# Virginia SB202: Elections; filling vacancies in county and city governing bodies.

Virginia SB202, Elections; filling vacancies in county and city governing bodies., is a 2026 Regular Session Senate bill sponsored by David R. Suetterlein (Republican); status in committee, last action 2026-02-04 (Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB202)) (as of 2026-10-11).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-SB202-2026
- As of: 2026-10-11
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Virginia SB202
- State: Virginia
- Session: 2026 Regular Session
- Title: Elections; filling vacancies in county and city governing bodies.
- Status: in committee
- Chamber: Senate
- Introduced: 2026-01-09
- Last action: 2026-02-04, Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB202)
- Sponsor: David R. Suetterlein (Republican)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Subjects: Privileges and Elections
- Touches household money: no
- Roll calls: 1 (8 yes, 6 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 0

## Summary

Elections; filling vacancies in county and city governing bodies. Removes the ability to fill a vacancy in a county or city governing body by an interim appointment and requires that a special election be held to fill any such vacancy. The bill requires the local governing body to petition the court for a writ of special election within one day of the occurrence of the vacancy and for the court to promptly issue the writ for a special election no more than 45 days from the date the writ is issued, with extensions for special election dates that would conflict with primary and general elections.

## Bill overview

No economic impacts identified for this bill.

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: David R. Suetterlein (Republican), Senate

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-01-27 | Senate | Continued to 2027 in Privileges and Elections | pass | 8 | 6 |   |

## Actions (4)

- 2026-02-04: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB202) (Senate)
- 2026-01-27: Continued to 2027 in Privileges and Elections (8-Y 6-N) (Senate)
- 2026-01-09: Referred to Committee on Privileges and Elections (Senate)
- 2026-01-09: Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26100501D (Senate)

## Bill text

- Introduced, 2026-01-09: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1083720.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1083719.PDF)

## Related bills

- HB5: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties. (signed)
- SB199: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties. (signed)
- HB95: Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; landlord remedies, noncompliance with rental agreement. (signed)
- HB1393: Electric utilities; pilot program for energy assistance and weatherization for certain individuals. (signed)
- HB834: Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; fire or casualty damage, termination by landlord. (signed)
- HB675: Protection of employees; coercion or threat based on immigration status, civil penalty. (signed)

## Sources
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1083720.HTML)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1083719.PDF)

## Related
- [HB5: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB5-2026)
- [SB199: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-SB199-2026)
- [HB95: Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; landlord remedies, noncompliance with…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB95-2026)
- [HB1393: Electric utilities; pilot program for energy assistance and weatherization for…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB1393-2026)
- [HB834: Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; fire or casualty damage, terminat…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB834-2026)
- [HB675: Protection of employees; coercion or threat based on immigration status, civil…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB675-2026)
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Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-SB202-2026 (as of 2026-10-11).