Markus Schmidt

@MSchmidtRVA

Sr. politics reporter | deputy editor at @MercuryVirginia Previously: @CardinalNewsVA, @RTDNews, @bild Email: [email protected]

Richmond, VA

Joined January 2013

954Following

3KFollowers

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Markus Schmidt@MSchmidtRVA · Jun 24

NEW: Starting July 1, Virginia will cut voter list prices by 90% — dropping statewide data from $6,000 to $600. The goal is to level the playing field for campaigns & boost election transparency ahead of Nov 4. virginiamercury.com/2025/06/24/vir…

MSchmidtRVA's tweet card. In a sweeping move aimed at promoting transparency and leveling the playing field in election access, the Virginia Department of Elections announced Monday that it will reduce the cost of purchasing...

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Markus Schmidt@MSchmidtRVA · Jul 23

NEW: AG Miyares says 2,500 immigrants arrested by Va. task force may have violated immigration law — but offers no evidence they were violent criminals, as Youngkin claimed virginiamercury.com/2025/07/23/miy…

MSchmidtRVA's tweet card. Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares on Wednesday declined to provide evidence to support Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s recent claim that more than 2,500 people arrested through the Virginia Homeland...

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Jennifer Shutt@JenniferShutt · Jul 18

US House votes to yank funding for NPR, PBS, foreign aid, sending bill to Trump’s desk newsfromthestates.com/article/us-hou…

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Brandon Jarvis@Jaaavis · Jul 16

Rep. Jennifer McClellan, D-VA04, is seeking answers from federal immigration officials after agents detained mostly nonviolent individuals at the Chesterfield County Courthouse last month. virginiascope.com/mcclellan-want…

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Markus Schmidt@MSchmidtRVA · Jul 16

📊 New VCU poll: Democrat Abigail Spanberger leads GOP Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears 49–37 in Va. governor’s race. Voters cite cost of living, reproductive rights & immigration as top concerns. Youngkin approval dips; Trump remains unpopular. #VAGov virginiamercury.com/2025/07/16/spa…

MSchmidtRVA's tweet card. With fewer than four months to go before Virginians elect a new slate of statewide leaders, a new poll from Virginia Commonwealth University’s L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public...

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Markus Schmidt@MSchmidtRVA · Jul 16

NEW: Students, faculty & lawmakers are pushing back after the Trump administration launched a civil rights probe into GMU, accusing it of race-based hiring. Critics call it a political attack on one of the nation’s most diverse public universities. virginiamercury.com/2025/07/16/stu…

MSchmidtRVA's tweet card. When student Hanaan Kazia first heard about the federal civil rights probe into George Mason University, she wasn’t surprised. But the junior political science major and member of the school’s...

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Markus Schmidt@MSchmidtRVA · Jul 11

NEW: After hitting his 25% red tape reduction goal early, Youngkin is turning to AI to push further. Virginia is launching the nation’s first generative AI pilot to streamline state regulations — scanning rules for contradictions, bloat & complexity. virginiamercury.com/2025/07/11/you…

MSchmidtRVA's tweet card. Days after declaring victory in his administration’s push to cut regulatory red tape by 25%, Gov. Glenn Youngkin is now looking to artificial intelligence to help push that number even higher.In an...

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Markus Schmidt@MSchmidtRVA · Jul 9

NEW: Virginia’s new cannabis commission had its first joint session today. 🌿💨 They’re rolling out a plan to revive legal weed retail by 2026 — if the next governor doesn’t snuff it out. #VALeg virginiamercury.com/2025/07/09/joi…

MSchmidtRVA's tweet card. The newly formed joint commission tasked with overseeing Virginia’s transition to a legal retail cannabis market held its inaugural meeting in Richmond Wednesday, launching what lawmakers described...

