This just in from Max Smith over at WTOP, it appears as if the US Fourth Circuit Court has thrown back a last-minute desperation play to deny citizens of HOD-28 representation in the House of Delegates this afternoon:
A federal appeals court denied Fredericksburg-area voters’ request to block Republican Bob Thomas from being seated in the House of Delegates, just hours before the General Assembly session began.
A Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals panel in Richmond denied the motion seeking to keep Thomas from being seated due to dozens of people who voted in the wrong races in the Fredericksburg area. Thomas beat Democrat Joshua Cole by 73 votes.
No word yet on whether Shelly Simmons will ask for a recount in the tiebreaker over HOD-94 with Delegate David Yancey, the smart money being that Democrats know they were at tad too aggressive in throwing out ballots and do not want the embarrassment of a recount.
The vote for the new Speaker of the House of Delegates beings at 12:00pm this afternoon at the Virginia State Capitol in Richmond.