Virginia Beach NAACP urges people to support the 10-1 voting system

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – The Virginia Beach NAACP held a town hall meeting Monday evening to inform the community about the city’s 10-1 voting system.

During the meeting, organizers answered questions the community may have about the election system and encouraged people to speak at Tuesday night’s city council meeting, where a vote on the system is expected to take place.

Under the 10-1 system, voters in Virginia Beach can only vote for the mayor and city council member who represents their district. The city is divided into 10 districts.

A 2023 University of Virginia survey found that residents overwhelmingly preferred the 10-1 system.

In May 2023, the City Council formally adopted the 10-1 voting system, which was in place during the last two elections. Previously, voters could vote for all eleven council members – including the mayor.

Virginia Beach’s current city charter follows the 7-3-1 election system, which states that there are seven single-member districts and three at-large districts.

The resolution to be voted on at the upcoming City Council meeting asks the General Assembly to amend the city charter next year. This would allow the city to implement the 10-1 voting system permanently.

The city council They went through a similar process last year, but their efforts ended when Governor Youngkin vetoed the charter change.

Members of the Virginia Beach NAACP believe the new system is better representation for city residents.

“Again, I want to make sure we’re there tomorrow,” said Gary McCollum, a proponent of the 10-1 system. “We are not going back to an old system where people with monetary interest, especially on the beach, controlled everything in the city of Virginia Beach.”

A public hearing was held on the resolution last month, with some people opposed to the new system arguing that it currently violates the city charter.

Another public hearing will take place during Tuesday evening’s meeting, starting at 6 p.m