The VPM Daily Newscast contains all your Central Virginia news in just 5 to 10 minutes. Episodes are recorded the night before.
Listeners can subscribe through NPR One, Apple Podcasts, Megaphone, Spotify and wherever you get your podcasts.
Here’s a recap of the top stories on the morning of Nov 4, 2024:
Trump, Virginia GOP hold final rally before Election Day
Reported by VPM News’ Jahd Khalil
Virginia elected officials and other Republican candidates spoke before the former president in Salem on Saturday, depicting immigrants entering the country illegally in a negative light, saying Vice President Kamala Harris had ruined the economy, and frequently invoking Christianity and Jesus Christ.
All said Trump was the person to save the United States from “evil.”
Trump claimed he could win Virginia — though polling suggests otherwise. One poll, released by nearby Roanoke College on Nov. 1, had Harris 10 percentage points ahead of Trump, 51% to 41%. The former president lost Virginia to President Joe Biden in 2020 by a similar margin, 54% to 44%. Ahead of this year’s election, the commonwealth was not widely identified as one of the key “swing” or “battleground” states.
The Republican presidential nominee also claimed he would win California, which has not had a GOP presidential candidate carry the state since George H.W. Bush in 1988, if there was “an honest election.”
Who is responsible for vetting local campaign finance reports?
Reported by VPM News’ Sean McGoey
Amid questions surrounding the fundraising numbers, legal credentials and campaign finance reports of Richmond City Council candidate Tavares Floyd, Virginia election law is getting a lot of attention.
A crucial question being asked: Who’s responsible for ensuring that candidates’ financial disclosures are accurate?
Richmond’s top elections official, the city’s lead prosecutor and the state elections department are all certain of one thing: It’s not them.
The lack of clarity about whether any official or agency has the power to verify local-level campaign filings seemingly places the burden on the public to vet the information itself, by obtaining copies of candidates’ documents via FOIA request and conducting its own research.
Stoney says City Hall services not ‘top 3 issue’ for Richmond residents
Reported by VPM News’ Keyris Manzanares
With a little more than 60 days left in office, Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney said the city is on the right track, despite mayoral candidates calling for an overhaul of City Hall.
In a press conference last week, Stoney highlighted improvements made based on a performance review he commissioned during his first 100 days in office in 2017 — and said residents are no longer calling for dramatic changes within City Hall.
“City Hall and [its] services are not the top three issues in the city of Richmond right now,” Stoney said. “It’s affordable living, affordable housing, public education and public safety.”
Previously, he said, “people truly did ring the bell on services because their roads weren't getting paved, the grass wasn't getting cut, those basic core services were not happening.”
In other news:
- Hanover Public Schools leads state in banned books, report shows (Richmond Times-Dispatch)*
- Virginia lawmakers consider K-12 plan to meet student needs, cost share among state and localities (Virginia Mercury)
In case you missed it:
- ‘We’ll still be neighbors’: Virginia Beach yard sign aims to counter political divisiveness (The Virginian-Pilot)*
- Richmond's history gives it plenty of haunted legends (The Richmonder)
*This outlet utilizes a paywall.
