forbes.com/advisor/business/best-states-to-start-a-business/ |title= Ranked: The Best States To Start a Business In 2023 |first1= Kelly |last1= Main |first2= Cassie |last2= Bottorff |date= November 30, 2022 |website= Forbes |access-date= February 8, 2023}}</ref> [[Oxfam America]] however ranked Virginia {{As of|2024|alt=in 2024}} as only the 26th-best state to work in, with pluses for worker protections from sexual harassment and [[pregnancy discrimination]], but negatives for laws on organized labor and the low tipped employee [[minimum wage]] of $2.13.<ref name=oxfam>{{cite web |url= https://www.oxfamamerica.org/explore/issues/economic-justice/workers-rights/best-states-to-work/scorecard/?state=VA |title= Best States to Work 2024 |website= Oxfam America |date= August 28, 2024 |access-date= September 7, 2024}}</ref> Virginia has been an [[At-will employment|employment-at-will]] state since 1906 and a "[[Right-to-work law|right to work]]" state since 1947,<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.richmond.com/business/labor-law-no-notice-required-to-terminate-an-at-will/article_71c5e6ff-4a57-5b37-94fb-348aff347ce9.html |title= Labor Law: No notice required to terminate an "at will" employee |first= Karen |last= Michael |newspaper= The Richmond Times-Dispatch |date= July 4, 2016 |access-date= March 4, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/02/va-dems-kill-pro-union-bill-after-learning-ceos-oppose-it.html |title= VA Democrats Kill Pro-Union Bill After Learning CEOs Oppose It |first= Eric |last= Levitz |magazine= New York Magazine |date= February 11, 2020 |access-date= March 4, 2020}}</ref> and though state minimum wage increased to $12 in 2023, farm and tipped workers are specifically excluded.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.wdbj7.com/2023/01/02/minimum-wage-increases-12/ |title= Virginia's minimum wage increases to $12 |first= Andrew |last= Webb |website= WDBJ7 |date= January 2, 2023 |access-date= January 17, 2023}}</ref><ref name=oxfam/>

===Government agencies===
[[File:The Pentagon, cropped square.png|thumb|The [[United States Department of Defense|U.S. Department of Defense]] is headquartered in [[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington County]] at [[the Pentagon]].|alt=Aerial view of the huge five-sided building and its multiple rings. Parking lots and highways stretch away from it.]]

Government agencies directly employ around 714,100 Virginians {{as of|2022|lc=on}}, almost 17% of all employees in the state.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Virginia Economy at a Glance|url=https://www.bls.gov/eag/eag.va.htm|website= U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics |date= February 6, 2023|access-date=February 7, 2023}}</ref> Approximately 12% of all [[Government procurement in the United States|U.S. federal procurement]] money is spent in Virginia, the second-highest amount after [[California]].<ref name=fedspend>{{cite web|url=http://www.foxbusiness.com/government/2012/08/03/states-that-get-most-federal-money/|title=States That Get The Most Federal Money|publisher=[[Fox Business Network]]|first1=Michael B.|last1=Sauter|first2=Lisa|last2=Uible|first3=Lisa|last3=Nelson|first4=Alexander E. M.|last4=Hess|date=August 3, 2012|access-date=May 1, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140201194124/http://www.foxbusiness.com/government/2012/08/03/states-that-get-most-federal-money/|archive-date=February 1, 2014}}</ref><ref name=weighdefense>{{cite news|title=Virginia weighs its dependence on defense spending|first=Nicole Anderson|last=Ellis|date=September 1, 2008|work=Virginia Business|url=http://www.virginiabusiness.com/index.php/news/article/virginia-weighs-its-dependence-on-defense-spending/1829/|access-date=May 26, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100206032219/http://www.virginiabusiness.com/index.php/news/article/virginia-weighs-its-dependence-on-defense-spending/1829/|archive-date=February 6, 2010}}</ref> {{as of|2020}}, 125,648&nbsp;active-duty personnel, 25,404 reservists, and 99,832&nbsp;civilians work directly for the [[U.S. Department of Defense]] at [[the Pentagon]] or one of 27&nbsp;military bases in the state covering {{convert|270,009|acres|km2}}.<ref name=mil>{{cite web |url= https://www.repi.mil/Portals/44/Documents/State_Fact_Sheets/Virginia_StateFacts.pdf |title= Virginia State Profile |date= March 2, 2022 |website= Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration Program |access-date= February 7, 2023}}</ref> Another 139,000&nbsp;Virginians work for [[government contractor|defense contracting]] firms,<ref>{{cite news |url= https://richmond.com/business/economic-impact-the-number-of-defense-contracts-in-virginia-continues-to-increase-which-is-good/article_a6ba1697-0bc3-528a-8178-0799e8f14737.html |title= Economic Impact: The number of defense contracts in Virginia continues to increase, which is good news for the state's economy |newspaper= The Richmond Times-Dispatch |first= Christine |last= Chmura |date= July 7, 2019 |access-date= May 4, 2021}}</ref> which received $44.8&nbsp;billion worth of contracts in the 2020 fiscal year.<ref name=mil/> Virginia has the second highest concentration of veterans of any state with 9.7% of the population. The [[Hampton Roads]] area is home to the world's largest navy base and only [[NATO]] station on U.S. soil, [[Naval Station Norfolk]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/slideshows/where-veterans-live?onepage |title= These States Have the Highest Percentage of Veterans |website= U.S. News & World Report |first= Chris |last= Gilligan |date= November 11, 2022 |access-date= February 7, 2023}}</ref><ref name=mil/>

Other large [[List of federal agencies in Northern Virginia|federal agencies in Northern Virginia]] include the [[Central Intelligence Agency]] in [[Langley, Virginia|Langley]], the [[National Science Foundation]] and [[United States Patent and Trademark Office|U.S. Patent and Trademark Office]] in [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]], the [[United States Geological Survey|U.S. Geological Survey]] in [[Reston, Virginia|Reston]], and the [[United States Fish & Wildlife Service|U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service]] in [[Bailey's Crossroads, Virginia|Bailey's Crossroads]]. Virginia's state government employs over 106,000 public employees, who combined have a median income of $52,401 {{as of|2018|lc=on}},<ref>{{cite web|url=https://data.richmond.com/salaries/2018/state|title=2018-19 salaries of Virginia state employees|website=The Richmond Times-Dispatch|date=November 1, 2018|access-date=May 4, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111200657/https://data.richmond.com/salaries/2018/state|archive-date=November 11, 2020}}</ref> with the [[Virginia Department of Transportation|Departments of Transportation]] and of [[Virginia Department of Education|Education]] the two largest state departments by expenditure.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.datapoint.apa.virginia.gov/dashboard.php?Page=Budget&FiscalYear=2022&Budget%20Type=CAP&Name=Executive&Branch=EXB#1a |title= Commonwealth Data Point Budget |publisher= Virginia Auditor of Public Accounts |year= 2021 |access-date= November 24, 2021}}</ref> K–12 teachers in Virginia make an annual average of $59,970, which is thirteen-lowest in the U.S. when adjusted for the state's [[cost of living]] as of the 2021–22 school year.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://usafacts.org/articles/which-states-pay-teachers-the-most-and-least/ |title= Which states pay teachers the most and least? |website= USA Facts |date= November 20, 2023 |access-date= January 6, 2024}}</ref>

===Business===
[[File:Virginia Beach waterfront.jpg|thumb|Ocean tourism is an important sector of [[Virginia Beach, Virginia|Virginia Beach's]] economy.|alt=High-rise hotels line the ocean front covered with colorful beach-goers.]]
Based on data {{As of|2020|lc=on}}, Virginia is home to 204,131 separate employers plus 644,341 [[sole proprietorship]]s. Of the 144,431&nbsp;registered non-farm businesses {{As of|2017|alt=in 2017}}, 59.4% are majority male-owned, 22% are majority female-owned, 19.6% are majority minority-owned, and 8.9% are veteran-owned.<ref name=QuickFacts/> Twenty-four [[Fortune 500]] companies are headquartered in Virginia {{as of|2024|lc=on}}, with the largest companies by revenue being [[Freddie Mac]], [[Boeing]], [[RTX Corporation]], [[Performance Food Group]], and [[Capital One]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.virginiabusiness.com/article/39-va-companies-make-2024-fortune-1000-list/ |title= These 39 Va. companies made the 2024 Fortune 1000 |first= Richard |last= Foster |website= Virginia Business |date= June 4, 2024 |access-date= August 22, 2024}}</ref> The two largest by number of employees are [[Dollar Tree]] in [[Chesapeake, Virginia|Chesapeake]] and [[Hilton Worldwide Holdings]] in [[McLean, Virginia|McLean]].<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.zippia.com/advice/largest-companies-in-virginia/ |title= The 100 Largest Companies In Virginia For 2020 |first= Chris |last= Kolmar |website= Zippa.com |date= February 2020 |access-date= March 5, 2020}}</ref>

Virginia has the third highest concentration of technology workers and the fifth highest overall number among U.S. states {{as of|2020|lc=on}}, with the 451,268&nbsp;tech jobs accounting for 11.1% of all jobs in the state and earning a median salary of $98,292.<ref name=cyberstates>{{cite press release|url=https://www.cyberstates.org/pdf/CompTIA_Cyberstates_2021.pdf |title= Cyberstates 2021 |publisher= CompTIA |date= March 2021 |access-date= May 27, 2021}}</ref> Many of these jobs are in [[Northern Virginia]], which hosts a large number of software, communications, and cybersecurity companies, particularly in the [[Dulles Technology Corridor]] and [[Tysons, Virginia|Tysons]] areas. [[Amazon (company)|Amazon]] additionally selected [[Crystal City, Virginia|Crystal City]] for [[Amazon HQ2|its HQ2]] in 2018, while [[Google]] expanded their [[Reston, Virginia|Reston]] offices in 2019.

Northern Virginia became the world's largest [[data center]] market in 2016, with over {{convert|47.7|e6sqft|km2}} {{as of|2023|lc=on}},<ref>{{cite news |url= https://dcist.com/story/23/09/01/northern-virginia-data-center-report/ |title= Northern Virginia's Data Center Industry Is Booming. But Is It Sustainable? |first= Margaret |last= Barthel |website= DCist |date= September 1, 2023 |access-date= September 8, 2023 |archive-date= September 8, 2023 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230908132350/https://dcist.com/story/23/09/01/northern-virginia-data-center-report/ |url-status= live}}</ref> much of it in [[Loudoun County, Virginia|Loudoun County]], which has branded itself "Data Center Alley".<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.virginiabusiness.com/article/you-can-google-it/ |title= You Can Google It |website= Virginia Business |date= March 1, 2020 |first= Stephenie |last= Overman |access-date= May 27, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.virginiamercury.com/2021/05/05/data-centers-and-electric-vehicles-will-drive-up-virginia-electricity-demand-uva-forecaster-predicts/ |title= Data centers and electric vehicles will drive up Virginia electricity demand, UVA forecaster predicts |first= Sarah |last= Vogelsong |newspaper= The Virginia Mercury |date= May 5, 2021 |access-date= May 27, 2021}}</ref> Data centers in Virginia handled around one-third of all internet traffic and directly employed 13,500 Virginians in 2023 and supported 45,000 total jobs.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2023/02/10/data-centers-northern-virginia-internet/ |title= Northern Va. is the heart of the internet. Not everyone is happy about that. |newspaper= The Washington Post |first= Antonio |last= Olivo |date= February 10, 2023 |access-date= February 22, 2023}}</ref> Virginia had the second fastest average internet speed among U.S. states that year and ninth highest percent of households with broadband access, at 93.6%.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.highspeedinternet.com/resources/fastest-slowest-internet |title= The 10 Fastest and Slowest States for Internet Speeds in 2022 |website= HighSpeedInternet.com |first1= Peter |last1= Holslin |first2= Rebecca Lee |last2= Armstrong |date= April 13, 2022 |access-date= February 22, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= https://broadbandnow.com/research/best-states-with-internet-coverage-and-speed |title= Best & Worst States for Broadband, 2023 |first= Jason |last= Shevik |website= BroadbandNow |date= August 8, 2023 |access-date= September 8, 2023}}</ref> [[Integrated circuit|Computer chips]] became the state's highest-grossing export in 2006,<ref name=chips>{{cite news|url=http://content.hamptonroads.com/story.cfm?story=120082&ran=25886|title=Computer chips now lead Virginia exports|first=Gregory|last=Richards|work=[[The Virginian-Pilot]]|date=February 24, 2007|access-date=September 29, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070310155937/http://content.hamptonroads.com/story.cfm?story=120082&ran=25886|archive-date=March 10, 2007}}</ref> and had an estimated export value of $740{{nbsp}}million in 2022.<ref name=chips_census>{{cite web |url= https://www.vedp.org/sites/default/files/vedp-media/Partner%20Resources/international%20trade%20meeting%20materials/Open%20Session%20Presentation%20-%20ACIT%20Meeting%20-%20September%2013%2C%202022.pdf |title= Virginia Export and Import Data |website= Virginia Economic Development Partnership |date= February 7, 2023 |access-date= February 22, 2023}}</ref> Though in the top quartile for diversity based on the [[Simpson index]], only 26% of tech employees in Virginia are women, and only 13% are Black or African American.<ref name=cyberstates/>

Tourists spent a record $33.3{{nbsp}}billion in Virginia in 2023, an increase of 10% from the previous year, supporting an estimated 224,000&nbsp;jobs, an increase of 13,000.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://richmond.com/news/local/business/virginia-tourism-record-spendinhg/article_d4ea00cc-535c-11ef-b22e-0bc265abafaf.html |title= Virginia tourism spending hits record |first= Dave |last= Ress |website= The Richmond Times-Dispatch |date= August 5, 2024 |access-date= August 7, 2024}}</ref> The state ranked as the eighth most visited based on data from 2022.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.thetravel.com/most-visited-states-in-the-us/ |title= These Are The 10 Most Visited States In The US |website= The Travel |first= Alicia |last= Remmy |date= December 16, 2023 |access-date= August 7, 2024}}</ref> That year saw 745,000&nbsp;international visitors, with 41% coming from [[Canada]].<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.vatc.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/International-Travelers-2022-2.pdf |title= International Travelers to Virginia 2022 |website= Virginia Tourism Corporation |date= October 18, 2023 |access-date= August 7, 2024}}</ref>

===Agriculture===
[[File:Farmers in Rockingham County, Virginia.jpg|thumb|[[Rockingham County, Virginia|Rockingham County]] in the [[Shenandoah Valley]] accounts for twenty percent of Virginia's agricultural sales {{as of|2017|lc=on}}, with the valley as a whole being the state's most productive region.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.virginiabusiness.com/article/growth-industry-2/ |title= Growth industry: Agriculture powers valley jobs, investment |first= Maria |last= Howard |website= Virginia Business |date= August 30, 2023 |access-date= February 8, 2024}}</ref>|alt=Two adult men in green and red baseball caps work with their hands while crouching down in a field of wide green leaves.]]

