Levar Stoney

Early and personal life

Stoney was born in Roosevelt, New York on Long Island. When he was seven years old, he moved with his younger brother to Virginia's Hampton Roads area. His parents never married; Stoney and his siblings were raised by their father (who supported the family via various low-wage jobs, and eventually became a high school janitor) and grandmother (a retired domestic worker).

At Tabb High School in Tabb, Virginia, Stoney became quarterback on the school's football team, and also president of the student body (as he had in elementary and middle school). Stoney graduated from James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia, in 2004. He was the first African-American male elected president of the student government, and involved with the school's chapter of the College Democrats.

In 2016, Stoney divorced his wife of four years. He became engaged to Brandy Washington, a manager for Altria on February 22, 2022. They married almost exactly a year later, on February 23, 2023. Their daughter Sunday Washington Stoney was born in March 2024.

Career

In the summer of 2004, Stoney served as a Governor's Fellow in Mark Warner's administration. Stoney then worked as an organizer in John Kerry's 2004 presidential campaign as well as for the Democratic National Committee and the Democratic Party of Wisconsin in a get out the vote effort. Five colleagues were charged with vandalizing a van intended for transporting Republican voters. He initially denied knowledge of the incident but later acknowledged to the FBI that he was in the office when his colleagues bragged about the act. He went on to fully cooperate with law enforcement and testified against those involved. Following questioning by Virginia Republican lawmakers during a 2014 confirmation hearing, it was accepted as "an isolated, youthful mistake."

During the 2005 Virginia Attorney General election Stoney worked for Creigh Deeds, who narrowly lost. Stoney then worked for the Democratic Party of Virginia from 2006 to 2009, first as political director and then executive director. In this role, he worked extensively with President Barack Obama's successful 2008 presidential campaign.

In 2011, after his father died, Stoney began working as a consultant at Green Tech, an automotive company run by Terry McAuliffe (who had lost to Deeds in the 2009 Democratic gubernatorial primary). The following year Stoney began working with McAuliffe's 2013 gubernatorial campaign, as deputy campaign manager, under campaign manager Robby Mook. When McAuliffe won, Stoney became deputy director of the gubernatorial transition team, during which McAuliffe described Stoney as his "closest adviser."

Secretary of the Commonwealth

McAuliffe appointed Stoney as Secretary of the Commonwealth of Virginia on November 18, 2013. Following confirmation by the Virginia General Assembly, he took office on January 17, 2014.

As Secretary of the Commonwealth, Stoney championed efforts for the restoration of voting rights for felons who have completed their sentences, an effort begun under Governor Bob McDonnell and accelerated under Governor McAuliffe. Stoney said that "once you have served your time and paid your due, we still should not be punishing you years afterwards. Instead, we should find ways to give that individual an opportunity to better themselves and to contribute to society."

Mayor of Richmond

Elections and transition

On April 21, 2016, Stoney announced that he would run for Mayor of Richmond in the 2016 election. He announced his candidacy after resigning as Secretary of the Commonwealth. The incumbent, Dwight Clinton Jones, was ineligible to run for reelection due to Richmond's two-term limit.

Stoney won the election over Jack Berry, 36% to 34%, with Joe Morrissey in third place. Shortly after the election, Mayor-elect Stoney named Tiffany Jana and Bill Leighty as co-chairs of his transition team, with University of Richmond professor Thad Williamson named as director.

Stoney was sworn into office on December 31, 2016. At 35 years of age, he became Richmond's youngest elected mayor. He was the third strong mayor in the city's history.

Stoney was reelected in 2020 winning the most votes in six of Richmond's nine districts allowing him to avoid a runoff.

Tenure

Upon taking office as mayor, Stoney commissioned a top-to-bottom performance audit of all city departments, conducted by the Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at VCU, to be completed within 100 days of taking office with the aim of improving efficiency and address dissatisfaction with Richmond's government to create a more efficient administration.

In March 2019, Mayor Stoney proposed adding a 50-cent tax per pack of cigarettes, representing Richmond's first cigarette tax. The City Council approved the 2020 budget, which included a $17 million increase for Richmond Public Schools and over $15 million for street paving, and was not able to find a majority consensus on eliminating or decreasing Stoney's proposed cigarette tax, allowing it to pass with the budget with projections it would generate over $3 million annually.

On September 3, 2020, Stoney presented the keys to three new schools—Cardinal Elementary, Henry Marsh Elementary, and River City Middle—to their principals after construction that was financed thanks to funding from a 1.5% increase in the meals tax he had proposed. The new schools were described as much needed addition to Richmond Public Schools and featured specialized facilities such as science labs, art and music classrooms, and "calm down" rooms, contributing to enhanced learning environments for Richmond students.

In another effort to support the Richmond Public School System, Stoney passed the "Pathways Program" which pays for any Richmond Public School student's tuition at J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College beginning fall 2023. Additionally, the Stoney administration was able to increase local contributions to the public school system by 46.1% since the 2017 fiscal year while also investing in the Positive Youth Development & Youth Violence Prevention Fund for 12–19 year olds in the area.

