2024 Voter Guide
Information on candidates running for mayor, school board and city council in Richmond, Virginia.
This year is an important election cycle in Richmond. Residents will elect a new mayor, City Council and School Board.
As Richmonder reporters meet with candidates in each of the races, and attend forums and debates, we will update this voter guide with information about the candidates, their backgrounds, and where they stand on the issues that matter most.
Richmond's geographic boundaries
The city is divided into nine districts, of roughly equal population. Each district will elect its own council and school board representative. If you are unsure which district you live in, you can use our locator map.
In the mayoral election, a candidate must receive a plurality of the vote (more votes than any other candidate) in five of the nine districts. If no candidate wins five districts, there will be a runoff election in mid-December.
How to Register
Oct. 15 is the deadline to register to vote if you’re not already registered. (Voters may register in-person after this date, using a provisional ballot). Check your registration status here.
Where to Vote
A new congressional district map went into effect in 2021, so your district may have changed since the last mayoral election. Here are some resources to help you find your district as well as your polling place.
Voting FAQ
Can I vote early in-person?
Yes. Early voting will take place beginning Sept. 20 at the Office of Elections, located at 2134 West Laburnum Avenue. Starting Oct. 7, City Hall and Hickory Hill Community Center are available for early voting each weekday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Mayoral Race
Incumbent Mayor Levar Stoney is serving his second term, meaning he is not allowed to seek reelection.
Five candidates have qualified for the ballot. Learn more about them here.
District Races
1st District
Three candidates are running for city council in the 1st District, while the school board seat is unopposed. See what the ballot will look like for 1st District residents, and learn more about the two races below.
2nd District
Katherine Jordan will win a second term as the city council representative unopposed, while the 2nd District has a competitive school board race between two candidates. See what the ballot will look like for 2nd District residents, and learn more about the two races below.
3rd District
In the 3rd District, both races are competitive, and both have three candidates running. Current school board representative Kenya Gibson is running for city council, creating a vacancy on the school board. See what the ballot will look like for 3rd District residents, and learn more about the two races here.
4th District
Sarah Abubaker will join city council as she is the only candidate running in the 4th District. For the school board, there are three candidates running for a seat that was recently vacated. See what the ballot will look like for 4th District residents, and learn more about the two races here.
5th District
Stephanie Lynch will hold the city council seat, as she has no challengers, while the previous two 5th District school board representatives will face off for the seat. See what the ballot will look like for 5th District residents, and learn more about the two races here.
6th District
Ellen Robertson, the longest serving member of city council, has two challengers this year, while school board member Dr. Shonda Harris-Muhammed will hold her seat. See what the ballot will look like for 6th District residents, and learn more about the two races here.
7th District
Both incumbents are running in the 7th District. Cheryl Burke will claim the school board seat unopposed, while Cynthia Newbille will be challenged by Eric Sundberg for the city council seat. See what the ballot will look like for 7th District residents, and learn more about the two races here.
8th District
Longtime councilmember Reva Trammell is running against Frank Henry Wilson Jr., while two candidates are seeking the school board seat - E.J. Jafari and P.H. Sherman. See what the ballot will look like for 8th District residents, and learn more about the two races here.
9th District
The promotion of Nicole Jones from school board to city council earlier this year changed the dynamics of the 9th District races. Shavonda Dixon will run for the school board seat unopposed, while Jones is challenged by Stephanie Starling. See what the ballot will look like for 9th District residents, and learn more about the two races here.
Go deeper...
Reporter Sarah Vogelsong was asked in a member Q&A how different school board candidates can be, given that they are generally all Democrats and pro-education. Her answer:
School boards broadly are unique in that almost everyone who runs for them agrees on the basic goal of ensuring that students in the public school system get a good education. To that extent, there's no difference between the candidates in this year's Richmond School Board races. Every candidate that I have talked to this year, and I've had long conversations with most of them, is passionate about that aim.
But even if most candidates would identify as Democrats — and here we should note that all School Board races in Virginia are officially nonpartisan — that doesn't mean there can't be important policy differences among them.
Whether the division should expand its use of 200-day school years and how the board should approach infrastructure challenges (should it prioritize maintaining and/or rebuilding neighborhood schools or should it consider closures and consolidations?) are two examples of issues that candidates may differ on that have little to do with broader partisan ideology.
Additionally, one of the key issues that keeps coming up in this year's School Board races is practical rather than policy-oriented. That's the issue of good governance.
A number of candidates say one of their top priorities is ensuring that the next School Board improves its governance procedures to rebalance the superintendent-board dynamic, shorten meetings, avoid last-minute agenda changes and generally minimize the kind of high-intensity fights that have gotten the body the label of "dysfunctional" over the past four years. Notably, a number of candidates say they're already seeing improvements in how the board operates.