{{As of|2021}}, agriculture occupies 30% of the land in Virginia with 7.7{{nbsp}}million acres (12,031 sq mi; 31,161&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>) of farmland. Nearly 54,000 Virginians work on the state's 41,500 farms, which average {{convert|186|acre|sqmi km2|2|abbr=on}}. Though agriculture has declined significantly since 1960, when there were twice as many farms, it remains the largest industry in Virginia, providing for over 490,000&nbsp;jobs.<ref name=agfacts>{{cite web|url=https://www.vdacs.virginia.gov/markets-and-finance-agriculture-facts-and-figures.shtml |title=Virginia Agriculture—Facts and Figures |year=2022 |access-date=October 2, 2023 |publisher=Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services}}</ref> Soybeans were the most profitable single crop in Virginia in 2022,<ref name="Virginia's Top 20 Farm Commodities">{{cite web |url= https://www.vdacs.virginia.gov/agriculture-top20.shtml |title= Virginia's Top 20 Farm Commodities |date= November 30, 2023 |publisher=Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services |access-date= February 10, 2024}}</ref> although the ongoing [[China–United States trade war|trade war with China]] has led many Virginia farmers to plant cotton instead.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.virginiamercury.com/blog-va/2019-was-good-for-cotton-bad-for-soybeans-and-tobacco-in-virginia/ |title= 2019 was good for cotton, bad for soybeans and tobacco in Virginia |first= Sarah |last= Vogelsong |website= Virginia Mercury |date= January 17, 2020 |access-date= March 8, 2020}}</ref> Other leading agricultural products include corn, cut flowers, and tobacco, where the state ranks third nationally in [[Cultivation of tobacco|production]].<ref name=agfacts/><ref name="Virginia's Top 20 Farm Commodities"/>

Virginia is the country's third-largest producer of seafood {{as of|2021|lc=on}}, with [[Placopecten magellanicus|sea scallops]], oysters, [[Callinectes sapidus|Chesapeake blue crabs]], [[menhaden]], and hardshell clams as the largest seafood harvests by value, and [[France]], [[Canada]], [[New Zealand]], and [[Hong Kong]] as the top export destinations.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://virginiaoysters.org/2023/seafood/facts-about-the-virginia-commercial-seafood-industry-2023/ |title= Facts About The Virginia Commercial Seafood Industry 2023 |website= Virginia Seafood and Virginia Marine Products Board |date= September 22, 2023 |access-date= February 10, 2024}}</ref> Commercial fishing supports 18,220 jobs {{as of|2020|lc=on}}, while recreation fishing supports another 5,893.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.dailypress.com/business/dp-nw-coronavirus-vrmc-economic-fisheries-impact-20200421-2do5aune7vee5bc7l4mkm7dt64-story.html |title= Virginia's fishing industry has lost millions because of coronavirus pandemic, internal memo says |first= Lisa Vernon |last=Sparks |newspaper= The Daily Press |date= April 21, 2020 |access-date= July 4, 2020}}</ref> The population of [[eastern oyster]]s collapsed in the 1980s due to pollution and overharvesting, but has slowly rebounded, and the 2022–2023 season saw the largest harvest in 35 years with around {{convert|700,000|USbu|kL}}.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.vpm.org/news/2024-01-08/virginia-oyster-harvest-hits-milestone |title=  Virginia oyster harvest hits milestone |website= VPM |first= Patrick |last= Larsen |date= January 8, 2024 |access-date= February 10, 2024}}</ref> A warm winter and a dry summer made the 2023 wine harvest one of the best for vineyards in the [[Northern Neck]] and along the [[Blue Ridge Mountains]], which also attract 2.6{{nbsp}}million tourists annually.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://dailyprogress.com/news/local/business/2023-could-be-a-banner-year-for-virginia-wine/article_21c00a58-7f10-11ee-a7a5-f7a3d12e15ab.html |title= 2023 could be a banner year for Virginia wine |newspaper= The Daily Progress |first= Dayna |last= Smith |date= November 11, 2023 |access-date= February 10, 2024}}</ref><ref name=wine>{{cite news |url= https://theroanokestar.com/2023/10/20/virginia-lifts-a-toast-to-its-thriving-wine-industry/ |title= Virginia Lift's A Toast To Its Thriving Wine Industry |newspaper= The Roanoke Star |first= Alyssa |last= Hutton |agency= Capital News Service |date= October 20, 2023 |access-date= February 10, 2024}}</ref> Virginia has the seventh-highest number of wineries in the nation, with 388 producing 1.1&nbsp;million cases a year {{as of|2024|lc=on}}.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://winesvinesanalytics.com/statistics/winery/ |title= Statistics |website= Wines Vines Analytics |date= January 2024 |access-date= February 10, 2024}}</ref> [[List of breweries in Virginia|Breweries in Virginia]] also produced 460,315&nbsp;barrels (54,017&nbsp;kl) of craft beer in 2022, the 15th-most nationally.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://vinepair.com/articles/map-states-most-craft-beer-2023/ |title= The States That Produce the Most Craft Beer (2023) |website= VinePair |first= Nicolette |last= Baker |date= June 29, 2023 |access-date= June 29, 2023}}</ref>

===Taxes===
[[File:Virginia property taxes map 2019.svg|thumb|upright=1.35|Counties and cities by median [[property tax]] paid in 2019|alt=A map of Virginia colored green to blue based on how much property tax was paid, from $200 to $4,000+.]]
[[State income tax]] is collected from those with incomes above a [[Tax return (United States)|filing threshold]]. There are five income brackets, with rates ranging from 2.0% to 5.75% of taxable income.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.individual.tax.virginia.gov/calculators/income-tax-calculator.cfm|title=Individual Income Tax|publisher=Virginia Department of Taxation|access-date=July 4, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite report|url=https://files.taxfoundation.org/20180315173118/Tax-Foundation-FF576-1.pdf|title=Fiscal Fact No. 576: State Individual Income Tax Rates and Brackets for 2018|publisher=[[Tax Foundation]]|date=March 2018|first=Morgan|last=Scarboro}}</ref> The [[Sales taxes in the United States|state sales]] and [[use tax]] rate is 4.3%, though there is an additional 1% local tax, for a total of a 5.3% combined [[sales tax]] on most purchases. Three regions then have a higher sales tax: 6% in Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads, and 7% in the [[Historic Triangle]].<ref name=Retail>{{cite web|url=https://www.tax.virginia.gov/retail-sales-and-use-tax|title=Retail Sales and Use Tax|publisher=Virginia Department of Taxation|access-date=July 4, 2020}}</ref> Unlike the majority of states, Virginia does have a 1% sales tax on groceries.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cbpp.org/research/state-budget-and-tax/states-that-still-impose-sales-taxes-on-groceries-should-consider|title=States That Still Impose Sales Taxes on Groceries Should Consider Reducing or Eliminating Them|publisher=Center on Budget and Policy Priorities|date=April 1, 2020|first1=Eric|last1=Figueroa|first2=Juliette|last2=Legendre}}</ref> This was lowered from 2.5% in January 2023, when the items covered by this lower rate were also extended to include essential personal hygiene goods.<ref name=Retail/><ref>{{cite news |last1=Montesinos |first1=Patsy |title=Grocery sales tax reduction begins in Virginia |url=https://www.wdbj7.com/2023/01/02/grocery-sales-tax-reduction-begins-virginia/ |access-date=5 January 2023 |work=WDJB7 |agency=Gray Television, Inc. |date=2 January 2023}}</ref>

Virginia's [[Property tax in the United States|property tax]] is set and collected at the local government level and varies throughout the Commonwealth. Real estate is also taxed at the local level.<ref name=ceps>{{cite report|url=https://ceps.coopercenter.org/sites/ceps/files/tr2017book.pdf|first=Stephen C.|last=Kulp|publisher=Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service, University of Virginia/LexisNexis|title=Virginia Local Tax Rates, 2017|edition=36th annual|page=7|date=January 2018}}</ref> {{As of|2021}}, the overall median real estate tax rate per $100 of assessed taxable value was $0.96, though for 72 of the 95 counties this number was under $0.80 per $100. Northern Virginia has the highest property taxes in the state, with [[Manassas Park, Virginia|Manassas Park]] paying the highest effective tax rate at $1.31 per $100, while [[Powhatan County, Virginia|Powhatan]] and [[Lunenburg County, Virginia|Lunenburg]] counties were tied for the lowest, at $0.30.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.tax.virginia.gov/sites/default/files/inline-files/2021-assessment-sales-ratio-study.pdf |title= The Virginia Assessment/Sales Ratio Study For Tax Year 2021 |date= March 2, 2023 |first= Roderick |last= Compton |website= Virginia Department of Taxation}}</ref> Of local government tax revenue, about 61% is generated from real property taxes while 24% is from tangible personal property, sales and use, and business license tax. The remaining 15% come from [[hotel tax|taxes on hotels]], restaurant meals, public service corporation property, and consumer utilities.<ref name=ceps/>

==Culture==
{{Main|Culture of Virginia}}
[[File:Colonial Williamsburg ladies.jpg|thumb|Colonial Virginian culture, language, and style are reenacted in [[Colonial Williamsburg|Williamsburg]].|alt=Five women dressed in long colonial style clothing sit on the stairs of tan and beige buildings talking. In front of them is a wooden wheelbarrow full of wicker baskets.]]
Modern Virginian culture has many sources and is part of the [[culture of the Southern United States]].{{sfn|Fischer|Kelly|2000|pp=102–103}} The [[Smithsonian Institution]] divides Virginia into nine cultural regions.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.folklife.si.edu/resources/2007Festival/VA_Signs/SFF07_VA_Intro_Map.pdf |title=Roots of Virginia Culture |website=Smithsonian Folklife Festival 2007 |publisher=[[Smithsonian Institution]] |date=July 5, 2007 |access-date=September 29, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081001175150/http://www.folklife.si.edu/resources/2007Festival/VA_Signs/SFF07_VA_Intro_Map.pdf |archive-date=October 1, 2008}}</ref>

Besides the general [[cuisine of the Southern United States]], Virginians maintain their own particular traditions. [[Virginia wine]] is made in many parts of the Commonwealth.<ref name=wine/> [[Smithfield ham]], sometimes called "Virginia ham", is a type of [[country ham]] which is [[Geographical indication|protected by state law]] and can be produced only in the town of [[Smithfield, Virginia|Smithfield]].{{sfn|Williamson|2008|p=41}} [[Virginia furniture]] and architecture are typical of [[American colonial architecture]]. Thomas Jefferson and many of the Commonwealth's early leaders favored the [[Neoclassical architecture]] style, leading to its use for important state buildings. The [[Pennsylvania Dutch]] and their style can also be found in parts of the Commonwealth.<ref name=dutch>{{cite journal|url=http://www.vahistorical.org/publications/Abstract_1091_Keller.htm |title=Pennsylvania and Virginia Germans during the Civil War |first=Christian B. |last=Keller |journal=Virginia Magazine of History and Biography |volume=109 |year=2001 |pages=37–86 |access-date=April 12, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080522130544/https://www.vahistorical.org/publications/Abstract_1091_Keller.htm |archive-date=May 22, 2008}}</ref>

Literature in Virginia often deals with the Commonwealth's past. The works of [[Pulitzer Prize]] winner [[Ellen Glasgow]] often dealt with social inequalities and the role of women in her culture.{{sfn|Gray|Robinson|2004|pp=81, 103}} [[James Branch Cabell]] wrote extensively about the changing position of gentry in the [[Reconstruction era]], and challenged its moral code with ''[[Jurgen, A Comedy of Justice]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://docsouth.unc.edu/southlit/cabell1/summary.html|title=Summary of Jurgen: A Comedy of Justice|first=Mary Alice|last=Kirkpatrick|access-date=August 18, 2009|website=Library of Southern Literature|publisher=[[University of North Carolina]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090601091309/http://docsouth.unc.edu/southlit/cabell1/summary.html|archive-date=June 1, 2009|url-status=live}}</ref> [[William Styron]] approached history in works such as ''[[The Confessions of Nat Turner (1967)|The Confessions of Nat Turner]]'' and ''[[Sophie's Choice (novel)|Sophie's Choice]]''.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/02/books/02styron.html|title=William Styron, Novelist, Dies at 81|first=Christopher|last=Lehmann-Haupt|date=November 2, 2006|access-date=August 18, 2009|work=[[The New York Times]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190506145433/https://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/02/books/02styron.html|archive-date=May 6, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Tom Wolfe]] has occasionally dealt with his southern heritage in bestsellers like ''[[I Am Charlotte Simmons]]''.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A26738-2004Nov4.html|title=A Coed in Full|first=Michael|last=Dirda|date=November 7, 2004|access-date=October 3, 2009|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080726125311/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A26738-2004Nov4.html|archive-date=July 26, 2008|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Matt Bondurant]] received critical acclaim for his [[historical fiction|historic novel]] ''[[The Wettest County in the World]]'' about moonshiners in [[Franklin County, Virginia|Franklin County]] during [[Prohibition in the United States|prohibition]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/crime/fairfax-native-matt-bondurants-book-is-now-the-movie-lawless/2012/05/27/gJQAZqy1uU_story.html |title= Fairfax native Matt Bondurant's book is now the movie 'Lawless' |first= Tom |last= Jackman |newspaper= [[The Washington Post]] |date= May 27, 2012 |access-date= May 28, 2012 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120528120647/http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/crime/fairfax-native-matt-bondurants-book-is-now-the-movie-lawless/2012/05/27/gJQAZqy1uU_story.html |archive-date= May 28, 2012 |url-status= live}}</ref> Virginia also names a [[Poet Laureate of Virginia|state Poet Laureate]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.dailypress.com/news/politics/shad-plank-blog/dp-gov-taps-new-oig-elections-chief-hires-house-member-20140627,0,6770516.post|title=Gov. taps new OIG, elections chief, hires House member|first=Travis|last=Fain|date=June 27, 2014|access-date=July 9, 2014|work=[[Daily Press (Virginia)|Daily Press]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714222425/http://www.dailypress.com/news/politics/shad-plank-blog/dp-gov-taps-new-oig-elections-chief-hires-house-member-20140627,0,6770516.post|archive-date=July 14, 2014|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Fine and performing arts===
{{See also|Music of Virginia}}
[[File:The Steel Wheels The Jefferson Theater Charlottesville VA February 2019.jpg|thumb|[[The Steel Wheels]], an Americana roots folk rock band, plays at [[Jefferson Theater (Virginia)|Jefferson Theater]] in [[Charlottesville, Virginia|Charlottesville]] in February 2019.|alt=Five male musicians perform on stage in front of a standing audience, behind them a dozen lights project blue lines upward.]]
Virginia ranks near the middle of U.S. states in terms of public spending on the arts {{as of|2021|lc=on}}, at just over half of the national average.<ref>{{cite press release|url=https://nasaa-arts.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/NASAA-FY2021-State-Arts-Agency-Revenues-Report.pdf|title=State Arts Agency Revenues|publisher=National Assembly of State Arts Agencies|date=February 2021|access-date=April 29, 2021}}</ref> The state government does fund some institutions, including the [[Virginia Museum of Fine Arts]] and the [[Science Museum of Virginia]]. Other museums include the [[Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center]] of the [[National Air and Space Museum]] and the [[Chrysler Museum of Art]].{{sfn|Smith|2008|pp=22–25}} Besides these sites, many open-air museums are located in the Commonwealth, such as [[Colonial Williamsburg]], the [[Frontier Culture Museum of Virginia|Frontier Culture Museum]], and various historic battlefields.{{sfn|Howard|Burnham|Burnham|2006|pp=88, 206, 292}} The [[Virginia Foundation for the Humanities]] works to improve the Commonwealth's civic, cultural, and intellectual life.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.virginia.edu/vfh/mission.html|title=Mission & History|website=[[Virginia Foundation for the Humanities]]|year=2007|access-date=December 9, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070827202050/http://www.virginia.edu/vfh/mission.html|archive-date=August 27, 2007}}</ref>

The [[Harrison Opera House]], in [[Norfolk, Virginia|Norfolk]], is home of the [[Virginia Opera]]. The [[Virginia Symphony Orchestra]] operates in and around [[Hampton Roads]].{{sfn|Howard|Burnham|Burnham|2006|pp=165–166}} Resident and touring theater troupes operate from the [[American Shakespeare Center]] in [[Staunton, Virginia|Staunton]].{{sfn|Goodwin|2012|p=154}} The [[Barter Theatre]] in [[Abingdon, Virginia|Abingdon]], designated the State Theatre of Virginia, won the first [[Regional Theatre Tony Award]] in 1948, while the [[Signature Theatre (Arlington, Virginia)|Signature Theatre]] in [[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington]] won it in 2009. There is also a Children's Theater of Virginia, [[Theatre IV]], which is the second-largest touring troupe in the nation.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://richmond.com/entertainment/theater-legacies-theatre-iv-founders-embark-on-a-new-adventure/article_a9792a4b-f190-5b01-8539-b4fa3b0216ef.html |title=  Theater legacies: Theatre IV founders embark on a new adventure |first= Holly |last= Prestidge |work= The Richmond Times-Dispatch |date= January 18, 2013 |access-date= July 13, 2021}}</ref> Notable music performance venues include [[The Birchmere]], the [[Landmark Theater (Richmond, Virginia)|Landmark Theater]], and [[Jiffy Lube Live]].{{sfn|Howard|Burnham|Burnham|2006|pp=29, 121, 363, 432}} [[Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts]] is located in [[Vienna, Virginia|Vienna]] and is the only national park intended for use as a performing arts center.<ref name=wolftrap>{{harvnb|Scott|Scott|2004|pp=307–308}}</ref>

Virginia is known for its tradition in the music genres of [[Old-time music|old-time string]] and [[Bluegrass music|bluegrass]], with groups such as the [[Carter Family]] and [[Stanley Brothers]] achieving national prominence during the 1940s.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://folkways.si.edu/roots-branches-virginia-past-present/bluegrass/music/article/smithsonian|title=The Roots and Branches of Virginia Music|website=Folkways|publisher=Smithsonian Institution|year=2007|access-date=January 29, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140107074814/http://www.folkways.si.edu/explore_folkways/virginia.aspx|archive-date=January 7, 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> The state's African tradition is found through [[Gospel (music)|gospel]], [[blues]], and [[shout band]]s, with both [[Ella Fitzgerald]] and [[Pearl Bailey]] coming from [[Newport News, Virginia|Newport News]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://richmondmagazine.com/arts-entertainment/music/virginias-greatest-show-never/ |title= Virginia's Greatest Show Never |magazine= Richmond Magazine |first= Craig |last= Belcher |date= September 25, 2018 |access-date= June 22, 2020}}</ref> Contemporary Virginia is also known for [[folk rock]] artists like [[Dave Matthews]] and [[Jason Mraz]], [[Contemporary R&B|R&B]] artists [[Chris Brown]], [[D'Angelo]], and [[Kali Uchis]], [[Hip hop music|hip hop]] stars like [[Pharrell Williams]], [[Timbaland]], [[Missy Elliott]] and [[Pusha T]], as well as [[thrash metal]] groups like [[GWAR]] and [[Lamb of God (band)|Lamb of God]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://pastemagazine.com/blogs/lists/2013/08/12-virginia-bands-you-should-listen-to-now.html|title=12 Virginia Bands You Should Listen to Now|first=Reggie|last=Pace|website=[[Paste (magazine)|Paste]]|date=August 14, 2013|access-date=January 29, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140202211016/http://www.pastemagazine.com/blogs/lists/2013/08/12-virginia-bands-you-should-listen-to-now.html|archive-date=February 2, 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> Several members of [[country music]] band [[Old Dominion (band)|Old Dominion]] grew up in the [[Roanoke, Virginia|Roanoke]] area, and took their band name from Virginia's state nickname.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.roanoke.com/arts_and_entertainment/music/old-dominion-country-band-has-roanoke-valley-roots/article_d98905b4-ea90-11e3-9679-0017a43b2370.html |title=Old Dominion country band has Roanoke Valley roots |first=Tad |last=Dickens |date=June 3, 2014 |newspaper=The Roanoke Times |access-date=April 8, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190408140949/https://www.roanoke.com/arts_and_entertainment/music/old-dominion-country-band-has-roanoke-valley-roots/article_d98905b4-ea90-11e3-9679-0017a43b2370.html |archive-date=April 8, 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref>

