Delegate Matt Fariss

Monday, August 8^th, marks the deadline to cancel voting rights of felons who had registered under Governor McAuliffe’s restoration of rights executive order, which was overturned a week ago by the Supreme Court of Virginia.

However, Governor McAuliffe has reviewed an initial list of 12,500 felons who had successfully registered to vote under his three blanket orders dated April 22, May 31 and June 24^th restoring their civil rights and has begun preparing to restore their rights on an individual basis.

Elections Commissioner Edgardo Cortés advised local registrars on Friday that the state has updated its list of prohibited voters to reflect the court’s decision, which reversed the governor’s orders restoring voting rights to an estimated 206,000 ex-offenders. The commissioner directed registrars to deny applications from voters with felony convictions whose rights had been restored by the governor’s three mass orders.

Any felon who believes they are eligible for rights restoration should contact the secretary of commonwealth’s office for help. The toll-free number is (855) 575-9177. Felons, like all Virginia voters, will need a state identification card to vote. They are available for free at registrar’s offices.

The Virginia Department of Health will get $560,000 from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to support its ongoing efforts to prevent Zika from spreading in the state. These funds will provide a needed support to prevent the spread of this disease.

The Department of Health’s website reports that 50 Virginians had been infected with the mosquito-borne virus as of last week. The cases in Virginia so far have been limited to those who have traveled outside the state and contracted the virus elsewhere.

For more information on the virus and Virginia’s plan, you can visit the Virginia Department of Health’s site at http://www.vdh.virginia.gov/zika/.

As of this week most of the schools in the 59^th District have opened their doors and began the 2016-2017 school year. During this time, I ask that you be aware of the school buses and heightened traffic in the mornings and afternoons around the district as our youth begin another great school year.

If you have any concerns, questions, comments or issues that I or my Aide, Jenna, can help you with, please contact us at (434) 821-5929 or email at [email protected]. You can also keep up with me on my Facebook page at www.facebook.com/DelegateMattFariss.