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HJ74 • 2026

Judges; elections in circuit court, general district court, etc.

Election of Circuit Court Judges, General District Court Judges, Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court Judges, a member of the State Corporation Commission, and a member of the Virginia Workers' Compensation Commission.

Children Elections Labor
Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor
Maldonado
Last action
2026-04-02
Official status
Passed
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Checked against official source text during the last sync.

Elections for Judges and Commission Members

This law sets up elections for judges in different courts and members of two state commissions.

What This Bill Does

  • Sets election dates for Circuit Court judges with terms starting on specific days from April to July 2026.
  • Establishes election dates for General District Court judges with terms beginning between February 2026 and January 2027.
  • Outlines the election schedule for Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court judges, with terms ranging from April 2026 to January 2027.
  • Schedules an election for a new member of the State Corporation Commission starting February 1, 2026.
  • Plans an election for a Virginia Workers' Compensation Commission member beginning on February 1, 2026.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Judges and members of state commissions in Virginia
  • Voters who will participate in these elections

Terms To Know

Circuit Court judges
Judges who work in Circuit Courts, which handle serious criminal cases and civil disputes.
General District Court judges
Judges who deal with less severe crimes and minor civil cases.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The specific details of how the elections will be conducted are not provided.
  • It does not mention if there are any qualifications for candidates to run in these elections.

Bill History

  1. 2026-04-02 House

    Bill text as passed House and Senate (HJ74ER)

  2. 2026-01-21 Senate

    Rules suspended

  3. 2026-01-21 Senate

    Taken up for immediate consideration

  4. 2026-01-21 Senate

    Agreed to by Senate (39-Y 0-N 0-A)

  5. 2026-01-21 House

    Engrossed by House

  6. 2026-01-21 House

    Presented, ordered printed (HJ74)

  7. 2026-01-21 House

    Agreed to by House (97-Y 0-N 0-A)

  8. 2026-01-21 Senate

    Rules suspended (40-Y 0-N 0-A)

  9. 2026-01-21 House

    VOTE: Waive reading of report (97-Y 0-N 0-A)

Official Summary Text

Election of Circuit Court Judges, General District Court Judges, Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court Judges, a member of the State Corporation Commission, and a member of the Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
Election of Circuit Court Judges, General District Court Judges, Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court Judges, a member of the State Corporation Commission, and a member of the Virginia Workers' Compensation Commission.
Agreed to by the House of Delegates, January 21, 2026
Agreed to by the Senate, January 21, 2026
RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly shall proceed today
To the election of Circuit Court judges for terms of eight years commencing as follows:
One judge for the First Judicial Circuit, term commencing July 1, 2026.
One judge for the Second Judicial Circuit, term commencing October 1, 2026.
One judge for the Second Judicial Circuit, term commencing February 1, 2026.
One judge for the Eighth Judicial Circuit, term commencing July 1, 2026.
One judge for the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, term commencing April 1, 2026.
One judge for the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, term commencing April 1, 2026.
One judge for the Sixteenth Judicial Circuit, term commencing July 1, 2026.
One judge for the Nineteenth Judicial Circuit, term commencing April 1, 2026.
One judge for the Nineteenth Judicial Circuit, term commencing July 1, 2026.
One judge for the Twenty-third Judicial Circuit, term commencing July 1, 2026.
One judge for the Twenty-fifth Judicial Circuit, term commencing February 1, 2026.
One judge for the Twenty-ninth Judicial Circuit, term commencing April 1, 2026.
One judge for the Twenty-ninth Judicial Circuit, term commencing July 1, 2026.
To the election of General District Court judges for terms of six years commencing as follows:
One judge for the Second Judicial District, term commencing February 1, 2026.
One judge for the Second Judicial District, term commencing December 1, 2026.
One judge for the Second Judicial District, term commencing April 1, 2026.
One judge for the Fourth Judicial District, term commencing December 1, 2026.
One judge for the Ninth Judicial District, term commencing December 1, 2026.
One judge for the Eleventh Judicial District, term commencing December 1, 2026.
One judge for the Twelfth Judicial District, term commencing December 1, 2026.
One judge for the Sixteenth Judicial District, term commencing May 1, 2026.
One judge for the Eighteenth Judicial District, term commencing May 1, 2026.
One judge for the Twentieth Judicial District, term commencing April 1, 2026.
One judge for the Twenty-fifth Judicial District, term commencing May 1, 2026.
One judge for the Twenty-sixth Judicial District, term commencing June 1, 2026.
One judge for the Twenty-ninth Judicial District, term commencing December 1, 2026.
One judge for the Thirtieth Judicial District, term commencing January 1, 2027.
One judge for the Thirtieth Judicial District, term commencing August 3, 2026.
One judge for the Thirty-first Judicial District, term commencing December 1, 2026.
One judge for the Thirty-first Judicial District, term commencing February 1, 2026.
To the election of Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court judges for terms of six years commencing as follows:
One judge for the Second Judicial District, term commencing April 16, 2026.
One judge for the Second Judicial District, term commencing December 1, 2026.
One judge for the Judicial District 2-A, term commencing April 16, 2026.
One judge for the Third Judicial District, term commencing May 1, 2026.
One judge for the Eleventh Judicial District, term commencing July 1, 2026.
One judge for the Twelfth Judicial District, term commencing January 1, 2027.
One judge for the Thirteenth Judicial District, term commencing May 1, 2026.
One judge for the Fifteenth Judicial District, term commencing May 16, 2026.
One judge for the Sixteenth Judicial District, term commencing December 1, 2026.
One judge for the Twenty-third Judicial District, term commencing January 1, 2027.
One judge for the Twenty-fifth Judicial District, term commencing December 1, 2026.
One judge for the Twenty-sixth Judicial District, term commencing December 1, 2026.
One judge for the Twenty-seventh Judicial District, term commencing December 1, 2026.
One judge for the Twenty-seventh Judicial District, term commencing December 1, 2026.
One judge for the Thirty-first Judicial District, term commencing June 1, 2026.
One judge for the Thirty-first Judicial District, term commencing July 1, 2026.
To the election of a member of the State Corporation Commission for a term of six years commencing February 1, 2026.
To the election of a member of the Virginia Workers' Compensation Commission for a term of six years commencing February 1, 2026.
And that in the execution of the joint order nominations shall be made in the order herein named, and that each house shall be notified of said nominations, and when the rolls shall be called for the whole number, the presiding officers of each house shall appoint a committee of three, which together shall constitute the joint committee to count the vote of each house in each case and report the results to their respective houses. The joint order may be suspended by the presiding officer of either house at any time but for no longer than twenty-four hours to receive the report of the joint committee.
That the term of Kelsey A. Bagot, Esquire, elected as a member of the State Corporation Commission pursuant to HJR 99 and HR 42 and SR 20 at the 2024 Regular Session of the General Assembly, shall be a term of six years in accordance with Article IX, Section 1 of the Constitution of Virginia, to end on January 31, 2030.