===Festivals===
[[File:Chincoteague pony swim 2007.jpg|thumb|The annual [[Pony Penning]] features more than 200 [[Chincoteague Pony|wild ponies]] swimming across the [[Assateague Channel]] into [[Chincoteague, Virginia|Chincoteague]].<ref name=ponies/>|alt=Dozens of brown and white ponies surge out of the shallow water onto a grassy shore crowded with onlookers.]]
Many counties and localities host [[county fair]]s and festivals. The [[Virginia State Fair]] is held at the [[Meadow Event Park]] every September. Also in September is the [[Neptune Festival]] in [[Virginia Beach, Virginia|Virginia Beach]], which celebrates the city, the waterfront, and regional artists. [[Norfolk, Virginia#Parks and recreation|Norfolk's Harborfest]], in June, features boat racing and [[air show]]s.{{sfn|Goodwin|2012|pp=25, 287}} [[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax County]] also sponsors Celebrate Fairfax! with popular and traditional music performances.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/06/AR2007060601032.html|title=Live!|date=June 7, 2007|first=Marianne|last=Meyer|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|access-date=November 7, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121107095201/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/06/AR2007060601032.html|archive-date=November 7, 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> The Virginia Lake Festival is held in July in [[Clarksville, VA|Clarksville]].<ref>{{cite web|url= https://virginialiving.com/the-daily-post/sweet-summertime/ |title= Sweet Summertime |website= Virginia Living |date=July 19, 2023 |access-date= January 23, 2024}}</ref> The [[Eastern Shore of Virginia|Eastern Shore]] island of [[Chincoteague, Virginia|Chincoteague]] hosts the annual [[Pony Penning]] of feral [[Chincoteague Pony|Chincoteague ponies]], expanded into a week-long carnival.<ref name=ponies>{{cite news |url= https://www.wavy.com/living-local/chincoteagues-97th-pony-swim-happening-wednesday-morning/ |title=  Chincoteague holds 2023 Pony Swim on Wednesday |website= WAVY |first= Brian |last= Reese |date= July 25, 2023 |access-date= February 8, 2024}}</ref> Every year on [[Thanksgiving (United States)|Thanksgiving]] in [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]], the [[Mattaponi]] and [[Pamunkey]] tribes present Virginia's governor with a tribute of deer in a celebration honoring colonial treaties.<ref name=taxtribute>{{cite news |url= https://www.virginiamercury.com/2023/11/22/for-346th-year-virginia-tribes-present-governor-with-a-tribute-of-game/ |title= For 346th year, Virginia tribes present governor with a tribute of game |newspaper= Virginia Mercury |first= Sarah |last= Vogelsong |date= November 22, 2023 |access-date= January 23, 2024}}</ref>

The [[Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival]] is a two-week festival held annually in [[Winchester, Virginia|Winchester]] which includes parades and [[bluegrass music|bluegrass]] concerts. The [[Old-time music|Old Time]] Fiddlers' Convention in [[Galax, Virginia|Galax]], begun in 1935, is one of the oldest and largest such events worldwide. Wolf Trap hosts the [[Wolf Trap Opera Company]], which produces an opera festival every summer.<ref name=wolftrap/> The Blue Ridge Rock Festival has operated since 2017, and has brought as many as 33,000 concert-goers to the Blue Ridge Amphitheater in [[Pittsylvania County, Virginia|Pittsylvania County]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://roanoke.com/news/state-and-regional/after-legal-action-payments-flow-to-companies-owed-by-blue-ridge-rock-festival/article_6ffc78dc-b26d-53c1-8458-49861d6c52c4.html|title=After legal action, payments flow to companies owed by Blue Ridge Rock Festival|first=John R.|last=Crane|newspaper=Danville Register & Bee|date=January 21, 2022|access-date=January 23, 2022}}</ref> Two important film festivals, the [[Virginia Film Festival]] and the [[VCU French Film Festival]], are held annually in [[Charlottesville, Virginia|Charlottesville]] and Richmond, respectively.{{sfn|Goodwin|2012|pp=25–26}}

==Law and government==
{{Main|Government of Virginia}}
[[File:MJK50147 Virginia State Capitol.jpg|thumb|The [[Virginia State Capitol]] in [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]], designed by [[Thomas Jefferson]] and [[Charles-Louis Clérisseau]], is home to the [[Virginia General Assembly]].|alt=An all white Neoclassical building with pediment and six columns rises on a grassy hill with a large American elm tree in the left foreground. Two boxier, but similarly styled wings are attached at the building's rear.]]
In 1619, the first [[Virginia General Assembly]] met, making Virginia's legislature the oldest of its kind in North America.<ref name="hemisphere">{{cite news |last=Jacobs |first=Jack |date=July 30, 2019 |title=General Assembly commemorates origins of democracy in America |newspaper=The Virginia Gazette |url=https://www.dailypress.com/virginiagazette/news/va-vg-general-assembly-joint-session-0731-story.html |access-date=May 7, 2020}}</ref> The government today functions under the seventh [[Constitution of Virginia]], which was [[1970 Virginia ballot measures|approved by voters in 1970]] and went into effect in July 1971.<ref name=constitution_1970/> It is similar to the [[federal government of the United States|federal structure]] in that it provides for [[Separation of powers|three branches]]: a strong legislature, an executive, and a unified judicial system.<ref name=constitution>{{cite journal|title=Commentaries on the Constitution of Virginia by A. E. Dick Howard|first1=Albert L.|last1=Strum|journal=The American Political Science Review|volume=71|issue=2|date=June 1977|pages=714–715|jstor=1978427|doi=10.2307/1978427|last2=Howard|first2=A. E. Dick|author-link2=A.E. Dick Howard}}</ref>

Virginia's legislature is [[bicameral]], with a 100-member [[Virginia House of Delegates|House of Delegates]] and 40-member [[Senate of Virginia|Senate]], who together write the laws for the Commonwealth. Delegates serve two-year terms, while senators serve four-year terms, with [[2025 Virginia elections|the most recent elections]] for each taking place in November 2025 and 2023 respectively. The executive department includes the [[Governor of Virginia|governor]], [[Lieutenant Governor of Virginia|lieutenant governor]], and [[Attorney General of Virginia|attorney general]], who are elected every four years in separate elections, with the [[2025 Virginia gubernatorial election|most recent taking place in November 2025]]. [[List of Virginia Governors|Incumbent governors]] cannot run for re-election; governors can and have served non-consecutive terms.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.vpm.org/listen/2019-04-18/two-term-virginia-governors-rare-but-not-unprecedented |title= Two-Term Virginia Governors Rare, But Not Unprecedented |website= VPM |first= Ben |last= Paviour |date= April 18, 2019 |access-date= February 10, 2023}}</ref> The lieutenant governor is the official head of the Senate and is responsible for breaking ties. The House elects a [[List of Speakers of the Virginia House of Delegates|Speaker of the House]] and the Senate elects a [[President pro tempore of the Senate of Virginia|President pro tempore]], who presides when the lieutenant governor is not present, and both houses elect a clerk and majority and minority leaders.<ref name=vga_guide/> The governor also nominates their 16 [[Virginia Governor's Cabinet|cabinet members]] and others who head various state departments.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://wjla.com/news/local/list-gov-elect-youngkins-full-roster-of-appointees-glenn-youngkin-republican-election-secretary-commonwealth-governor |title= LIST: Virginia Gov.-elect Youngkin's full roster of Cabinet appointees |website= 7News |date= January 13, 2022 |access-date= September 8, 2023}}</ref>

The legislature starts regular sessions on the second Wednesday of every year. They meet for up to 48&nbsp;days in odd years, which are election years, or 60&nbsp;days in even years, to allow more time for biennial state budgets, which governors propose.<ref name=vga_guide>{{cite web |url= https://publications.virginiageneralassembly.gov/download_publication/121 |format= PDF |title= Your Guide to the Virginia General Assembly |website= Virginia General Assembly |date= May 10, 2019 |access-date= July 27, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://vacsb.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Understanding_Virginias_Budget_Process_MTweedy.pdf |title= Understanding Virginia's Budget Process: Budget 101 |website= Virginia Senate Finance Committee |first= Michael |last= Tweedy |date= October 4, 2018 |access-date= July 28, 2020}}</ref> After regular sessions end, special sessions can be called either by the governor or with agreement of two-thirds of both houses, and 21 special sessions have been called since 2000, typically for legislation on preselected issues.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://lis.virginia.gov/ |title= Virginia's Legislative Information System |date= August 22, 2024 |access-date= August 22, 2024}}</ref> Though not a full-time legislature, the Assembly is classified as a hybrid because special sessions are not limited by the state constitution and often last several months.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.cvilletomorrow.org/articles/what-if-virginias-general-assembly-operated-year-round |title= What if Virginia's General Assembly operated year-round? |first= Charlotte Rene |last= Woods |website= Charlottesville Tomorrow |date= January 4, 2021 |access-date= July 7, 2021}}</ref> A one-day "veto session" is also automatically triggered when a governor chooses to veto or return legislation to the Assembly with amendments. Vetoes can then be overturned with approval of two-thirds of both the House and Senate.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.wric.com/news/politics/capitol-connection/virginia-lawmakers-to-take-up-youngkins-vetoes-and-amendments-during-one-day-session/ |title= Virginia lawmakers to take up Youngkin's vetoes and amendments during one-day session |website= ABC 8 News |first= Dean |last= Mirshahi |date= April 12, 2023 |access-date= February 3, 2024}}</ref> A bill that passes with two-thirds approval can also become law without action from the governor,<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2024/04/16/virginia-youngkin-assembly-budget-veto-session/ |title= Virginia Assembly returns to Richmond at odds with Youngkin on budget |first1= Gregory S. |last1= Schneider |first2= Laura |last2= Vozzella |date= April 16, 2024 |access-date= April 17, 2024 |newspaper= The Washington Post}}</ref> and Virginia has no "[[pocket veto]]", so bills become law if the governor chooses to neither approve nor veto them.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.vaco.org/passed-bills-are-now-before-the-governor-now-what/ |title= Passed bills are now before the Governor – now what? |website= The Voice of the Commonwealth's Counties |first= Chris |last= McDonald |date= April 1, 2020 |access-date= March 25, 2021 |archive-date= October 19, 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20211019214333/https://www.vaco.org/passed-bills-are-now-before-the-governor-now-what/ }}</ref>

===Legal system===
[[File:SupremeCourtofVirginiaBuilding.JPG|thumb|Unlike the [[Federal judiciary of the United States|federal judiciary system]], justices of the [[Supreme Court of Virginia|Virginia Supreme Court]] have term limits, a mandatory retirement age, and select their own Chief Justice.|alt=A seven-story sandstone building faced with ionic columns on a city street corner.]]
The judges and justices who make up [[Judiciary of Virginia|Virginia's judicial system]], also the oldest in America, are elected by a majority vote in both the House and Senate without input from the governor, one way Virginia's legislature is stronger than its executive. The [[Governor of Virginia|governor]] can make [[recess appointment]]s, and when both branches are controlled by the same party, the assembly often confirms them. The judicial hierarchy starts with the [[Virginia General District Court|General District Courts]] and [[Virginia Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court|Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Courts]], with the [[Virginia Circuit Court|Circuit Courts]] above them, then the [[Court of Appeals of Virginia]], and the [[Supreme Court of Virginia]] on top.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.courts.state.va.us/courts/cib.pdf|title=Virginia Courts In Brief|publisher=Virginia Judicial System|date=May 5, 2009|access-date=August 17, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090704084122/http://www.courts.state.va.us/courts/cib.pdf|archive-date=July 4, 2009|url-status=live}}</ref> The Supreme Court has seven justices who serve 12-year terms, with a [[mandatory retirement age]] of 73; they select their own chief justice, who is informally limited to two four-year terms.<ref>{{cite news | title = Hassell to step down as the state's chief justice | url = http://www.timesdispatch.com/news/hassell-to-step-down-as-the-state-s-chief-justice/article_842d7859-905b-5ca2-ab69-996e97ce6ef3.html | first = Frank | last = Green | date = May 12, 2010 | newspaper= Richmond Times-Dispatch | access-date = September 26, 2013}}</ref> Virginia was the last state to guarantee an automatic right of [[appeal]] for all civil and criminal cases. Its Court of Appeals increased from 11 to 17 judges in 2021.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.wric.com/news/politics/capitol-connection/gov-northam-signs-14-new-bills-into-law-last-minute/ |title= Gov. Northam signs 14 new bills into law last minute |website= ABC8 WRIC |first= Amelia |last= Heymann |date= March 31, 2021 |access-date= April 1, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.virginiamercury.com/2021/03/08/virginia-court-of-appeals-set-to-get-six-new-judges-after-lawmakers-agree-to-expansion/ |title= Virginia Court of Appeals set to get six new judges after lawmakers agree to expansion |newspaper= The Virginia Mercury |first= Ned |last= Oliver |date= March 8, 2021 |access-date= April 1, 2021}}</ref>

The [[Code of Virginia]] is the statutory law and consists of the codified legislation of the General Assembly. The largest [[List of law enforcement agencies in Virginia|law enforcement agency in Virginia]] is the [[Virginia State Police]], with 3,035&nbsp;sworn and civilian members {{As of|2019|lc=on}}.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://vsp.virginia.gov/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/VSP-Annual-Report-2019-1.pdf |title= 2019 Facts & Figures |publisher= Virginia State Police |date= January 18, 2022 |access-date= May 5, 2023}}</ref> The [[Virginia Marine Police]] were founded as the "Oyster Navy" in 1864 in response to [[Oyster pirate|oyster bed poaching]].{{importance inline|date=November 2024}}<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.pilotonline.com/news/article_bff283c8-cc05-5ec4-944d-6a3ba45be345.html |title= State says it's ready to get tough on oyster poachers |newspaper= The Virginian-Pilot |first= Scott |last= Harper |date= September 15, 2007 |access-date= July 20, 2021}}</ref> The [[Virginia Division of Capitol Police|Virginia Capitol Police]] protect the legislature and executive department, and are the oldest police department in the United States, dating to the guards who protected the colonial leadership.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.vcp.state.va.us/message.htm|title=Message from the Chief|year=2008|first=Kimberly|last=Lettner|publisher=The Division of Capitol Police|access-date=September 10, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090519054023/http://www.vcp.state.va.us/message.htm|archive-date=May 19, 2009}}</ref> The governor can also call upon the [[Virginia National Guard]], which consists of approximately [[Virginia Army National Guard|7,200&nbsp;army soldiers]], [[Virginia Air National Guard|1,200&nbsp;airmen]], [[Virginia Defense Force|300&nbsp;Defense Force members]], and 400&nbsp;civilians.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://va.ng.mil/News/Article/2391662/about-the-virginia-national-guard/|title=About the Virginia National Guard|website=[[Virginia Army National Guard]]|date=July 1, 2020|access-date=December 11, 2021}}</ref>

