Michael is an award-winning journalist who started covering Virginia news in 2013 with reporting stints at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Virginia Business, and Richmond BizSense. A graduate of William & Mary and Northern Virginia Community College, he also covered financial news for S&P Global Market Intelligence.
Michael O’Connor
Latest from Michael O’Connor
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Far-right Republican Lt. Governor enters Virginia’s 2025 governor’s race
News broke Thursday morning that Virginia Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears had filed paperwork to become the first Republican to enter the governor’s race. Republican Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears is officially running for governor, according to a WRIC report. Earle-Sears is the second candidate to enter the governor’s race and the only Republican to do so…
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Project 2025 threatens thousands of Virginia workers
The conservative policy playbook tied to Donald Trump would threaten the livelihoods of thousands of Virginia’s federal workers and hurt the state economy.
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Gwen Walz talks importance of education in Virginia in first presidential campaign event
The First Lady of Minnesota, Glen Walz, rallied a room full of educators and school personnel with Midwestern charm and chants of, “We’re not going back!”
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Clashing views of immigration in Virginia’s US Senate race
Republican challenger Hung Cao traffics in conspiracy theories, while Democratic incumbent Sen. Tim Kaine has been working to fix America’s broken immigration system.
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Coastal Virginia congressional candidates present stark contrast on abortion rights
Republican US Rep. Jen Kiggans has pushed to restrict access to abortion care, while her Democratic challenger Missy Cotter Smasal wants to defend reproductive freedom.
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Ignore the disinformation. Virginia’s elections are secure.
Voter fraud is extremely rare, especially in Virginia where election officials have a high level of professionalism.
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New Virginia law prevents law enforcement from accessing period tracker data
The new law went into effect July 1 in an important victory in the ongoing battle to defend reproductive rights in Virginia and across the country.
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Everything you need to know about Virginia’s US Senate race
Virginia voters this fall will choose between a Democratic incumbent with a strong record on reproductive freedom and economic justice and a hard-right Republican focused on the US-Mexico border.
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Virginia Democrats celebrate Kamala Harris’ VP pick, Tim Walz
Minnesota Gov. Walz is being lauded as a champion for working people and defender of reproductive rights with the right amount of Midwestern dad vibes to help Democrats take back the White House.
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Meet the candidates running to represent Hampton Roads in Congress
The congressional race to represent Virginia’s 2nd District is one of the most hotly contested in the country and will help determine which party controls the US House of Representatives.