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Markus Schmidt@MSchmidtRVA · Jul 8

With six months left in office, Gov. Youngkin says Virginia has already cut 25% of state regulatory requirements — slashing 89k rules and saving Virginians $1.2B a year. “We’re going for 35,” he said Tuesday at a sweltering Richmond warehouse. #VAGov virginiamercury.com/2025/07/08/you…

MSchmidtRVA's tweet card. Sweat beaded on foreheads inside the sweltering warehouse of 84 Lumber on Richmond’s Southside Tuesday, but Gov. Glenn Youngkin appeared unfazed by the heat as he declared victory on one of his...

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BK@BradKutner · Jul 7

NEW from me: #valeg closed 4 prisons last summer. Should they be turned into @ICEgov detention centers? @GlennYoungkin says take the 💰, get them to work. @WachsmannHD75 wants to hear from locals @lashrecseaird was ‘deeply troubled’ by the idea. wvtf.org/news/2025-07-0…

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Markus Schmidt@MSchmidtRVA · Jul 2

NEW: Gov. Youngkin doubles down on ICE courthouse raids in Virginia, saying undocumented immigrants “should be arrested” — even after traffic court sweeps detained people with no criminal record. “It’s common sense,” he tells me. virginiamercury.com/2025/07/02/the…

MSchmidtRVA's tweet card. Gov. Glenn Youngkin on Wednesday doubled down on the controversial use of courthouse arrests by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers, brushing off criticism that some of the individuals...

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Anna Bryson@AnnaBryson18 · Jul 2

Former Virginia Superintendent of Public Instruction Lisa Coons, who resigned in March, is receiving more than $100,000 in severance payments from the state. Her predecessor also received a severance package from the state after resigning in 2023. richmond.com/news/state-reg…

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Markus Schmidt@MSchmidtRVA · Jun 30

NEW: Sen. Tim Kaine has filed amendments to blunt what he calls the GOP’s “Hurt People, Kill Jobs, and Spike the Debt to Reward the Rich Act.” He aims to protect Medicaid, SNAP, clean energy, and VA projects like Richmond’s water plant. virginiamercury.com/2025/06/30/kai…

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Markus Schmidt@MSchmidtRVA · Jun 27

NEW: ICE arrests at a Chesterfield courthouse during routine check-ins spark outrage across Virginia. Advocates call it a desecration of “hallowed ground,” but Gov. Youngkin is defending the operation as lawful and necessary. virginiamercury.com/2025/06/27/hal…

MSchmidtRVA's tweet card. Jessica Schneider, a member of Chesterfield County’s Board of Supervisors, was about to address a growing crowd of people protesting area immigration raids outside the Chesterfield County Courthouse...

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Markus Schmidt@MSchmidtRVA · Jun 26

NEW: The Democratic Attorneys General Association just dropped $1 million into Jay Jones’ #VAAG campaign. The move is part of a coordinated national push to flip the Virginia attorney general’s office from Republican Jason Miyares. virginiamercury.com/2025/06/26/nat…

MSchmidtRVA's tweet card. The Democratic Attorneys General Association is putting big money behind Jay Jones, announcing Thursday a $1 million investment in his campaign to flip Virginia’s attorney general seat and restore...

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Markus Schmidt@MSchmidtRVA · Jun 13

In his reelection bid, AG Jason Miyares doubles down on a tough-on-crime, law‑and‑order message — backing Trump’s use of Marines in LA, touting sharp drops in violent crime and opioid deaths, and highlighting record settlements. My interview ⬇️ virginiamercury.com/2025/06/13/miy…

MSchmidtRVA's tweet card. As protests erupt again in Los Angeles over U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids and President Donald Trump’s deployment of U.S. Marines to back up the National Guard, Virginia Attorney...

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Markus Schmidt@MSchmidtRVA · Jun 11

NEW: Va. AG Jason Miyares breaks ranks with Trump over the pardon of ex‑Culpeper Sheriff Scott Jenkins , who was convicted in a “cash‑for‑badges” bribery scheme. “Given what I know, I would not have pardoned him,” Miyares tells me. virginiamercury.com/2025/06/11/miy…

MSchmidtRVA's tweet card. Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares is pushing back against President Donald Trump’s decision to pardon former Culpeper County Sheriff Scott Jenkins, saying the ex-lawman’s federal bribery...

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