Between 1608 and 2021, when the [[capital punishment in Virginia|death penalty]] was abolished, the state executed over 1,300 people, including [[List of people executed in Virginia|113 following the resumption of capital punishment]] in 1982.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/24/us/politics/virginia-death-penalty.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211228/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/24/us/politics/virginia-death-penalty.html |archive-date=December 28, 2021 |url-access=limited |title= Virginia Becomes First Southern State to Abolish the Death Penalty |newspaper= The New York Times |date= March 24, 2021 |access-date= March 24, 2021 |first= Hailey |last= Fuchs}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Virginia's prison system incarcerates 30,936&nbsp;people {{As of|2018|lc=on}}, 53% of whom are Black,<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.vera.org/downloads/pdfdownloads/state-incarceration-trends-virginia.pdf |title= Incarceration Trends in Virginia |publisher= Vera Institute of Justice |date= November 25, 2019 |access-date= January 28, 2021}}</ref> and the state has the sixteenth-highest [[List of U.S. states and territories by incarceration and correctional supervision rate|rate of incarceration in the country]], at 422 per 100,000&nbsp;residents.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.thecentersquare.com/virginia/0-42-of-virginia-residents-are-incarcerated-study-finds/article_78ccf08a-3a31-11eb-a82d-f7d93decf4e5.html |title= 0.42% of Virginia residents are incarcerated, study finds |website= The Center Square |date= December 13, 2020 |access-date= January 28, 2021}}</ref> Prisoner [[parole]] was ended in 1995,<ref>{{cite news|title=Parole Remains Elusive for Virginia Prisoners|url=https://www.prisonlegalnews.org/news/2017/oct/9/parole-remains-elusive-virginia-prisoners/|work=[[Prison Legal News]]|date=October 9, 2019|first=David|last=Reutter}}</ref> and Virginia's rate of [[recidivism]] of released felons who are re-convicted within three years and sentenced to a year or more is 23.1%, the lowest in the country {{As of|2019|lc=on}}.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.cbs19news.com/story/41644910/virginias-recidivism-rate-remains-lowest-in-the-country|publisher=WCAV|title=Virginia's recidivism rate remains lowest in the country|date=February 3, 2020|archive-date=February 6, 2021|access-date=August 15, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210206125931/https://www.cbs19news.com/story/41644910/virginias-recidivism-rate-remains-lowest-in-the-country}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|first=Jeff|last=Schwaner|date=April 1, 2019|title=Explaining recidivism rates in Virginia, why the conversation around them is limited|url=https://www.newsleader.com/story/news/local/2019/04/01/virginia-recidivism-rates-how-many-reoffenders-jail-criminal-justice/3274008002/|work=The News Leader}}</ref> Virginia has the fourth lowest violent crime rate and thirteenth lowest property crime rate {{as of|2018|lc=on}}.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://apnews.com/4b62ec4728454e0186dc5139937f5dd9 |work= Associated Press |title= Virginia ranks among states with lowest crime rates |first= Jaclyn |last= Barton |date= October 9, 2019 |access-date= March 4, 2020}}</ref> Between 2008 and 2017, arrests for drug-related crimes rose 38%, with 71% of those related to [[Cannabis in Virginia|marijuana]],<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.dcjs.virginia.gov/sites/dcjs.virginia.gov/files/publications/research/virginia-index-crime-and-drug-arrest-trends-2008-2017.pdf |title= Virginia Index Crime and Drug Arrest Trends 2008–2017 |website= Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services |date= May 2019 |access-date= March 25, 2021}}</ref> which Virginia [[Decriminalization of non-medical cannabis in the United States|decriminalized]] in July 2020 and [[Legality of cannabis by U.S. jurisdiction|legalized]] in July 2021.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.wusa9.com/article/news/local/virginia/northam-considers-marijuana-bill-some-virginians-push-legalization-2021/65-f40dad44-fbf7-4d58-9bf7-d67213c3b91e |title= As Northam considers marijuana bill, some Virginians push for legalization now |website= WUSA9 |first= John |last= Henry |date= March 23, 2021 |access-date= March 25, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.foxbusiness.com/lifestyle/virginia-marijuana-law-ralph-northam |title= Virginia latest state to legalize marijuana after Gov. Northam signs new law |first= Michael |last=Ruiz |website= Fox Business |date= April 22, 2021 |access-date= April 23, 2021}}</ref>

==Politics==
{{Main|Politics of Virginia}}
[[File:Shad Planking.jpg|thumb|Mirroring Virginia's political transition, the annual [[Shad Planking]] event in [[Wakefield, Virginia|Wakefield]] has evolved from a vestige of the [[Byrd Organization|Byrd era]] into a regular stop for many state campaigns.<ref name=shad>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/shad-planking-venerable-va-political-confab-tries-to-reel-in-new-crowd/2016/04/23/41f540de-07e7-11e6-b283-e79d81c63c1b_story.html |title= Shad Planking, a venerable Va. political confab, tries to reel in a new crowd |newspaper= The Washington Post |first= Laura |last= Vozzella |date= April 23, 2016 |access-date= February 21, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190222042224/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/shad-planking-venerable-va-political-confab-tries-to-reel-in-new-crowd/2016/04/23/41f540de-07e7-11e6-b283-e79d81c63c1b_story.html |archive-date= February 22, 2019 |url-status= live}}</ref>|alt=People stroll in a wooded area decorated with American flags.]]

Over the past century, Virginia has shifted politically from being a largely rural, conservative, [[Solid South|Southern bloc]] member to a state that is more urbanized, pluralistic, and politically moderate, as both greater enfranchisement and demographic shifts have changed the electorate. Up until the 1970s, Virginia was a racially divided one-party state dominated by the [[Byrd Organization]].<ref>{{cite journal|url=https://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst?docId=5001263885|title="Sheep without a Shepherd": The New Deal Faction in the Virginia Democratic Party|first=James R.|last=Sweeney|journal=Presidential Studies Quarterly|volume=29|year=1999|access-date=March 31, 2008|doi=10.1111/1741-5705.00043|page=438|issue=2|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110812002527/http://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst?docId=5001263885|archive-date=August 12, 2011|url-status=live|url-access=subscription}}</ref> They sought to stymie the political power of Northern Virginia, perpetuate [[Segregation in the United States|segregation]], and successfully restricted voter registration such that between 1905 and 1948 [[voter turnout]] was regularly below ten percent.<ref name=atlantic/><ref>{{cite book |last= Donahue |first=Patricia Farrell |title= Participation, Community, and Public Policy in a Virginia Suburb: Of Our Own Making |publisher= Lexington Books |year= 2017 |pages= 154–56 |isbn= 978-1-4985-2977-8 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=GyE-DwAAQBAJ}}</ref> The organization used [[malapportionment]] to manipulate what areas were over-represented in the [[Virginia General Assembly|General Assembly]] and the U.S. Congress until ordered to end the practice by the 1964 [[Supreme Court of the United States|U.S. Supreme Court]] decision in ''[[Davis v. Mann]]'' and the 1965 [[Virginia Supreme Court]] decision in ''Wilkins v. Davis'' respectively.<ref>{{cite journal |url= https://scholarship.richmond.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2958&context=lawreview |format= PDF |journal= University of Richmond Law Review |volume= 47 |issue= 3 |date= March 1, 2013 |title= A Half-Century of Virginia Redistricting Battles: Shifting from Rural Malapportionment to Voting Rights to Public Participation |first1= Micah |last1= Altman |first2= Michael P. |last2= McDonald |access-date= July 11, 2020}}</ref>

Enforcement of federal civil rights legislation passed in the mid-1960s helped overturn the state's [[Jim Crow laws]] that effectively [[disfranchisement|disenfranchised]] African Americans.<ref name=promiseprejudice>{{cite journal|title=Promise and prejudice: Wise County, Virginia and the Great Migration, 1910–1920|first=Michael H.|last=Burchett|journal=The Journal of Negro History|volume=82|issue=3|date=Summer 1997|doi=10.2307/2717675|jstor=2717675|pages=312–327|s2cid=141153760}}</ref> The [[Voting Rights Act of 1965]] made Virginia one of nine states that were required to receive federal approval for changes to voting laws, until the system for including states was [[Shelby County v. Holder|struck down in 2013]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://richmond.com/news/local/government-politics/voting-rights-ruling-leaves-virginia-in-limbo/article_267260ae-6220-5df1-b7b5-3814189734c7.html |title= Voting rights ruling leaves Virginia in 'limbo' |first1= Markus |last1= Schmidt |first2= Michael |last2= Martz |newspaper= The Richmond Times-Dispatch |date= June 26, 2013 |access-date= May 13, 2021}}</ref> The [[Voting Rights Act of Virginia]] was passed in 2021, requiring preclearance from the [[Attorney General of Virginia|state Attorney General]] for local election changes that could result in disenfranchisement, including closing or moving polling sites.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/31/us/virginia-voting-rights.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211228/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/31/us/virginia-voting-rights.html |archive-date=December 28, 2021 |url-access=limited |title= Virginia's governor announces his support for a sweeping voting rights bill |newspaper= The New York Times |first= Nick |last= Corasaniti |date= March 31, 2021 |access-date= March 31, 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Though many Jim Crow provisions were removed in Virginia's 1971 constitution, a lifetime [[Felony disenfranchisement in Virginia|ban on voting for felony convictions]] was unchanged, and by 2016, up to twenty percent of African Americans in Virginia were disenfranchised because of prior felonies.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-04-22/virginia-governor-terry-mcauliffe-ends-the-state-s-lifetime-voting-ban-for-former-felony-offenders |title= Restoring Voting Rights to Former Felony Offenders |newspaper= Bloomberg |first= Brentin |last= Mock |date= April 22, 2016 |access-date= May 13, 2021}}</ref> That year, Governor [[Terry McAuliffe]] ended the lifetime ban and individually restored voting rights to over 200,000&nbsp;ex-felons.<ref name=atlantic>{{cite news |url= https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/04/virginia-felon-disenfranchisement/480072/ |title= The Racist Roots of Virginia's Felon Disenfranchisement |newspaper= The Atlantic |first= Matt |last= Ford |date= April 27, 2016 |access-date= May 13, 2021}}</ref> Virginia moved from being ranked as the second most difficult state to vote in 2016, to the twelfth easiest in 2020.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=J. Pomante II |first1=Michael |last2=Li |first2=Quan |title=Cost of Voting in the American States: 2020 |journal=Election Law Journal: Rules, Politics, and Policy |date=December 15, 2020 |volume=19 |issue=4 |pages=503–509 |doi=10.1089/elj.2020.0666 |s2cid=225139517 |doi-access=free}}</ref>

While urban and expanding suburban areas, including much of [[Northern Virginia]], form the modern [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]] [[base (politics)|base]], rural southern and western areas moved to support the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]] in response to its "[[southern strategy]]" starting around 1970.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Activists and Partisan Realignment in the United States|first1=Gary|last1=Miller|first2=Norman|last2=Schofield|journal=The American Political Science Review|volume=97|issue=2|date=May 2003|pages=245–260|jstor=3118207|doi=10.1017/s0003055403000650|s2cid=12885628}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/political_commentary/commentary_by_geoffrey_skelley/the_new_dominion_virginia_s_ever_changing_electoral_map|title=The New Dominion: Virginia's Ever-Changing Electoral Map |first= Geoffrey |last= Skelley |date= July 13, 2017 |website= Rasmussen Reports |access-date= July 30, 2020}}</ref> Rural Democratic support has nevertheless persisted in union-influenced [[Roanoke, Virginia|Roanoke]], college towns such as [[Charlottesville, Virginia|Charlottesville]] and [[Blacksburg, Virginia|Blacksburg]], and the southeastern [[Black Belt in the American South|Black Belt Region]].<ref>{{cite journal|title=African American Legislative Politics in Virginia|first1=Michael L.|last1=Clemons|first2=Charles E.|last2=Jones|journal=[[Journal of Black Studies]]|volume=30|issue=6, Special Issue: African American State Legislative Politics|date=July 2000|pages=744–767|doi=10.1177/002193470003000603|jstor=2645922|s2cid=144038985}}</ref> African Americans are the most reliable bloc of Democratic voters,<ref name=promiseprejudice/> but educational attainment and gender have also become strong indicators of political alignment, with the majority of women in Virginia supporting Democratic presidential candidates since 1980.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://news.virginia.edu/content/what-exit-polls-are-telling-us |title=  What the Exit Polls Are Telling Us |first1= Jennifer |last1= Lawless |first2= Paul |last2= Freedman |website= UVAToday |date= November 6, 2020 |access-date= May 19, 2021}}</ref> International immigration and domestic migration into Virginia have also increased the proportion of eligible voters born outside the state from 44% in 1980 to 55% in 2019.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/09/us/virginia-elections-democrats-republicans.html |title= How Voters Turned Virginia From Deep Red to Solid Blue |first1= Sabrina |last1= Tavernise |first2= Robert |last2= Gebeloff |newspaper= The New York Times |date= November 9, 2019 |access-date= May 7, 2020}}</ref>

===State elections===
{{See also|Elections in Virginia|Political party strength in Virginia}}
{{multiple image |align= right |direction= vertical |width= 250px |caption_align= center |footer_align= center
|image1=2023VirginiaStateHouseElection NoInsert.svg
|alt1=A map of Virginia showing the results of the 2023 Virginia House of Delegates election, with Republican districts in red and Democratic districts in blue, with heavier shading showing which changed parties.
|caption1=[[2023 Virginia House of Delegates election]]
|image2=2023 Virginia State Senate election.svg
|caption2=[[2023 Virginia Senate election]]
|alt2=A map of Virginia showing the results of the 2023 Virginia Senate election, with Republican districts in red and Democratic districts in blue, with heavier shading showing which changed parties.
|footer={{legend inline|#f48c84|Republican hold}}&emsp;&emsp;{{legend inline|#92c5de|Democratic hold}}<br />{{legend inline|#ca0120|Republican gain}}&emsp;&emsp;{{legend inline|#0671b0|Democratic gain}}
}}
Because Virginia enacted their post-Civil-War [[Constitution of Virginia|constitution]] in 1870, state elections in Virginia occur in odd-numbered years, with executive department elections occurring in years following U.S. presidential elections and [[Senate of Virginia|State Senate]] elections occurring in the years prior to presidential elections.<ref name=offyear>{{cite news |url= https://wamu.org/story/17/09/13/virginia-hold-elections-off-off-years/ |title= Why Does Virginia Hold Elections In Off-Off Years? |website= WAMU |first= Martin |last= Austermuhle |date= September 13, 2017 |access-date= April 25, 2024}}</ref> [[Virginia House of Delegates|House of Delegates]] elections take place concurrent with each of those elections. National politics often play a role in state election outcomes, and Virginians have elected governors of the party opposite the U.S. president in eleven of the last twelve contests, with only [[Terry McAuliffe]] beating the trend [[Virginia elections, 2013|in 2013]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/2017-elections/inside-data-what-virginia-election-results-mean-18-n820001 |title= Inside the Data: What the Virginia Election Results Mean for '18 |website= NBC News |date= November 12, 2017 |first= Dante |last= Chinni |access-date= November 7, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191119060422/https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/2017-elections/inside-data-what-virginia-election-results-mean-18-n820001 |archive-date= November 19, 2019 |url-status= live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/polls-open-across-virginia-in-hotly-contested-governors-race/2013/11/04/06c6205c-45d2-11e3-bf0c-cebf37c6f484_story.html |title= McAuliffe narrowly wins Va. governor's race |newspaper= The Washington Post |first= Marc |last= Fisher |date= November 6, 2013 |access-date= November 7, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191107191400/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/polls-open-across-virginia-in-hotly-contested-governors-race/2013/11/04/06c6205c-45d2-11e3-bf0c-cebf37c6f484_story.html |archive-date= November 7, 2019 |url-status= live}}</ref>

