Virginia General Assembly

The Virginia State Capitol building, designed by Thomas Jefferson, recently underwent massive renovations.

The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Its existence dates from the establishment of the House of Burgesses at Jamestown in 1619. It became the General Assembly in 1776 with the ratification of the Virginia Constitution.

The General Assembly is a bicameral body consisting of a lower house, the Virginia House of Delegates, with 100 members, and an upper house, the Virginia Senate, with 40 members. The House of Delegates is presided over by a Speaker of the House, while the Senate of Virginia is presided over by the Lieutenant Governor of Virginia. The House and Senate each elect a clerk and sergeant-at-arms. Unlike the United States Senate, the Senate of Virginia's clerk is known as the "Clerk of the Senate", instead of the title "Secretary of the Senate" used in the U.S. Senate.

The General Assembly meets in Virginia's capital, Richmond. When sitting in Richmond, the General Assembly holds sessions in the Virginia State Capitol, designed by Thomas Jefferson in 1788 and expanded in 1904. The building was renovated in 2005-2006. Senators and Delegates have their offices in the General Assembly Building across the street directly north of the Capitol. The Governor of Virginia lives across the street directly east of the Capitol in the Virginia Governor's Mansion.

The Virginia General Assembly is the oldest legislative body in the Western Hemisphere. It previously met in Jamestown, Virginia from 1619 until 1699, when it moved to Williamsburg, Virginia and met in the colonial Capitol. The government was moved to Richmond in 1780 during the administration of Governor Thomas Jefferson, and the General Assembly has met there ever since.

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Virginia General Assembly

Colby Scherer In the United States of America, a state legislature is a generic term referring to the legislative body of any of the country's 50 states. The formal name varies from state to state.
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Commonwealth of Virginia

Flag of Virginia Seal
Nickname(s): Old Dominion, Mother of Presidents
Motto(s): Sic semper tyrannis

Official language(s) English

Capital Richmond
Largest city
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House of Burgesses, similar to the British Parliament, that would meet once annually.

Prompted by the Virginia Company, colonial governor Sir George Yeardley helped facilitate elections of representatives, called "burgesses", to this new legislative body that would come from
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This article may be too long.
Please discuss this issue on the talk page and help summarize or split the content into subarticles of an article series. Located on Jamestown Island in the Virginia Colony, was founded on May 14, 1607.
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16th century - 17th century - 18th century
1580s 1590s 1600s - 1610s - 1620s 1630s 1640s
1616 1617 1618 - 1619 - 1620 1621 1622

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Subjects: Archaeology - Architecture -
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8th century - 9th century - 10th century
850s 860s 870s - 880s - 890s 900s 910s
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Subjects: Archaeology - Architecture -
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Ratification is the act of giving official sanction to a formal document such as a treaty or constitution. It includes the process of adopting an international treaty by the legislature, a constitution, or another nationally binding document (such as an amendment to a constitution)
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Constitution of Virginia is the document that defines and limits the powers of the state government and the basic rights of the citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Like all other state constitutions, it is supreme over Virginia's laws and acts of government, though it may be
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bicameralism (bi + Latin camera, chamber) is the practice of having two legislative or parliamentary chambers. Thus, a bicameral parliament or bicameral legislature is a legislature which consists of two chambers or houses.
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lower house is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the upper house.

Despite its theoretical position "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide the lower house has come to wield more power.
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Virginia House of Delegates is the lower house of the Virginia General Assembly. It has 100 members elected for terms of two years; unlike most states, these elections take place during odd-numbered years.
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upper house is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the lower house.

Possible specific characteristics

An upper house is usually distinct from the lower house in at least one of the following respects:

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The Senate of Virginia is the upper house of the Virginia General Assembly. It is composed of 40 Senators and is presided over by the Lieutenant Governor of Virginia. Prior to Independence, the other part of government was represented by the Governor's Council, a upper house made
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Speaker of the House is the presiding officer in a parliamentary house in a number of countries:

Speaker of the British House of Commons
Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
Speaker of the Canadian House of Commons

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The Lieutenant Governor is a constitutional officer of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The Lieutenant Governor is elected every four years along with the Governor and Attorney General. The office is currently held by Republican William T. Bolling.
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A Serjeant at Arms (also spelled Sergeant at Arms, and sometimes Serjeant-at-Arms) is an officer appointed by a deliberative body, usually a legislature, to keep order during its meetings.
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United States Senate

Type Upper House

President of the Senate Richard B. Cheney, R
since January 20, 2001
President pro tempore Robert C. Byrd, D
since January 4, 2007

Members 100
Political groups Democratic Party
Republican Party
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United States Senate
Members
Current
(by seniority by age by class)
Former
Hill committees (DSCC, NRSC)

President pro tempore (list)
Dean Presiding officer

Party leaders and Assistants
Democratic Caucus
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capital (also called capital city or political capital — although the latter phrase has a second meaning based on an alternative sense of "capital") is the center of government.
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Richmond, Virginia

Flag
Seal
Nickname: River City, Cap City
Motto: Sic Itur Ad Astra (Thus do we reach the stars)
Location in the Commonwealth of Virginia
Coordinates:
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Location: Richmond, Virginia

Built/Founded: 1785
Architect: Thomas Jefferson; Charles-Louis Clérisseau
Architectural style(s): Early Republic, Other
Added to NRHP: October 15, 1966

NRHP Reference#: 66000911 ^[1]
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19th century - 20th century - 21st century
1870s 1880s 1890s - 1900s - 1910s 1920s 1930s
1901 1902 1903 - 1904 - 1905 1906 1907

Year 1904 (MCMIV
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Governor of Virginia serves as the chief executive of the Commonwealth of Virginia for a four-year term. The position is currently held by Democrat Tim Kaine.

Qualifications

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Executive Mansion, is located in Richmond, Virginia on Capitol Square and serves as the official residence of the Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Designed by Alexander Parris, it is the oldest occupied governor's mansion in the United States.
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See also

External links

Possible specific characteristics

Qualifications