Virginia General Assembly
The
Virginia General Assembly is the
state legislature of the
Commonwealth of Virginia, a
U.S. state. 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 at the state
capital of
Richmond, Virginia. 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 state government was moved to Richmond in
1780 during the administration of
Governor Thomas Jefferson, and the General Assembly has met there ever since.
*
Virginia General Assembly