The [[Virginia elections, 2017|2017 state elections]] resulted in Democrats holding the three executive offices, as lieutenant governor [[Ralph Northam]] won [[2017 Virginia gubernatorial election|the race for governor]]. In concurrent [[Virginia House of Delegates elections, 2017|House of Delegates elections]], Democrats flipped fifteen of the Republicans' previous sixteen-seat majority.<ref>{{cite news |last1= Nirappil |first1= Fenit |title= Democrats make significant gains in Virginia legislature; control of House in play |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/democrats-poised-to-make-significant-gains-in-virginia-legislature/2017/11/07/9c2f4d24-c401-11e7-aae0-cb18a8c29c65_story.html |newspaper= The Washington Post |date= November 8, 2017 |access-date= November 7, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190912234942/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/democrats-poised-to-make-significant-gains-in-virginia-legislature/2017/11/07/9c2f4d24-c401-11e7-aae0-cb18a8c29c65_story.html |archive-date= September 12, 2019 |url-status= live}}</ref> Control of the House came down to a tied election in the [[Virginia's 94th House of Delegates district|94th district]], which the Republican won by a drawing of lots, giving the party a slim 51–49 majority in the [[160th Virginia General Assembly|2018–19 legislative sessions]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Moomaw |first1=Graham |title=Del. David E. Yancey wins tiebreaker for key Virginia House of Delegates seat |url=https://www.fredericksburg.com/news/election/del-david-e-yancey-wins-tiebreaker-for-key-virginia-house/article_785a475f-3ad0-5ad7-b7d8-79c051d642a2.html |newspaper= The Free Lance-Star |date=January 4, 2018 |access-date=August 28, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180104175908/http://www.fredericksburg.com/news/election/del-david-e-yancey-wins-tiebreaker-for-key-virginia-house/article_785a475f-3ad0-5ad7-b7d8-79c051d642a2.html |archive-date=January 4, 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref> At this time, Virginia was ranked as having the most [[Gerrymandering in the United States|gerrymandered]] U.S. state legislature, as Republicans controlled the House with only 44.5% of the total vote.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://schwarzeneggerinstitute.com/theworstpartisangerrymanders |title= The worst U.S. State Legislative Partisan Gerrymanders |publisher= USC Schwarzenegger Institute for State and Global Policy |author1-link= Christian R. Grose |first1= Christian R. |last1= Grose |first2= Jordan Carr |last2= Peterson |first3= Matthew |last3= Nelson |first4= Sara |last4= Sadhwani |date= September 5, 2019 |access-date= July 8, 2021 |archive-date= March 8, 2022 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20220308223626/http://schwarzeneggerinstitute.com/theworstpartisangerrymanders }}</ref> In 2019, [[Bethune-Hill v. Virginia State Bd. of Elections|federal courts found]] that eleven House district lines, including the 94th, were unconstitutionally drawn to discriminate against African Americans.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/court-strikes-down-virginia-house-districts-as-racial-gerrymandering/2018/06/26/4e953752-7993-11e8-80be-6d32e182a3bc_story.html |title= Court strikes down Virginia House districts as racial gerrymandering |newspaper= The Washington Post |first= Rachel |last= Weiner |date= June 26, 2018 |access-date= November 7, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191031145205/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/court-strikes-down-virginia-house-districts-as-racial-gerrymandering/2018/06/26/4e953752-7993-11e8-80be-6d32e182a3bc_story.html |archive-date= October 31, 2019 |url-status= live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.cnn.com/2019/06/17/politics/supreme-court-racial-virginia-gerrymandering-case/index.html | title = Supreme Court hands Democrats a win in Virginia racial gerrymander case | first1 = Ariane | last1 = de Vogue | first2=  Ryan | last2= Nobles | first3= Devan | last3= Cole | date = June 17, 2019 | access-date = June 17, 2019 | work = [[CNN]]}}</ref> Adjusted districts were used in the [[Virginia elections, 2019|2019 elections]], when Democrats won full control of the General Assembly, despite [[2019 Virginia political crisis|a political crisis earlier that year]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/05/us/politics/virginia-elections.html|title=Virginia Election: Democrats Take Full Control of State Government|newspaper=The New York Times|date=November 6, 2019|access-date=March 6, 2019|first=Trip|last=Gabriel}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://qz.com/1743356/fixing-racial-gerrymandering-helped-democrats-take-back-virginia/ |title= Newly redrawn voting districts hand Virginia Democrats a sweeping victory |website= Quartz |first= Annalisa |last= Merelli |date= November 6, 2019 |access-date= November 7, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191107003650/https://qz.com/1743356/fixing-racial-gerrymandering-helped-democrats-take-back-virginia/ |archive-date= November 7, 2019 |url-status= live}}</ref> Voters in 2020 then [[2020 Virginia Question 1|passed a referendum]] to give [[Redistricting in Virginia|control of drawing]] both state and congressional districts to a commission of eight citizens and four legislators from each of the two major parties, rather than the legislature.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/virginia-redistricting-amendment-results/2020/11/02/5d1ef242-19f8-11eb-befb-8864259bd2d8_story.html |title= Virginians approve turning redistricting over to bipartisan commission |newspaper= The Washington Post |first= Rachel |last= Weiner |date= November 4, 2020 |access-date= November 10, 2020}}</ref>

In 2021, [[Glenn Youngkin]] became the first Republican to [[2021 Virginia gubernatorial election|win the governor's race]] since 2009,<ref>{{Cite web|title=Republican Youngkin wins Virginia governor's race in blow to Democrats, NBC News projects|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/elections/polls-close-soon-virginia-s-closely-watched-gubernatorial-election-n1283066|access-date=November 3, 2021|website=NBC News|date=November 3, 2021}}</ref> with his party also winning the races for [[2021 Virginia lieutenant gubernatorial election|lieutenant governor]] and [[2021 Virginia Attorney General election|attorney general]] and gaining [[2021 Virginia House of Delegates election|seven seats in the House of Delegates]].<ref>{{Cite news|title=Republican Winsome Sears projected to win lieutenant governor's race|newspaper=Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/virginia-lieutenant-governor/2021/11/02/27f9ed8c-36b3-11ec-91dc-551d44733e2d_story.html|access-date=November 3, 2021|issn=0190-8286}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last1=Seddiq|first2=Grace |last2=Panetta |first1=Oma|title=Republican Jason Miyares defeats two-term Democrat Mark Herring for Virginia attorney general|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/virginia-attorney-general-election-mark-herring-jason-miyares-live-results-2021-11|access-date=November 3, 2021|website=Business Insider}}</ref> Two years later, new legislative maps drawn by [[special master]]s appointed by [[Supreme Court of Virginia|the state supreme court]] led to nine retirements in the state senate and to twenty-five House delegates not seeking re-election. In [[2023 Virginia elections|those elections]], Democrats claimed a slim majority of one seat in both the Senate and the House.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.virginiamercury.com/2023/11/13/virginia-voters-gave-democrats-control-of-the-legislature-what-will-it-mean-for-policy/ |title= Virginia voters gave Democrats control of the legislature. What will it mean for policy? |website= Virginia Mercury |first= Graham |last= Moomaw |date= November 13, 2023 |access-date= November 16, 2023}}</ref>

===Federal elections===
{{See also|United States presidential elections in Virginia}}
[[File:Virginia Presidential Election Results 2024.svg|thumb|[[2024 United States presidential election in Virginia|2024 U.S. presidential election results]] by county in Virginia {{leftlegend|#4389E3|Democratic}}{{leftlegend|#AA0000|Republican}}]]
[[File:Mark Warner and Tim Kaine with students from Mark Twain Middle School 2024.jpg|thumb|[[United States Senate|U.S. Senators]] [[Mark Warner]] and [[Tim Kaine]], both former [[Governor of Virginia|governors]], meet with students on the steps of the [[United States Capitol|U.S. Capitol]].|alt=Two older white men in suits address a group of teenagers assembled on the steps of the [[United States Capitol|U.S. Capitol]]]]
Though Virginia was considered a "[[swing state]]" in the [[2008 United States presidential election|2008 presidential election]],<ref name=purple>{{cite news|url=http://blog.washingtonpost.com/44/2007/10/12/the_purpling_of_america.html |title=Painting America Purple |first=Dan |last=Balz |author-link=Dan Balz |date=October 12, 2007 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |access-date=November 24, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110728022004/https://blog.washingtonpost.com/44/2007/10/12/the_purpling_of_america.html |archive-date=July 28, 2011}}</ref> Virginia's thirteen [[Electoral College (United States)|electoral votes]] were carried in that election and the four since then by Democratic candidates, suggesting the state has shifted to being reliably Democratic in presidential elections. Virginia was the only former Confederate state to vote for the Democrats in the [[2016 United States presidential election in Virginia|2016]] and [[2024 United States presidential election in Virginia|2024]] presidential elections. Virginia had previously voted for Republican presidential candidates in thirteen out of fourteen [[United States presidential election|presidential elections]] from 1952 to 2004, including ten in a row from 1968 to 2004.<ref name=breeze>{{cite news |url= https://www.breezejmu.org/news/former-swing-state-virginia-has-picked-its-color-blue/article_b3ea3c5c-1e09-11eb-91cf-037ceb98986d.html |title= Former swing state Virginia has picked its color — blue |first= Ross |last= Metcalf |newspaper= The Breeze |date= November 3, 2020 |access-date= November 10, 2020}}</ref> Virginia currently holds its presidential [[Open primaries in the United States|open primary]] election on [[Super Tuesday]], the same day as fourteen other states, with [[2024 Virginia Republican presidential primary|the most recent]] held on March 5, 2024.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.richmond.com/news/virginia/virginia-democratic-primary-turnout-highest-on-record-surpassing/article_7ae3a31c-d3f1-5ebe-9aa7-b8c89cbcb138.html |title= Virginia Democratic primary turnout highest on record, surpassing 2008 |first= Mel |last= Leonor |website= The Richmond Times-Dispatch |date= March 3, 2020 |access-date= March 4, 2020}}</ref>

[[List of United States senators from Virginia|Virginia's two U.S. senators]] are in [[Classes of United States senators|classes 1 and 2]]. Virginia has had [[United States congressional delegations from Virginia|eleven U.S. House of Representatives seats]] since 1993, and control of the majority has flipped four times since then, often as part of "[[Wave elections in the United States|wave elections]]". Currently, six representatives are Democrats and five are Republicans.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2025/09/09/connolly-11th-congressional-election-walkinshaw-whitson/ |title= Walkinshaw sworn into Congress after win in Virginia special election |newspaper= The Washington Post |first1= Daniel |last1= Wu |first2= Liam |last2= Bowman |date= September 10, 2025 |access-date= September 10, 2025}}</ref>

==Education==
{{Main|Education in Virginia}}
[[File:BUF IMG 5559 (33491723285).jpg|thumb|Middle school students in [[Albemarle County, Virginia|Albemarle County]] participate in an engineering program in partnership with the [[Smithsonian Institution]].|alt=Five middle school students work together at a table using a soldering iron]]
Virginia's educational system consistently ranks in the top five states on the [[United States Department of Education|U.S. Department of Education's]] [[National Assessment of Educational Progress]], with Virginia students outperforming the average in all subject areas and grade levels tested.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.starexponent.com/news/virginia-students-fare-above-average-on-the-nations-report-card/article_6e3f8c98-222a-5ed8-ac3b-5b9aba859fd9.html |title= Virginia students fare above average on 'The Nation's Report Card' |newspaper= The Culpepper Star-Exponent |first= Justin |last= Mattingly |date= April 10, 2018 |access-date= July 12, 2020}}</ref> Virginia's K–7 schools had a [[student–teacher ratio]] of 12.41:1 as of the 2022–23 school year, and 12.52:1 for grades 8–12.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://schoolquality.virginia.gov/virginia-state-quality-profile#desktopTabs-7 |title= Student-Teacher Ratio |website= Virginia State Quality Profile |date= 2024 |access-date= November 11, 2024}}</ref> All school divisions must adhere to educational standards set forth by the [[Virginia Department of Education]], which maintains an assessment and accreditation regime known as the [[Standards of Learning]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.doe.virginia.gov/VDOE/src/index.shtml|title=Virginia School Report Card|publisher=[[Virginia Department of Education]]|year=2007|access-date=February 2, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080211134749/http://www.doe.virginia.gov/VDOE/src/index.shtml|archive-date=February 11, 2008|url-status=live}}</ref>

Public [[K–12 (education)|K–12 schools]] in Virginia are generally operated by the counties and cities, and not by the state. {{As of|alt=As of the 2023–24 academic year|2024|post=,}} 1,261,962 students were enrolled in 2,254&nbsp;local and regional schools in the Commonwealth, including 56&nbsp;career and technical schools and 290&nbsp;alternative and special education centers across 126&nbsp;[[List of school divisions in Virginia|school divisions]]. Besides the general [[Public school (government-funded)|public schools]] in Virginia, there are [[Governor's Schools (Virginia)|Governor's Schools]] and selective [[magnet school]]s. The Governor's Schools are a collection of 52&nbsp;regional high schools and summer programs intended for gifted students,<ref name=doedata>{{cite web |url= https://www.doe.virginia.gov/data-policy-funding/data-reports/statistics-reports/enrollment-demographics |title= Enrollment & Demographics |website= Virginia Department of Education |date= 2024 |access-date= November 11, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.doe.virginia.gov/teaching-learning-assessment/specialized-instruction/governor-s-schools|title= Governor's Schools|website=[[Virginia Department of Education]]|year=2022|access-date=March 29, 2023}}</ref> and include the [[Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology]], the top-rated high school in the country in 2022.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://wjla.com/news/local/thomas-jefferson-high-school-science-technology-alexandria-virginia-2022-top-spot-best-high-schools-report-rankings-us-news-world-scotus-controversial-admissions-process-decision-public-evaluation- |title= Thomas Jefferson High in Fairfax Co. ranked No. 1 best high school in the US: Report |website=  7News |date= April 27, 2022 |access-date= March 29, 2023}}</ref> The Virginia Council for Private Education oversees the regulation of 483 state accredited private schools.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://vcpe.org/SCHOOL-LOCATOR|title=School Locater|website=Virginia Council for Private Education|year=2018|access-date=March 16, 2019|archive-date=February 20, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210220145607/https://vcpe.org/SCHOOL-LOCATOR}}</ref> An additional 53,680&nbsp;students receive homeschooling.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.doe.virginia.gov/data-policy-funding/data-reports/statistics-reports/enrollment-demographics/home-schooled-students-religious-exemptions|title=Home Schooled Students & Religious Exemptions|year=2024|access-date=November 11, 2024|website=[[Virginia Department of Education]]}}</ref>

In 2022, 92.1% of high school students graduated on-time after four years,<ref name=grad2022/> and 91.3% of adults over the age 25 had their high school diploma.<ref name=QuickFacts>{{cite web |url= https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/VA |title= U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Virginia |website= U.S. Census Bureau |date= July 1, 2024 |access-date= June 23, 2025 |ref= CITEREFQUICKFACTS}}</ref> Virginia has one of the smaller racial gaps in graduation rates among U.S. states,<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.jbhe.com/2020/03/the-racial-gap-in-four-year-high-school-graduation-rates/ |title= The Racial Gap in Four-Year High School Graduation Rates |website= Journal of Blacks in Higher Education |date= March 16, 2020 |access-date= July 11, 2020}}</ref> with 90.3% of Black students graduating on time, compared to 94.9% of white students and 98.3% of Asian students. Hispanic students had the highest [[High school dropouts in the United States|dropout rate]], at 13.95%, with high rates being correlated with students listed as [[English as a second or foreign language|English learners]].<ref name=grad2022>{{cite news |url= https://www.wric.com/news/virginia-news/a-look-at-graduation-rate-data-for-virginias-public-high-school-class-of-2022/ |title=  A look at graduation rate data for Virginia's public high school Class of 2022 |first= Dean |last= Mirshahi |website= ABC 8 News |date= October 12, 2022 |access-date= April 2, 2023}}</ref> Despite ending [[School segregation in the United States|school segregation]] in the 1960s, seven percent of Virginia's public schools were rated as "intensely segregated" by [[The Civil Rights Project/Proyecto Derechos Civiles|The Civil Rights Project at UCLA]] in 2019, and the number has risen since 1989, when only three percent were.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.virginiamercury.com/2019/08/26/decades-after-brown-decision-virginia-is-still-grappling-with-school-segregation/ |title= Decades after Brown decision, Virginia is still grappling with school segregation |first= Mechelle |last= Hankerson |date= August 26, 2019 |newspaper= The Virginia Mercury |access-date= July 11, 2020}}</ref> Virginia has comparatively large public school districts, typically comprising entire counties or cities, and this helps mitigate funding gaps seen in other states such that non-white districts average slightly more funding, $255 per student {{as of|2019|lc=on}}, than majority white districts.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/report-finds-23-billion-racial-funding-gap-for-schools/2019/02/25/d562b704-3915-11e9-a06c-3ec8ed509d15_story.html |title= Report finds $23 billion racial funding gap for schools |newspaper= The Washington Post |first= Laura |last= Meckler |date= February 26, 2019 |access-date= July 12, 2020}}</ref> Elementary schools, with Virginia's smallest districts, were found to be more segregated than state middle or high schools by a 2019 VCU study.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://richmond.com/news/local/education/vcu-study-school-segregation-worsening-in-virginia/article_a80039ec-2b54-5178-91c2-6812ff3b2307.html |title= VCU study: School segregation worsening in Virginia |newspaper= The Richmond Times-Dispatch |first= Kenya |last= Hunter |date= November 14, 2020 |access-date= November 15, 2020}}</ref>

===Colleges and universities===
{{See also|List of colleges and universities in Virginia}}
[[File:Falling Upwards; The Rotunda at the University of Virginia.jpg|thumb|The [[University of Virginia]] guarantees full tuition scholarships to all in-state Virginia students with family incomes of $80,000 or less.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://vpm.org/news/articles/7367/uva-promises-free-tuition-to-middle-income-students-similar-trend-at-other |title= UVA Promises Free Tuition To Middle Income Students, Similar Trend At Other Universities Nationwide |website= Virginia Public Media/NPR |first= Megan |last= Pauly |date= October 2, 2019 |access-date= July 12, 2020}}</ref>]]
{{As of|2020}}, Virginia has the [[List of U.S. states and territories by educational attainment|eighth-highest percent of residents]] with bachelor's degrees or higher, with 41.5%.<ref name=QuickFacts/> The [[United States Department of Education|Department of Education]] recognizes 163 [[List of colleges and universities in Virginia|colleges and universities in Virginia]].<ref name=nces>{{cite web|url=http://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/?s=VA|title=College Navigator—Search Results|website=[[National Center for Education Statistics]]|publisher=[[United States Department of Education]]|year=2022|access-date=August 9, 2022}}</ref> In the 2022 ''[[U.S. News & World Report]]'' ranking of national public universities, the [[University of Virginia]] is ranked 3rd, the [[College of William and Mary]] is 13th, [[Virginia Tech]] is 23rd, [[George Mason University]] is 65th, [[James Madison University]] is 72nd, and [[Virginia Commonwealth University]] is 83rd.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.thecentersquare.com/virginia/report-uva-is-3rd-best-public-university-william-mary-drops/article_2394aca6-3387-11ed-b0bf-ef82afeff89a.html |title= Report: UVA is 3rd best public university; William & Mary drops |first= Tyler |last= Arnold |website= The Center Square |date= September 13, 2022 |access-date= February 7, 2023}}</ref> There are 119 private institutions in the state, including [[Washington and Lee University]] and the [[University of Richmond]], which are ranked as the country's 11th and 18th best liberal arts colleges respectively.<ref name=nces/><ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/va?schoolType=national-liberal-arts-colleges |title= National Liberal Arts Colleges Ranking |website= U.S. News & World Report |date= September 2022 |access-date= February 7, 2023}}</ref>

