NORFOLK, Va. — Author's note: the video above is on file from Sept. 16, 2021.
Sept. 28 is National Voter Registration Day, and with the Virginia gubernatorial election around the corner, it's the perfect time to make sure you're signed up to vote.
This nonpartisan day reminds people to register to vote and was first marked in 2012.
There's still plenty of time to sign up if you haven't -- the deadline to register to vote in the Nov. 2 election is Oct. 12.
The upcoming election will have Virginians choose between Republican candidate Glenn Youngkin or Democratic candidate Terry McAuliffe for governor. Whoever wins will serve for four years, and isn't eligible to run for consecutive terms. You can read about their last debate here.
There are also lots of local races where people can choose representatives to serve in city and county governments.
Not every resident of a city or county is eligible to vote in every local race; that depends on whether or not you live in the area that a representative will be serving. However, these are some of the local races coming up in the November election:
- Chesapeake: commissioner of revenue, commonwealth's attorney, sheriff, treasurer
- Franklin: commissioner of revenue, treasurer
- Gloucester County: clerk of court, board of supervisors member, school board member
- Hampton: commissioner of revenue, commonwealth's attorney, sheriff, treasurer
- Isle of Wight: board of supervisors member, school board member
- James City County: board of supervisors member, school board member
- Mathews County: board of supervisors member, school board member
- Newport News: commissioner of revenue, commonwealth's attorney, sheriff, treasurer
- Norfolk: commissioner of revenue, commonwealth's attorney, sheriff, treasurer
- Poquoson: commissioner of revenue, city council member, treasurer
- Portsmouth: commissioner of revenue, commonwealth's attorney, city council member, school board member, sheriff, treasurer
- Suffolk: commissioner of revenue, commonwealth's attorney, sheriff, treasurer, school board member
- Surry: board of supervisors member
- Virginia Beach: commissioner of revenue, commonwealth's attorney, sheriff, treasurer
- Williamsburg: commissioner of revenue
- York County: board of supervisors member
There are also two referenda coming to local areas in this election:
- Mathews County: "Shall the Mathews County Board of Supervisors relocate the Soldier's & Sailor's Monument located at the comer of Court and Church Streets on the Historic Court Green?"
- Virginia Beach: "Shall the City of Virginia Beach issue general obligation bonds in the maximum amount of $567,500,000 pursuant to the City Charter and the Public Finance Act to fund the design and construction of flood mitigation measures as part of a comprehensive flood protection program?" (The official wording includes many locations this would apply to.)
You can register to vote in person at your local voter registrar's office, print out a registration form and mail it in or sign up online. If you're not sure whether or not you're registered, that's also something you can check online.