The fiscal year 2025 budget brought total local contributions to Richmond Public Schools to $239.3 million, an increase of 58%.

Stoney made expanding out-of-school programming to reach every elementary and middle school student a priority during his campaign and maintained the commitment in office. In 2018, Stoney announced the expansion of Richmond Public Schools to allow all 33 Richmond Public Schools (RPS) elementary and middle schools to provide every students with transportation to and from the programs. The expansion was funded by local nonprofits and the private sector. By 2020, after-school programming was available at all Richmond elementary and middle schools at least twice a week focused on arts, science, athletics and more provided by the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Richmond as part of a partnership with a local nonprofit, NextUp RVA, with transportation provided by RPS.

Removal of Richmond's Confederate statues

In 2017, Stoney established the Monument Avenue Commission to assess the future of Richmond's Confederate statues. The commission was initially focusing on adding historical context rather than removal with Stoney describing the monuments as an endorsement of injustices perpetrated by the Confederacy. Initially, Stoney preferred adding historical context and authentic background information to Confederate statues arguing removal of the historical artifacts does not do anything to recognize the history and actions behind them. However, following the violent 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Stoney urged the commission to consider the removal or relocation of the statues.

In June 2020, nationwide riots including in Richmond at the Robert E. Lee Statue on Monument Avenue were sparked by the murder of George Floyd. Police responded by tear gassing the crowd. The next day, over a thousand rioters gathered outside of City Hall. In response, Stoney met the crowd outside City Hall, apologized for the attack, and recognized that the police's actions were inexcusable. Following public pressure, Richmond Police released an apology from the chief of police announcing that the officers involved were pulled from the field. Stoney responded by showing up to another riot, apologizing to the crowd for violating their rights.

On July 1, 2020, the day a new state law granting Richmond control over its Confederate monuments took effect, Stoney used his emergency powers to order the immediate removal of the statues. He took the step arguing that there was an "urgent need to protect the public" describing the removal of 11 Confederate monuments as necessary to public safety after frequent riots around the monuments and attempts by rioters to take the monuments down themselves. He also asserted that "immediate removal will expedite the healing process for the city. Stoney highlighted the need to move beyond the symbolic weight of Confederate monuments and actively address racial injustices ingrained in the city's history. His decision faced opposition from the city council and interim city attorney.

In December 2022, Richmond removed its last remaining Confederate monument following a lengthy court battle. The monument, to General A. P. Hill, were planned to be transferred to the Black History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia while Hill's remains (which were beneath his monument) would be moved to a cemetery. Stoney's actions to remove the monuments were described as showing an "unprecedented commitment to racial justice" and were the subject of an essay he published in the New York Times in summer 2021 describing the events leading to his decision to take down the Confederate statues.

Participation in national organizations

In 2019, Stoney was appointed chair of the U.S. Conference of Mayors' Children, Health, and Human Services Standing Committee. The appointment was based on his leadership and collaboration in providing resources and programs for children and families in Richmond.

In January 2022, Stoney was elected as President of the Democratic Mayors Alliance, a national Democratic Party coalition dedicated to electing Democratic mayors. Stoney thus serves as a member of the Democratic National Committee. Stoney was previously on the board of the organization, and filled the vacancy left by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, whom President Joe Biden has nominated to serve as Ambassador to India.

Statewide politics

2025 election

In December 2023, Stoney announced that he would run for governor of Virginia in the 2025 election. His campaign was endorsed by former Governor and 2021 gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe. Polling in January 2024 found that fellow Democratic candidate Abigail Spanberger led the primary with 52%, with 8% in support of Stoney.

Stoney suspended his campaign for governor in April 2024 and announced that he would run for lieutenant governor of Virginia instead. In July 2025, Stoney narrowly lost the Democratic primary to Richmond-area state senator Ghazala Hashmi.

Stoney decisively lost Democratic primary voters in the Richmond metro area to Hashmi; in the city proper, Hashmi defeated him by 10,500 votes, larger than her statewide victory margin of 3,500. In interviews, some Richmond voters specifically cited as reasons not to vote for him the city's 2025 water crisis, Stoney's support for a 2023 casino referendum, and his support for a failed redevelopment deal in downtown Richmond. Support in the city was highest among low-income black neighborhoods that had supported the casino referendum. However, in some parts of the city, especially the West End, Stoney received very low vote counts, finishing very low in the rankings and receiving very few total votes in some precincts. Political analyst Bob Holsworth said that city voters had an almost "visceral" reaction against Stoney. However, Stoney did perform well in Northern Virginia and majority-black Southside Virginia, and still did relatively well in the city, with Delegate Mike Jones citing certain successes, such as the construction of schools and community centers and the city's receipt of a AAA bond rating.

Electoral history