Virginia Tech and [[Virginia State University]] are the state's [[land-grant university|land-grant universities]], and Virginia State is one of its five [[historically black colleges and universities]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://richmondmagazine.com/news/the-fierce-five-virginia-hbcus/ |title= The Fierce Five: Virginia HBCUs |magazine= Richmond Magazine |first= Samantha |last= Willis |date= September 22, 2015 |access-date= May 26, 2021}}</ref> The [[Virginia Military Institute]] is the oldest state [[military academy|military college]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.richmond.com/news/local/education/we-were-no-different-virginia-military-institute-integrated-years-ago/article_571bc89f-cb06-5995-a812-dfc12f3616db.html |title= 'We were no different': Virginia Military Institute integrated 50 years ago |first= Justin |last= Mattingly |newspaper= Richmond Times-Dispatch |date= December 20, 2018 |access-date= March 16, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20181224102115/https://www.richmond.com/news/local/education/we-were-no-different-virginia-military-institute-integrated-years-ago/article_571bc89f-cb06-5995-a812-dfc12f3616db.html |archive-date= December 24, 2018 |url-status= live}}</ref> Virginia also operates [[Virginia Community College System|23&nbsp;community colleges]] on 40&nbsp;campuses which enrolled 199,926&nbsp;degree-seeking students during the 2021–2022 school year.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.vccs.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/VCCS-Fact-Sheet-2021-2022_Update_MB.pdf |title= VCCS Fact Sheet 2021–2022 |publisher=Virginia's Community Colleges |date= February 27, 2023 |access-date= June 24, 2024}}</ref> In 2021, the state made community college free for most low- and middle-income students.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.wric.com/news/virginia-news/virginia-governor-signs-bills-creating-tuition-free-community-college-program-for-low-middle-income-students/ |title=  Virginia governor signs bills creating tuition-free community college program for low, middle-income students |website= ABC8 WRIC |first= Delaney |last= Hall |date= March 30, 2021 |access-date= March 31, 2021}}</ref> George Mason University had the largest on-campus enrollment at 40,390&nbsp;students {{As of|2023|lc=on}},<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.bizjournals.com/washington/news/2023/08/28/gmu-enrollment-record.html |title= George Mason University enrolls 40,000 students for the fall, a state record |website= Washington Business Journal |first= Michael |last= Neibauer |date= August 29, 2023 |access-date= June 24, 2024}}</ref> though the private [[Liberty University]] had the largest total enrollment in the state, with 115,000&nbsp;online and 15,800&nbsp;on-campus students in [[Lynchburg, Virginia|Lynchburg]] {{As of|2022|lc=on}}.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.wsls.com/news/local/2022/10/28/liberty-university-enrolls-largest-student-body-in-its-history/ |title= Liberty University enrolls largest student body in its history |website= WSLS 10 |first= Lauren |last= Helkowsk |date= October 28, 2022 |access-date= June 24, 2024}}</ref>

==Health==
[[File:200318-N-BB298-1072 (49786116842).jpg|thumb|Patients are screened for [[COVID-19]] outside [[Naval Medical Center Portsmouth]], the [[United States Navy|Navy]]'s oldest continuously operating hospital.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.pilotonline.com/life/article_eae5349c-1f9e-5ce2-bdb7-78ee8f5090a3.html |title= Stories march through doors of 1827 Naval Medical Center |first= Lia |last= Russell |newspaper= The Virginian-Pilot |date= October 26, 2008 |access-date= January 15, 2022}}</ref>|alt=Two medical professionals, one holding a clipboard, in blue scrubs and facemasks stand outside the window of a dark blue car parked in front of a brick building.]]

Virginia was ranked best for its physical environment in the 2024 United Health Foundation's Health Rankings, but 15th for its overall health outcomes and only 23rd for residents' healthy behaviors. Among U.S. states, Virginia has the 20th-lowest rate of premature deaths, with 8,146 per 100,000,<ref name=ahr>{{cite web|url=https://assets.americashealthrankings.org/app/uploads/allstatesummaries-ahr24.pdf|date=December 3, 2024|title=Virginia|website=America's Health Rankings|publisher=United Health Foundation|access-date=June 16, 2025}}</ref> and an [[infant mortality]] rate of 5.61 per 1,000 live births.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr69/NVSR-69-7-508.pdf |website= National Vital Statistics Reports |publisher= U.S. Department of Health and Human Services |volume= 69 |number= 7 |date= July 16, 2020 |title= Infant Mortality in the United States, 2018: Data From the Period Linked Birth/Infant Death File |first1= Danielle M. |last1= Ely |first2= Anne K. |last2= Driscoll |access-date= March 29, 2020}}</ref> The rate of uninsured Virginians dropped to 6.4% in 2024, following an expansion of [[Medicare (United States)|Medicare]] in 2019.<ref name=ahr/> [[Falls Church, Virginia|Falls Church]] and [[Loudoun County, Virginia|Loudoun County]] were both ranked in the top ten healthiest communities in 2020 by ''U.S. News & World Report''.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://wtop.com/local/2020/09/virginia-has-2-of-us-news-10-healthiest-communities-for-2020/ |title= Virginia has 2 of US News' 10 healthiest communities for 2020 |website= WTOP |first= Rob |last= Woodfork |date= September 22, 2020 |access-date= September 23, 2020}}</ref>

With high rates of heart disease and diabetes, African Americans in Virginia have an average life expectancy four years less than whites and twelve less than Asian Americans and Latinos,<ref>{{cite news |url= http://richmondfreepress.com/news/2017/dec/01/racial-disparity-health-care/ |title= Racial disparity in healthcare |newspaper= Richmond Free Press |date= December 1, 2017 |first= Samantha |last= Willis |access-date= June 1, 2020}}</ref> and were disproportionately affected by the [[COVID-19 pandemic in Virginia|coronavirus pandemic]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2020/05/05/fact-check-blacks-make-up-all-covid-19-deaths-richmond-virginia/3086558001/ |title= Fact check: Black people make up disproportionate share of COVID-19 deaths in Richmond, Virginia |first= Donnelle |last= Eller |newspaper= USA Today |date= May 5, 2020 |access-date= June 2, 2020}}</ref> African-American mothers are also three times more likely to [[Maternal mortality in the United States|die while giving birth]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.dailypress.com/news/health/dp-nws-evg-vp-black-childbirth-mortality-virginia-20180629-story.html |title= Black women in Virginia die in childbirth at 3 times the rate of any other race. What's going on? |first= Katherine |last= Hafner |newspaper= The Virginian-Pilot |date= June 29, 2018 |access-date= June 1, 2020}}</ref> Mortality rates among white middle-class Virginians have also been rising, with drug overdose, alcohol poisoning, and suicide as leading causes.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.richmond.com/news/virginia/report-finds-death-rates-rise-for-white-middle-class-virginians/article_b1fba73d-fd60-5303-90ef-9c3eb83d62f3.html |title= Report finds death rates rise for white, middle-class Virginians |first= Luanne |last= Rife |newspaper= The Roanoke Times |date= March 21, 2018 |access-date= June 1, 2020}}</ref> Suicides in the state increased over 14% between 2009 and 2023, while deaths from drug overdoses more than doubled.<ref name=ahr/> Virginia has a ratio of 274.3&nbsp;[[primary care physician]]s per 10,000&nbsp;residents and only 273.1&nbsp;mental health providers per that number, both fourteenth worst nationwide.<ref name=ahr/> A December 2023 report by the [[Virginia General Assembly|General Assembly]] found that all nine public mental health care facilities were over 95% full, causing overcrowding and delays in admissions.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2023/12/12/virginia-mental-health-jlarc-report/ |title= Surging need creates safety issues at Va. mental hospitals, study finds |first1= Justin |last1= Jouvenal |first2= Jenna |last2= Portnoy |date= December 12, 2023|newspaper= The Washington Post |access-date= March 13, 2024}}</ref>

Weight is an issue for many Virginians: 32.2% of adults and 14.9% of 10- to 17-year-olds are obese {{as of|2021|lc=on}},<ref>{{cite web|url=https://stateofchildhoodobesity.org/state-data/?state=va|title=Childhood Obesity New Data|website=State of Childhood Obesity|year=2021|access-date=January 26, 2022}}</ref> 35% of adults are overweight, and 23.3% do not exercise regularly.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://patch.com/virginia/ashburn/virginia-fatter-21-other-states-report |title= Virginia Is Fatter Than 21 Other States: Report |first= Elizabeth |last= Janney |website= Patch |date= May 10, 2018 |access-date= June 1, 2020}}</ref> Smoking in bars and restaurants was banned in January 2010,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/nov/30/restaurant-owners-to-brace-for-smoke-ban|title=Va. restaurant owners bracing for smoke ban|work=[[The Washington Times]]|date=November 30, 2009|access-date=May 6, 2011|agency=[[Associated Press]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111201044553/http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/nov/30/restaurant-owners-to-brace-for-smoke-ban/|archive-date=December 1, 2011|url-status=live}}</ref> and the percent of tobacco smokers in the state has declined from 19% in that year to 12.1% in 2023, but an additional 7.7% use [[e-cigarette]]s. The percentage of adults who receive annual immunizations is above average, as 48.1% get their yearly flu vaccination.<ref name=ahr/> In 2008, Virginia became the first U.S. state to mandate the [[HPV vaccine]] for girls for school attendance,<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/virginia-politics/post/va-senate-kills-bill-repealing-hpv-vaccine-requirement-for-girls/2012/02/27/gIQAviHMeR_blog.html |title= Va. Senate kills bill repealing HPV vaccine requirement for girls |first= Anita |last= Kumar |newspaper= The Washington Post |date= February 27, 2012 |access-date= June 2, 2020}}</ref> and 62.9% of adolescents have the vaccine {{As of|2024|lc=on}}.<ref name=ahr/>

The [[Virginia Board of Health]] regulates healthcare facilities. There are 88&nbsp;[[List of hospitals in Virginia|hospitals in Virginia]] with a combined 17,024&nbsp;hospital beds {{as of|2023|lc=on}}. The largest in both Virginia and the [[Washington metropolitan area]] is [[Inova Fairfax Hospital]], which serves over 55,000&nbsp;patients annually.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ahd.com/states/hospital_VA.html|title=Individual Hospital Statistics for Virginia|website=American Hospital Directory|date=May 7, 2023|access-date=March 13, 2024}}</ref> [[VCU Medical Center]], where a new 16-story [[children's hospital]] was opened in 2023, is highly ranked for [[pediatrics]],<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.vcuhealth.org/news/us-news-and-world-report-ranks-childrens-hospital-of-richmond-at-vcu-one-of-the-nations-best |title= U.S. News & World Report ranks Children's Hospital of Richmond at VCU one of the nation's best children's hospitals in eight specialties |website= VCU Health |date= June 21, 2023 |access-date= March 12, 2024}}</ref> while [[University of Virginia Health System|UVA Medical Center]] is highly ranked for its cancer care,<ref>{{cite web |url= https://news.virginia.edu/content/news-brief-uva-health-university-medical-center-named-best-state-cancer-care |title= UVA Health University Medical Center Named Best in State for Cancer Care |first= Eric |last= Swensen |date= August 9, 2023 |website= University of Virginia News |access-date= March 13, 2024}}</ref> and the state numbers in the top ten for annual [[cancer screening]]s.<ref name=ahr/> [[Sentara Norfolk General Hospital]], a teaching institution of [[Eastern Virginia Medical School]], was the site of the [[Elizabeth Jordan Carr|first successful]] U.S. [[in-vitro fertilization]] program, and around 2.5% of births in the state are due to IVF.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.axios.com/local/richmond/2024/03/07/ivf-virginia-embryos-alabama-ruling |title= Where IVF stands in Virginia after the Alabama ruling |website= Axios Richmond |first= Sabrina |last= Moreno |date= March 7, 2024 |access-date= March 13, 2024}}</ref>

==Media==
{{See also|List of newspapers in Virginia|List of radio stations in Virginia|List of television stations in Virginia}}
[[File:USA Today building.jpg|thumb|''[[USA Today]]'', one of the [[List of newspapers in the United States|nation's largest circulation newspapers]], is headquartered in [[McLean, Virginia|McLean]].|alt=Two geometric all glass towers connected by a central atrium stand in front of a grassy walkway and under a dark and cloudy sky]]
The [[Hampton Roads]] area is the 44th-largest [[media market]] in the United States as ranked by [[Nielsen Media Research]], while the [[Richmond-Petersburg]] area is 56th and [[Roanoke, Virginia|Roanoke]]-[[Lynchburg, Virginia|Lynchburg]] is 71st {{as of|2022|lc=on}}. Northern Virginia is part of the much larger Washington, D.C. media market, which is the country's ninth-largest.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nab.org/documents/resources/2022-2023DMARANKS.xlsx|title=Local Television Market Universe Estimates|date=January 1, 2023|access-date=January 4, 2023|website=National Association of Broadcasters}}</ref>

There are 36 [[List of television stations in Virginia|television stations in Virginia]], representing each major [[List of United States over-the-air television networks|U.S. network]], part of 42 stations which serve Virginia viewers including those broadcasting from neighboring jurisdictions.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mondotimes.com/world/usa/tv.html?state=46|title=Virginia TV Stations|website=MondoTimes|year=2020|access-date=June 1, 2020}}</ref> There are 595&nbsp;[[Federal Communications Commission|FCC]]-licensed FM [[List of radio stations in Virginia|radio stations broadcast in Virginia]] and 239 AM stations {{as of|2020|lc=on}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/fmq?state=VA|title=FM Query|publisher=[[Federal Communications Commission]]|date=June 1, 2020|access-date=June 1, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/amq?state=VA|title=AM Query|publisher=[[Federal Communications Commission]]|date=June 1, 2020|access-date=June 1, 2020}}</ref> The nationally available [[Public Broadcasting Service]] (PBS) is headquartered in [[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington]]. Independent PBS affiliates exist throughout Virginia, and the Arlington [[PBS]] member station [[WETA-TV]] produces programs such as the ''[[PBS NewsHour]]'' and ''[[Washington Week]]''.

