Dominion Energy’s political spending so far in 2026 has outstripped its political spending in other comparable years, according to analysis by Clean Virginia, a nonprofit that’s critical of Dominion.
Dominion’s political spending has exceeded $8 million in 2026, well above the $4.9 million in 2024, and $1.3 million in 2022, according to Clean Virginia’s analysis. Clean Virginia chose these years to compare because they were years when state lawmakers were not on the ballot.
Brennan Gilmore, Clean Virginia’s executive director, tied Dominion’s political donations in 2026 to its pursuit of a $67 billion merger deal with Florida-based NextEra Energy that’s under review by the State Corporation Commission.
“The timing is damning,” Gilmore said in a statement. “Dominion isn’t spending millions to win elections — it’s spending millions to build political support as its $67 billion deal with NextEra undergoes regulatory review and the next legislative session approaches.”
Dominion did not respond to a request for comment.
Clean Virginia has also begun a public awareness campaign aimed at drawing more attention to Dominion’s political contributions. Clean Virginia is sending text messages to voters about how much money their state legislators are getting from Dominion.
In addition to calling out how much money state lawmakers have received from Dominion, Clean Virginia will draw attention to legislators who do not accept Dominion money.
Some state lawmakers have welcomed Clean Virginia’s public awareness campaign. State Del. Jessica Anderson (D-Williamsburg) thanked Clean Virginia for sending out text messages letting people know she doesn’t take Dominion money.
Gilmore of Clean Virginia said in a statement to Dogwood that the goal of the campaign is “to make publicly available information about Dominion’s political spending more accessible to Virginians.”
“Dominion Energy is the largest corporate political donor in a state that is ranked as having some of the highest electric bills in the country,” Gilmore said. “With household costs on the rise and surging energy prices stretching budgets even thinner, Virginians deserve to know where their elected officials receive money from, and whose interests they represent.”
Virginia will hold elections In 2027 for all 40 seats of the Virginia Senate and all 100 seats of the Virginia House of Delegates. And with the 2026 midterms over, those 2027 campaigns are kicking off in earnest. Henrico County Democratic state Sen. Schuyler VanValkenburg officially launched his reelection campaign this week.
While Dominion has a track record of giving money to both political parties, Clean Virginia’s analysis found that the top recipients of Dominion’s political spending in 2026 are three members of the Democratic Party, which currently has majorities in both chambers of the General Assembly.
They are State Sen. Mamie Locke (D-Hampton), House of Delegates Speaker Don Scott of Portsmouth, and Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell of Fairfax County, according to Clean Virginia.
Locke, Scott, and Surovell did not respond to requests for comment.
