HJ 315 Virginia House of Delegates · 2026 Regular Session

Election of Circuit Court Judges, General District Court Judges, and Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court Judges.

This bill proposes changing how judges for Circuit Court, General District Court, and Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court are selected in Virginia. It would shift the current appointment process to an election system where voters directly choose these judges in their respective districts. The legislation outlines the specific courts and positions that would be subject to public voting rather than gubernatorial appointment. This change would affect the judicial selection process and potentially alter how judges are held accountable to the electorate. The bill has been approved by both the House and Senate with no opposition votes.
Bill status passed 4 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Mar 2026
Committee Review
House of Delegates Passage
Apr 2026
Senate Passage
Mar 2026
Governor
Introduced Mar 13, 2026 Last action Apr 16, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Introduced Enrolled · 4 edits
MODERATE
The bill transitioned from a draft introduction to its final enrolled version, adding official signatures, dates, and formatting marks to signify it has been agreed to by both the House of Delegates and the Senate. The substantive policy content regarding the election of judges, including specific judicial districts, terms of office, and start dates, remains unchanged.
TECHNICAL

Added official status headers, signatures, and dates indicating the bill was agreed to by both legislative chambers.

Inserted bill identifier (HJ315ER) and formatting markers typical of enrolled legislation.

Removed draft-specific headers such as 'Introduced' and 'Legislation not prepared by DLS'.

Adjusted line breaks and spacing to conform to the official enrolled document format.

Floor votes · Senate Mar 13, 2026 · House of Delegates Mar 13, 2026

How they voted

380
Passed · 1 other
Total votes 39
Mar 13, 2026
D Democratic20
20 Yea
100% Yea
R Republican19
18 Yea 1
94% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
8
Key actions
2
Committee
0
Apr 16, 2026
Lower · Passed
Bill text as passed House and Senate (HJ315ER)
lower
Mar 13, 2026
Introduced
Presented, ordered printed (HJ315)
lower
Mar 13, 2026
Senate · Passed
Senate Vote: pass (38-0-1)
senate
1 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors

Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Photo of Michelle Maldonado
Michelle Maldonado
DDemocratic
VA
20