The most circulated [[List of newspapers in Virginia|native newspapers in the Commonwealth]] are [[Norfolk, Virginia|Norfolk's]] ''[[The Virginian-Pilot]]'' with around 132,000&nbsp;subscribers,<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-tronc-buys-virginian-pilot-newspaper-20180529-story.html |title= Tronc buys Virginian-Pilot newspaper in Norfolk |first= Robert |last= Channick |newspaper= The Chicago Tribune |date= May 29, 2018 |access-date= June 1, 2020}}</ref> the ''[[Richmond Times-Dispatch]]'' with 86,219,<ref>{{cite news |url= https://bluevirginia.us/2018/10/dying-richmond-times-dispatch-announces-it-will-stop-making-endorsements-blames-its-customers |title= Dying Richmond Times-Dispatch Announces It Will Stop Making Endorsements |website= Blue Virginia |date= October 21, 2018 |access-date= June 1, 2020}}</ref> and ''[[The Roanoke Times]]'' {{As of|2018|lc=on}}.<ref>{{cite web|title=Top 10 Virginia Daily Newspapers by Circulation|website=Agility PR|url=https://www.agilitypr.com/resources/top-media-outlets/top-10-virginia-daily-newspapers-circulation/|access-date=June 1, 2020|date=January 2020}}</ref> ''[[USA Today]]'', which is headquartered in [[McLean, Virginia|McLean]], has seen its daily subscription number decline significantly from over 500,000 in 2019 to just over 180,000 in 2021, but is still the third-most circulated paper nationwide.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://pressgazette.co.uk/biggest-us-newspapers-by-circulation/ |title= Top 25 US newspapers by circulation: America's largest titles have lost 20% of print sales since Covid-19 hit |website= Press Gazette |first= William |last= Turvill |date= August 21, 2021 |access-date= August 14, 2022}}</ref> ''USA Today'' is the flagship publication of [[Gannett|Gannett, Inc.]], which merged with [[GateHouse Media]] in 2019, and operates over one hundred local newspapers nationwide.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/03/30/gannett-newspapers-furloughs/ |title= Gannett will furlough workers at more than 100 newspapers over next three months |newspaper= The Washington Post |first= Jacob |last= Bogage |date= March 30, 2020 |access-date= June 1, 2020}}</ref> In Northern Virginia, ''[[The Washington Post]]'' is the dominant newspaper and provides local coverage for the region.<ref>{{cite book|author=J. L. Jeffries|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Aky-V0CFFWEC&pg=PA115|title=Virginia's Native Son: The Election and Administration of Governor L. Douglas Wilder|page=115|year=2000|publisher=Purdue University Press|isbn = 978-1-55753-411-8}}</ref> ''[[Politico (newspaper)|Politico]]'' and ''[[Axios (website)|Axios]]'', which both cover national politics, have their headquarters in [[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://northernvirginiamag.com/culture/culture-features/2022/04/21/inside-the-20-plus-year-relationship-that-made-arlington-a-new-global-media-capital/ |title= Inside the 20-Plus-Year-Relationship That Made Arlington a New Global Media Capital |magazine= Northern Virginia Magazine |first= James |last= Finley |date= April 21, 2022 |access-date= June 23, 2024}}</ref>

==Transportation==
{{Main|Transportation in Virginia}}
[[File:Tysons Corner Sunset .jpg|thumb|The [[Silver Line (Washington Metro)|Silver Line]] extension of the [[Washington Metro]] system opened in [[Tysons, Virginia|Tysons]] in 2014|alt=A train station built over a busy intersection in front of several skyscrapers at sunset.]]
Because of the 1932 [[Byrd Road Act]], the state government controls most of Virginia's roads, instead of a local county authority as is usual in other states.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.virginiadot.org/vtrc/main/online_reports/pdf/98-r29.pdf|title=Beyond the Byrd Road Act: VDOT's Relationship with Virginia's Urban Counties|first=Amy A.|last=O'Leary|date=April 1998|access-date=October 3, 2009|website=[[Virginia Department of Transportation]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111208071140/http://www.virginiadot.org/vtrc/main/online_reports/pdf/98-r29.pdf|archive-date=December 8, 2011|url-status=live}}</ref> {{As of|2018}}, the [[Virginia Department of Transportation]] (VDOT) owns and operates {{convert|57867|mi|km}} of the total {{convert|70105|mi|km}} of roads in the state, making it the third-largest state highway system.<ref name=vdot>{{cite web |url=http://www.virginiadot.org/about/vdot_hgwy_sys.asp |title=Virginia's Highway System |publisher=[[Virginia Department of Transportation]] |date=February 13, 2018 |access-date=March 16, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511123917/https://www.virginiadot.org/about/vdot_hgwy_sys.asp |archive-date=May 11, 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Traffic on Virginia's roads is among the worst in the nation according to the 2019 American Community Survey. The average commute time of 28.7&nbsp;minutes is the eighth-longest among U.S. states, and the Washington Metropolitan Area, which includes [[Northern Virginia]], has the second-worst rate of traffic congestion among U.S. cities.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://wtop.com/local/2020/09/dc-region-among-worst-nationwide-for-commute-times-ranking-reveals/|title=DC region among worst nationwide for commute times, ranking reveals|first=Mike|last=Murillo|work=WTOP|date=September 17, 2020|access-date=March 31, 2021}}</ref> About 68.4% of workers in Virginia reported driving alone to work in 2024, the fifteenth lowest percent in the U.S.,<ref name=ahr/> while 8.2% reported carpooling,<ref name=acs_transit>{{cite web |url= https://data.census.gov/table?q=Means+of+Transportation&g=0400000US51&tid=ACSST5Y2023.S0802&moe=false |title= Means of Transportation to Work by Selected Characteristics |website= American Community Survey |publisher= U.S. Census Bureau |year= 2023 |access-date= June 15, 2025}}</ref> and Virginia hit [[peak car]] usage before the year 2000, making it one of the first such states.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2015/01/16/the-american-decline-in-driving-actually-began-way-earlier-than-you-think/?tid=trending_strip_2|first=Emily|last=Badger|title=The American decline in driving actually began way earlier than you think|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|access-date=September 3, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402203047/http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2015/01/16/the-american-decline-in-driving-actually-began-way-earlier-than-you-think/?tid=trending_strip_2|archive-date=April 2, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Mass transit and ports ===
About 3.4% of Virginians commute on public transit,<ref name=acs_transit/> and there were over 171.9&nbsp;million public transit trips in Virginia in 2019, over 62% of which were done on the [[Washington Metro]] transit system, which serves [[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington]] and [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]], and extends into [[Loudoun County, Virginia|Loudoun]] and [[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax Counties]].<ref name=wmata>{{cite web |url= http://www.drpt.virginia.gov/media/2989/drpt-fy19-ridership-report.pdf |title= Transit Agency Ridership Report Fiscal Year 2019 |website= Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation |date= December 12, 2019 |access-date= March 31, 2021}}</ref> Commuter buses include the [[Fairfax Connector]], [[Fredericksburg Regional Transit|FRED]] buses in Fredericksburg, and [[Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation Commission|OmniRide]] in [[Prince William County, Virginia|Prince William County]],<ref>{{cite news |url= https://wtop.com/dc-transit/2019/07/ahead-of-i-395-tolling-start-virginia-looks-at-more-bus-service/ |title= Ahead of I-395 tolling start, Virginia looks at more bus service |website= WTOP |first= Max |last= Smith |date= July 11, 2019 |access-date= March 4, 2020}}</ref> while the state-run [[Virginia Breeze]] buses run four inter-city routes from [[Washington, D.C.]] to [[Bristol, Virginia|Bristol]], [[Blacksburg, Virginia|Blacksburg]], [[Martinsville, Virginia|Martinsville]], and [[Danville, Virginia|Danville]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.virginiamercury.com/2022/08/12/virginias-answer-to-greyhound-shows-rural-areas-are-worth-serving/ |title= Virginia's answer to Greyhound shows rural areas are worth serving |newspaper= Virginia Mercury |first= Wyatt |last= Gordon |date= August 12, 2022 |access-date= August 15, 2022}}</ref> VDOT operates several free ferries throughout Virginia, the most notable being the [[Jamestown Ferry]] which connects [[Jamestown, Virginia|Jamestown]] to [[Scotland, Virginia|Scotland Wharf]] across the [[James River]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.virginiadot.org/travel/ferry.asp|title=Ferry Information|publisher=[[Virginia Department of Transportation]]|date=December 4, 2007|access-date=February 14, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080211140857/http://www.virginiadot.org/travel/ferry.asp|archive-date=February 11, 2008|url-status=live}}</ref>

Virginia has [[Amtrak]] passenger rail service along several corridors, and [[Virginia Railway Express]] (VRE) maintains two commuter lines into Washington, D.C. from [[Fredericksburg, Virginia|Fredericksburg]] and [[Manassas, Virginia|Manassas]]. VRE experienced a dramatic decline in ridership due to the [[COVID-19 pandemic in Virginia|COVID-19 pandemic]], with daily ridership dropping from over 18,000 in 2019 to 6,864 in February 2024.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.insidenova.com/headlines/vre-ridership-still-down-90-future-projections-uncertain/article_7178d1ba-6f50-11eb-b8fe-2775067580ca.html |title= VRE ridership still down 90%; future projections 'uncertain' |website= InsideNoVa |first= Jared |last= Foretek |date= February 22, 2021 |access-date= March 31, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.gazetteleader.com/fairfax/news/despite-current-travails-vre-looks-to-an-expansive-future-8551872 |title= Despite current travails, VRE looks to an expansive future |newspaper= GazetteLeader |first= Scott |last= McCaffrey |date= April 5, 2024 |access-date= May 2, 2024}}</ref> Amtrak routes in Virginia have however passed their pre-pandemic levels and served 123,658&nbsp;passengers in March 2024.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://wydaily.com/latest-news/2024/04/29/amtrak-virginia-sets-another-record-with-march-2024-ridership/ |title= Amtrak Virginia Sets Another Record with March 2024 Ridership |newspaper= WYDaily |date= April 29, 2024 |access-date= May 2, 2024}}</ref> [[Norfolk, Virginia|Norfolk]] operates a light rail system called [[The Tide (light rail network)|The Tide]], servicing about 2,300 people per day.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bonina |first=Jared |title=Public Transportation Ridership Report |url=https://www.apta.com/wp-content/uploads/2024-Q1-Ridership-APTA.pdf |access-date=August 1, 2024}}</ref> Major freight railroads in Virginia include [[Norfolk Southern]] and [[CSX Transportation]], and in 2021 the state finalized a deal to purchase {{convert|223|mi|km}} of track and over {{convert|350|mi|km}} of right of way from CSX for future passenger rail service.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/trafficandcommuting/virginia-rail-long-bridge/2021/03/30/335b0e34-90ed-11eb-9668-89be11273c09_story.html |title= Virginia seals deal for $3.7 billion rail plan, including new Potomac River bridge |newspaper= The Washington Post |first= Luz |last= Lazo |date= March 30, 2021 |access-date= March 31, 2021}}</ref>

Virginia has five major airports: [[Dulles International Airport|Dulles International]] and [[Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport|Reagan Washington National]] in [[Northern Virginia]], both of which handle over 20 million passengers a year, [[Richmond International Airport|Richmond International]] southeast of the state capital, [[Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport]], and [[Norfolk International Airport|Norfolk International]]. Several other airports offer limited commercial passenger service, and sixty-six public airports serve the state's aviation needs.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.doav.virginia.gov/airports.htm|title=Airports|publisher=Virginia Department of Aviation|year=2006|access-date=April 12, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080429184947/http://www.doav.virginia.gov/airports.htm|archive-date=April 29, 2008}}</ref> The [[Virginia Port Authority]]'s main seaports are those in Hampton Roads, which carried {{convert|61505700|ST|t|lk=on}} of total cargo {{as of|2021|alt=in 2021}}, the sixth most of United States ports.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://wp.portofvirginia.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/2021-Trade-Overview.pdf|title=2021 Trade Overview|publisher=The Port of Virginia|date=August 7, 2022|access-date=August 15, 2022}}</ref> The [[Eastern Shore of Virginia]] is the site of [[Wallops Flight Facility]], a rocket launch center owned by [[NASA]], and the [[Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport]], a commercial spaceport.{{sfn|Goodwin|2012|p=305}}<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/16/AR2006121600880.html|title=At Va. Spaceport, Rocket Launches 1,000 Dreams|first=Michael E.|last=Ruane|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=December 17, 2006|access-date=September 10, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110821071720/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/16/AR2006121600880.html|archive-date=August 21, 2011|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Space tourism]] is also offered through [[Vienna, Virginia|Vienna]]-based [[Space Adventures]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2003675354_spacetours21.html?syndication=rss|title=Travel agency launches tourists on out-of-this-world adventures|first=Kim|last=Hart|date=April 21, 2007|work=[[The Seattle Times]]|access-date=May 26, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081204111039/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2003675354_spacetours21.html?syndication=rss|archive-date=December 4, 2008|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Sports==
{{See also|Sports teams in Virginia}}
[[File:2011 Monument Avenue 10k (5583061136).jpg|thumb|The annual [[Monument Avenue 10K]] in [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]], one of the ten largest timed long-distance running races in the U.S.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/destinations/2014/02/04/spring-road-run-marathon-race/5188305/ |title= 14 spring races all runners should try |newspaper= USA Today |date= February 4, 2014 |access-date= April 20, 2021}}</ref>|alt=A large crowd of runners in brightly colored shirts race down a wide street bordered by autumnal trees.]]
Virginia is the most populous U.S. state without a [[Major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada|major professional sports league]] franchise. The reasons for this include the lack of any dominant city or market within the state and the proximity of [[Sports in Washington, D.C.|teams in Washington, D.C.]], [[Sports in Baltimore|Baltimore]], [[Sports in Charlotte, North Carolina|Charlotte]], and [[Raleigh, North Carolina|Raleigh]], as well as a reluctance to publicly finance stadiums.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2012/dec/26/jimmy-barrett/barrett-says-virginia-most-populous-state-without-/ |title= Barrett says Virginia is the most populous state without a major league team |first= Nancy |last= Madsen |website= Politifact |date= December 26, 2012 |access-date= April 22, 2021}}</ref> A proposed [[Virginia Beach Arena|$220&nbsp;million NBA arena]] in [[Virginia Beach]] lost the support of the city council there in 2017,<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.wavy.com/news/local-news/virginia-beach/state-supreme-court-rules-in-favor-of-city-of-virginia-beach-in-lawsuit-over-failed-arena/ |title= State supreme court rules in favor of City of Virginia Beach in lawsuit over failed arena |website= WAVY |date= May 28, 2020 |access-date= March 28, 2024}}</ref> while a 2023 proposal to move the NBA's [[Washington Wizards]] and the NHL's [[Washington Capitals]] to [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]] was canceled after opposition in the [[Virginia Senate]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://apnews.com/article/virginia-washington-sports-capitals-wizards-fedabae3b196b6e79a759f7e6aa44a86 |title= NHL's Capitals and NBA's Wizards are staying in Washington after Virginia arena deal collapses |work= Associated Press News |first1= Sarah |last1= Rankin |first2= Matthew |last2= Barakat |first3= Stephen |last3= Whyno |date= March 27, 2024 |access-date= March 28, 2024}}</ref>

Five [[minor league baseball]] and two mid-level hockey teams play in Virginia. Norfolk is host to two: The [[Triple-A (baseball)|Triple-A]] [[Norfolk Tides]] and the [[ECHL]]'s [[Norfolk Admirals (ECHL)|Norfolk Admirals]]. The [[Double-A (baseball)|Double-A]] [[Richmond Flying Squirrels]] began playing at [[The Diamond (Richmond, Virginia)|The Diamond]] in 2010,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www2.timesdispatch.com/rtd/sports/minors/minors_baseball/article/BASE02_20100401-221608/334637/|title=Squirrels will nest at Diamond for several years|first=John|last=O'Connor|date=April 2, 2010|work=[[Richmond Times-Dispatch]]|access-date=April 27, 2010|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120919152538/http://www2.timesdispatch.com/rtd/sports/minors/minors_baseball/article/BASE02_20100401-221608/334637/|archive-date=September 19, 2012}}</ref> while the [[Fredericksburg Nationals]], [[Lynchburg Hillcats]], and [[Salem RidgeYaks]] play in the [[Carolina League]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.virginia.org/baseball/|title=Baseball in Virginia|publisher=[[Virginia is for Lovers]]|year=2011|access-date=November 26, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111117092634/http://www.virginia.org/baseball/|archive-date=November 17, 2011|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Loudoun United FC]], the reserve team of [[D.C. United]], debuted in the [[USL Championship]] in 2019,<ref name="auto">{{cite news  |url= https://www.uslsoccer.com/news_article/show/935229 |title= Loudoun United FC Joins the USL for 2019 |publisher=United Soccer League |access-date=July 18, 2018}}</ref> while the [[Richmond Kickers]] of the [[USL League One]] have operated since 1993 and are the only team in their league to win both the league championship and the [[U.S. Open Cup]] in the same year.<ref>{{cite news |title= The Most Underrated Sports Team in Richmond |first= Jackie |last= Kruszewski |url=https://www.styleweekly.com/richmond/the-most-underrated-sports-team-in-richmond/Content?oid=2727289 |newspaper= Style Weekly |date= March 14, 2017 |access-date= June 7, 2020}}</ref> The training facilities for both the [[Washington Commanders]] and [[Washington Spirit]] are in [[Loudoun County, Virginia|Loudoun County]],<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2020/06/02/redskins-training-camp-ashburn-2020/ |title= Redskins training camp will be held in Ashburn after NFL tells teams to use practice facilities |newspaper= The Washington Post |first1= Les |last1= Carpenter |first2= Sam |last2= Fortier |date= June 2, 2020 |access-date= June 7, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/12/05/spirit-audi-field-2023-home-games/ |title= Spirit set to play all home matches at Audi Field under new deal |newspaper= The Washington Post |first= Steven |last= Goff |date= December 5, 2022 |access-date= March 28, 2024}}</ref> while the [[Washington Capitals]] practice at [[MedStar Capitals Iceplex]] in [[Ballston, Virginia|Ballston]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.arlnow.com/2023/12/13/what-the-capitals-move-to-potomac-yard-could-mean-for-its-ballston-practice-facility-and-an-at-grade-route-1/ |title= What the Capitals' move to Potomac Yard could mean for its Ballston practice facility and an at-grade Route 1 |website= ARLnow |first= Jo |last= DeVoe |date= December 13, 2023 |access-date= March 29, 2024}}</ref>

