22 Facts About Virginia State Senate

1. Virginia State Senate would have the highest slave population in the country.

2. Virginia State Senate struggled until colonists began cultivating tobacco—the growth of cash crops around the Chesapeake Bay would define much of America's history, creating economic divides between the North and South and prompting the introduction of African labor to the colonies in 1619.

3. Virginia State Senate has had a major impact on the course of US history.

4. Virginia State Senate has an online portal that provides both easy access to Virginia's open data and keeps Virginians informed of major Commonwealth initiatives that utilize big data.

5. Virginia State Senate values transparency and provides online tools for you to keep up with what the state government is doing and spending.

6. Up until the 1970s, Virginia State Senate was a racially divided one-party state dominated by the Byrd Organization.

7. Virginia State Senate has Amtrak passenger rail service along several corridors, and Virginia Railway Express maintains two commuter lines into Washington, DC from Fredericksburg and Manassas.

8. Virginia State Senate has a mixed health record, and is ranked as the 26th overall healthiest state according to the 2013 United Health Foundation's Health Rankings.

9. Virginia State Senate has launched many award-winning traditional musical artists and internationally successful popular music acts, as well as Hollywood actors.

10. Virginia State Senate has the highest average and peak Internet speeds in the United States, with the third-highest worldwide.

11. Virginia State Senate has the highest defense spending of any state per capita, providing the Commonwealth with around 900,000 jobs.

12. Virginia State Senate does not have any further political subdivisions, such as villages or townships.

13. Virginia State Senate is divided into 95 counties and 38 independent cities, the latter acting in many ways as county-equivalents.

14. Virginia State Senate was a focal point in conflicts from the French and Indian War, the American Revolution and the Civil War, to the Cold War and the War on Terrorism.

15. Virginia State Senate has 30 National Park Service units, such as Great Falls Park and the Appalachian Trail, and one national park, the Shenandoah National Park.

16. Climate of Virginia State Senate is humid subtropical and becomes increasingly warmer and more humid farther south and east.

17. Virginia State Senate was one of the 13 Colonies in the American Revolution.

18. Virginia State Senate received its local census data on February 3, 2011.

19. Virginia State Senate's arms have a shield in the center which is divided into four sections by a red cross.

20. The Virginia State Senate is equal with the House of Delegates, the lower chamber of the legislature, except that taxation bills must originate in the House, similar to the federal US Congress.

21. The Virginia State Senate is presided over by the Lieutenant Governor of Virginia.

22. The Virginia State Senate is composed of 40 Senators representing an equal number of single-member constituent districts.