[[Hampton Roads]] has produced several Olympic gold medalists, including [[Gabby Douglas]], the first African American to win [[Gymnastics at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Women's artistic individual all-around|gymnastics individual all-around]] gold,<ref>{{cite news |last=Macur |first=Juliet |title=A Very Long Journey Was Very Swift |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/03/sports/olympics/gabby-douglas-of-united-states-wins-gymnastics-all-around.html |access-date=August 4, 2012 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=August 2, 2012}}</ref> and [[LaShawn Merritt]], [[Francena McCorory]], and [[Michael Cherry (athlete)|Michael Cherry]], who have all won gold in the [[4 × 400 meters relay]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.chicagotribune.com/dp-spt-20160820-story.html |title= Olympic track and field local interest roundup: McCorory collects gold despite not running for U.S. women's 4x400 in final; Merritt anchors U.S. men's 4x400 win |agency=  Associated Press |newspaper= The Chicago Tribune |date= August 20, 2016 |access-date= April 21, 2021}}</ref> [[Noah Lyles]], winner of the [[Athletics at the 2024 Summer Olympics – Men's 100 metres|100 meter dash at the 2024 Olympics]], grew up in [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://thezebra.org/2024/08/04/noah-lyles-100m-gold/ |title= Alexandria's Noah Lyles, Still World's Fastest Man, Wins Gold in 100m at Paris Olympics |first= Kevin |last= Dauray |website= The Zebra |date= August 4, 2024 |access-date= August 4, 2024}}</ref> Major long-distance races in the state include the [[Richmond Marathon]], the [[Blue Ridge Marathon on the Parkway]], and the [[Monument Avenue 10K]]. Virginia's professional caliber golf courses include [[Kingsmill Resort]] outside [[Williamsburg, Virginia|Williamsburg]], which hosts [[Pure Silk Championship|an LPGA Tour tournament]] in May, and the [[Country Club of Virginia]] outside [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]], which hosts [[Dominion Energy Charity Classic|a charity classic]] on the [[PGA Tour Champions]] in October. Notable PGA Tour winners from Virginia include [[Sam Snead]] and [[Curtis Strange]]. [[NASCAR]] currently schedules [[NASCAR Cup Series|Cup Series races]] on two tracks in Virginia: [[Martinsville Speedway]] and [[Richmond Raceway]]. Notable drivers from Virginia in the series have included [[Jeff Burton]], [[Ward Burton]], [[Denny Hamlin]], [[Wendell Scott]] and [[Curtis Turner]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nascar/ranking-all-time-best-drivers-from-virginia-ahead-of-richmond |title= Ranking all-time best drivers from Virginia ahead of Richmond race|website= Fox Sports |first= Bob |last= Pockrass |date= March 30, 2023 |access-date= July 20, 2023}}</ref>

===College sports===
[[File:VT - UVA 2012 - Waiting for the rebound.jpg|thumb|alt=A college basketball player dressed in white with orange and blue bordering prepares to shoot a free throw.|[[Mike Scott (basketball)|Mike Scott]] and [[Joe Harris (basketball)|Joe Harris]] of the [[Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball|Virginia Cavaliers]] battle [[Cadarian Raines]] of the [[Virginia Tech Hokies men's basketball|Virginia Tech Hokies]] for a rebound in a [[college basketball]] game at [[Cassell Coliseum]] in [[Blacksburg, Virginia|Blacksburg]].]]
Several of Virginia's collegiate sports programs have attracted strong followings, with a 2015 poll showing that 34% of Virginians were fans of the [[Virginia Cavaliers]] and 28% were fans of the [[Virginia-Virginia Tech rivalry|rival]] [[Virginia Tech Hokies]], making both more popular than the surveyed regional professional teams.<ref name="PPP">"[http://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/roanoke.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/12/712bdf7a-98ec-5ab8-a08c-2defb63ad99b/55b111de998ca.pdf.pdf Virginians Favor Background Checks, Paid Sick Days]". [[Public Policy Polling]], July 21, 2015. Accessed April 17, 2021.</ref> The men's and women's [[college basketball]] programs of the [[Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball|Cavaliers]], [[VCU Rams men's basketball|VCU Rams]], and [[Old Dominion Monarchs basketball|Old Dominion Monarchs]] have combined for 66 regular season conference championships and 49 conference tournament championships between them {{as of|2023|lc=on}}. The [[Virginia Tech Hokies football|Hokies]] football team sustained a 27-year bowl streak between 1993 and 2019; [[James Madison Dukes football|James Madison Dukes]] football won [[NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision|FCS]] NCAA Championships in both 2004 and 2016.<ref>AP. "[https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2017/01/07/james-madison-wins-fcs-title-beats-youngstown-state-28-14/96292916/ James Madison beats Youngstown State for FCS title]". ''[[USA Today]]'', January 7, 2017. Accessed April 16, 2021.</ref> The overall UVA men's athletics programs won the national [[Capital One Cup (college sports)|Capital One Cup]] in [[Capital One Cup (college sports)#Champions|both 2015 and 2019]], and led the [[Atlantic Coast Conference]] in [[Atlantic Coast Conference#NCAA team championships|NCAA championships]].<ref>Staff Report. "[https://richmond.com/sports/college/schools/university-virginia/uva-wins-capital-one-cup-for-men-s-sports/article_679c22b1-24ff-5350-a719-8c8da094ac20.html UVa wins Capital One Cup for men's sports]". ''[[Richmond Times-Dispatch]]'', January 29, 2015. Accessed April 16, 2021.</ref><ref>Ron Counts. "[https://dailyprogress.com/sports/cavalierinsider/former-cavalier-long-to-present-virginia-with-its-second-capital-one-cup/article_08e25362-0549-57b0-a0bc-9533ab5d2573.html Former Cavalier Long to present Virginia with its second Capital One Cup]". ''[[Daily Progress]]'', July 10, 2019. Accessed April 16, 2021.</ref>

[[List of college athletic programs in Virginia#Division I|Fourteen universities]] in total compete in [[NCAA Division I]], with multiple programs each in the Atlantic Coast Conference, [[Atlantic 10 Conference]], [[Big South Conference]], and [[Coastal Athletic Association]]. Three [[historically black colleges and universities|historically Black schools]] compete in the Division II [[Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association]], and two others ([[Hampton Pirates and Lady Pirates|Hampton]] and [[Norfolk State Spartans|Norfolk State]]) compete in Division I. Several smaller schools compete in the [[Old Dominion Athletic Conference]] and the [[USA South Athletic Conference]] of NCAA Division III. The NCAA currently holds its [[NCAA Division III national football championship|Division III championships in football]], men's basketball, volleyball, and softball in [[Salem, Virginia|Salem]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/football/2006-12-13-focus-salem_x.htm|title=Virginia town is big game central|first=Erik|last=Brady|work=[[USA Today]]|date=December 14, 2006|access-date=February 6, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090206075557/http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/football/2006-12-13-focus-salem_x.htm|archive-date=February 6, 2009|url-status=live}}</ref> State appropriated funds are not allowed to be used for either operational or capital expenses for intercollegiate athletics.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/2004-02-18-athletic-spending-cover_x.htm|title=Athletic spending grows as academic funds dry up|first1=MaryJo|last1=Sylwester|first2=Tom|last2=Witosky|date=February 18, 2004|work=[[USA Today]]|access-date=August 16, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091203174023/http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/2004-02-18-athletic-spending-cover_x.htm|archive-date=December 3, 2009|url-status=live}}</ref>

===High school sports===
Virginia is also home to several of the nation's top high school [[basketball]] programs, including [[Paul VI Catholic High School]] and [[Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Virginia)|Oak Hill Academy]], the latter of which has won nine national championships.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/news/high-school-basketball-rankings-millard-north-jumps-in-maxpreps-top-25-after-win-vs-oak-hill-academy/ |title= High school basketball rankings: Millard North jumps in MaxPreps Top 25 after win vs. Oak Hill Academy |website= CBS Sports |first= Jordan |last= Divens |date= February 16, 2021 |access-date= April 20, 2021}}</ref> In the 2022–2023 school year, 176,623&nbsp;high school students participated in fourteen girls sports and thirteen boys sports managed by the [[Virginia High School League]], with the most popular sports being [[High school football|football]], outdoor track and cross country, [[High school soccer|soccer]], basketball, baseball and softball, and volleyball.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.vhsl.org/about-vhsl/ |title= Participation |website= Virginia High School League |date= July 7, 2023 |access-date= January 22, 2024}}</ref> Outside of the high school system, 145&nbsp;youth soccer clubs operate in the Virginia Youth Soccer Association, under the [[United States Youth Soccer Association|USYS]] system, {{As of|2024|lc=on}}.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.vysa.com/members/ |title= Official Members |website= Virginia Youth Soccer Association |date= 2024 |access-date= March 28, 2024}}</ref>

==State symbols==
{{Main|List of Virginia state symbols}}
[[File:2017-06-12 15 45 41 'Welcome to Virginia' sign along eastbound U.S. Route 58 (Wilderness Road) entering Lee County, Virginia from Claiborne County, Tennessee crop.jpg|thumb|The state slogan, "[[Virginia Is for Lovers]]", has been used since 1969 and is featured on state welcome signs.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-is-for-lovers/2021/07/24/65fd0e78-ebfb-11eb-ba5d-55d3b5ffcaf1_story.html |title= Here's the story on 'Virginia is for lovers,' one of history's greatest tourism slogans |first= John |last= Kelly |date= July 24, 2021 |newspaper= The Washington Post |access-date= July 28, 2021}}</ref>|alt=A large rectangular metal sign, mostly black, with the words "Welcome To Virginia" and "Virginia is for lovers" with a red heart symbol on the left stands to the right of a rural road through green hills.]]
Virginia has several nicknames, the oldest of which is the "Old Dominion". King [[Charles II of England]] first referred to "our auntient Collonie of Virginia" one of "our own Dominions" in 1662 or 1663, perhaps choosing this language because Virginia was home to many of his supporters during the [[English Civil War]].{{sfn|Berkeley|Billings|Kimberly|2007|pp=184–185}}{{sfn|Library of Virginia|1994|pp=88}} These supporters were called [[Cavalier]]s, and the nickname "The Cavalier State" was popularized after the [[American Civil War]].{{sfn|Welch|2006|pp=1–3}} Virginia has also been called the "Mother of Presidents", as eight Virginians have served as [[Lists of United States Presidents by place of birth#By state of birth|President of the United States]], including four of the first five.{{sfn|Goodwin|2012|pp=11–13}}

The state's motto, ''[[Sic semper tyrannis|Sic Semper Tyrannis]]'', translates from [[Latin]] as "Thus Always to Tyrants", and is used on the state seal, which is then used on the flag.<ref name="sic"/> While the seal was designed in 1776, and the flag was first used in the 1830s, both were made official in 1930.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.pilotonline.com/news/article_36f89ba4-ca4a-529a-be8f-31e8c1736068.html |title=Cuccinelli opts for more modest Virginia state seal |first= Julian |last= Walker |newspaper= The Virginian-Pilot |date= May 1, 2010 |access-date= June 7, 2020}}</ref> In 1940, "[[Carry Me Back to Old Virginny]]" was named the [[List of U.S. state songs|state song]], but it was retired in 1997 due to its nostalgic references to slavery. In March 2015, Virginia's government named "[[Our Great Virginia]]", which uses the tune of "[[Oh Shenandoah]]", as the traditional state song and "[[Sweet Virginia Breeze]]" as the popular state song.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://patch.com/virginia/fairfaxcity/listen-virginia-now-has-2-state-songs|title=Listen: Virginia Now Has 2 State Songs|last=Hambrick|work=Patch|date=March 27, 2015|access-date=July 29, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150711062929/http://patch.com/virginia/fairfaxcity/listen-virginia-now-has-2-state-songs|archive-date=July 11, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>
{{Div col}}
* [[List of U.S. state beverages|Beverages]]: [[Milk]], [[George Washington's Rye Whiskey|Rye Whiskey]]
* [[List of U.S. state ships|Boat]]: [[Chesapeake Bay deadrise]]
* [[List of U.S. state birds|Bird]]: [[Northern cardinal|Cardinal]]
* [[List of U.S. state dances|Dance]]: [[Square dance|Square dancing]]
* [[List of U.S. state mammals|Dog]]: [[American Foxhound]]
* [[List of U.S. state fish|Fish]]: [[Brook trout]], [[striped bass]]
* [[List of U.S. state flowers|Flower]]/[[List of U.S. state trees|Tree]]: [[Cornus florida|Dogwood]]
* [[List of U.S. state fossils|Fossil]]: ''[[Chesapecten jeffersonius]]''
* [[List of U.S. state insects|Insect]]: [[Papilio glaucus|Tiger swallowtail]]
* [[List of U.S. state mammals|Mammal]]: [[Virginia big-eared bat]]
* [[List of U.S. state mottos|Motto]]: [[Sic semper tyrannis|Sic Semper Tyrannis]]
* [[List of U.S. state nicknames|Nickname]]: The Old Dominion
* [[List of U.S. state horses|Pony]]: [[Chincoteague pony]]
* [[List of U.S. state shells|Shell]]: [[Eastern oyster]]
* [[Place branding|Slogan]]: [[Virginia is for Lovers]]
* [[List of U.S. state songs|Songs]]: "[[Our Great Virginia]]", "[[Sweet Virginia Breeze]]"
* [[List of U.S. state tartans|Tartan]]: [[Virginia Quadricentennial tartan|Virginia Quadricentennial]]
{{Div col end}}

==See also==
{{portal bar|Virginia|United States}}
* [[Index of Virginia-related articles]]
* [[Outline of Virginia]]{{clear}}

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Bibliography==
{{Refbegin|30em}}
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* {{Cite book|last1=Burnham|first1=Bill|first2=Mary|last2=Burnham|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zFZaDwAAQBAJ|title=Hiking Virginia: A Guide to Virginia's Greatest Hiking Adventures|publisher=Globe Pequot|location=Guilford, CT|year=2018|isbn=978-1-4930-3127-6}}
* {{Cite book|last1=Carroll|first1=Steven|first2=Mark|last2=Miller|title=Wild Virginia: A Guide to Thirty Roadless Recreation Areas Including Shenandoah National Park|publisher=Globe Pequot|location=Guilford, CT|year=2002|isbn=978-0-7627-2315-7}}
* {{Cite book|last=Chambers|first=Douglas B.|title=Murder at Montpelier: Igbo Africans in Virginia|publisher=[[University Press of Mississippi]]|location=Jackson|year=2005|isbn=978-1-57806-706-0|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vqpoxEl_0_4C&pg=PA10}}
* {{Cite book|last=Conlin|first=Joseph R.|title=The American Past: A Survey of American History|year=2009|author-link=Joseph R. Conlin|publisher=[[Cengage Learning|Thomson Learning]]|location=Belmont, CA|isbn=978-0-495-56609-0|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tT2AEMiUXvwC&pg=PT57}}
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{{Refend}}

==External links==

{{Sister project links|voy=Virginia}}

===Government===
* [https://www.virginia.gov State Government website]
* [https://virginiageneralassembly.gov Virginia General Assembly]
* [https://www.courts.state.va.us Virginia's Judicial system]

===Tourism and recreation===
* [https://www.virginia.org Virginia Tourism Website]
* [https://www.dcr.virginia.gov/state-parks Virginia State Parks]
* [https://dwr.virginia.gov/blog/explore-the-wild-wildlife-management-areas Virginia Wildlife Management Areas]

===Culture and history===
* [https://www.lva.virginia.gov Library of Virginia]
* [https://virginiahistory.org Virginia Museum of Culture and History]
* [https://encyclopediavirginia.org Encyclopedia Virginia]

===Maps and demographics===
* [https://www.usgs.gov/states/virginia USGS geographic resources of Virginia]
* [http://climate.virginia.edu/ Virginia State Climatology Office] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061005095007/http://climate.virginia.edu/ |date=October 5, 2006 }}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120720090246/http://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/state-fact-sheets/state-data.aspx?StateFIPS=51&StateName=Virginia#.U8BDivldUeo Virginia State Facts from USDA, Economic Research Service]
* {{OSM relation|224042}}

{{s-start}}
{{s-bef|before=[[New Hampshire]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[List of U.S. states by date of admission to the Union]]|years=Ratified [[United States Constitution|Constitution]] on June 25, 1788 (10th)}}
{{s-aft|after=[[New York (state)|New York]]}}
{{s-end}}
{{Geographic location
|West = {{flag|Kentucky}}
|Northwest = {{flag|West Virginia}}
|North = {{flag|Maryland}}
|Northeast = {{flag|Washington, D.C.|name=District of Columbia}}
|Centre = {{flag|Virginia}}: [[Outline of Virginia|Outline]] • [[Index of Virginia-related articles|Index]]
|East = [[Atlantic Ocean]]
|Southeast = {{flag|North Carolina}}
|South = {{flagu|North Carolina}}
|Southwest = {{flag|Tennessee}}
}}
{{Navboxes
|title = <span style="font-size:11pt;">Topics related to Virginia</span><br />''Old Dominion''
|list =
{{Virginia|expanded}}
{{Protected areas of Virginia}}
{{Southern United States}}
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{{Confederate States political divisions}}
{{United States political divisions}}
|state=expanded}}

{{Authority control}}

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[[Category:1788 establishments in the United States]]
[[Category:Former British colonies and protectorates in the Americas]]
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[[Category:States of the East Coast of the United States]]
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