To amend the Virginia Constitution, a proposal must pass the General Assembly, pass again in identical form after the next House of Delegates election, and then win a majority of voters at a statewide referendum. Article XII of the Constitution of Virginia lays out the rules, and they are deliberately demanding. Only the legislature can start the process; Virginia gives citizens no direct route to the ballot.
Step One: First Passage in the General Assembly
Any senator or delegate can introduce a proposed amendment under Article XII, Section 1.1Virginia Code Commission. Constitution of Virginia Article XII Section 1 – Amendments It needs a majority of all members elected to each chamber, not just a majority of those present and voting. Every legislator’s position is recorded by name in the chamber journals, creating a permanent public record of who backed or opposed the change.
Passing once does nothing on its own. The proposal then sits until the next general election for the House of Delegates. That intervening election is the point of the whole structure: voters get to reshape the legislature before the same text comes up for a second vote.
Step Two: Identical Second Passage After a House Election
Once the new House is seated, the General Assembly takes up the proposal again at its first regular session or any later special session of that legislature. The text must be identical. Both chambers again need a majority of all members elected to each house.1Virginia Code Commission. Constitution of Virginia Article XII Section 1 – Amendments Change a single word, and the proposal fails and has to restart from the beginning.
A failure in either chamber at either session also kills the proposal. There is no shortcut to revive it; a sponsor has to reintroduce the amendment and run the full cycle again.
Step Three: The Statewide Referendum
After clearing both legislatures, the amendment goes on the ballot. Virginia Code ยง 30-19 requires at least ninety days between the General Assembly’s final passage and the vote, giving voters time to study the question.2Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 30-19 – How Constitution Amended
Ratification takes a simple majority of those voting on the amendment itself.1Virginia Code Commission. Constitution of Virginia Article XII Section 1 – Amendments Ballots left blank on the question are not counted either way. The Governor has no role: no signature, no veto. The people’s vote is final.
Most amendment questions appear on November general-election ballots, where turnout is highest, but special elections are permitted. Virginia held one in April 2026 on a proposed amendment allowing the General Assembly to temporarily adopt new congressional district maps.3Virginia Department of Elections. Proposed Amendment for April 2026 Special Election
An approved amendment does not take effect automatically. It becomes part of the constitution on the date the General Assembly set when it sent the amendment to voters.1Virginia Code Commission. Constitution of Virginia Article XII Section 1 – Amendments Some take effect immediately; others are delayed so agencies can prepare.
What Voters See on the Ballot
The State Board of Elections must print and distribute explanations of each proposed amendment to every county and city registrar at least ninety days before the election, with copies available at registration sites and polling places.4Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 30-19.9 – Distribution of Information on Proposed Constitutional Amendments to Voters
How the question itself is worded can decide the outcome. In 2026 the General Assembly introduced the Virginia Ballot Question Fairness and Transparency Act (HB 1419), which would create a nine-member bipartisan commission to draft ballot language at or below an eighth-grade reading level and would allow any voter to petition the Supreme Court of Virginia to review that language.5Virginia State Legislative Information System. HB1419 – 2026 Regular Session As of the 2026 session the bill had been introduced but not enacted.
The Convention Alternative
Article XII, Section 2 offers a second path, meant for broader changes. Two-thirds of the members elected to each house can vote to call a constitutional convention, and no separate voter approval is needed to call it.6Virginia Code Commission. Constitution of Virginia Article XII Section 2 – Constitutional Convention The General Assembly’s resolution sets the scope, which can be a full revision or a narrow set of sections, and provides by law for electing delegates.
Whatever the convention produces must still go to voters, no sooner than ninety days after the convention adjourns, and passes on a majority of those voting on the proposal.6Virginia Code Commission. Constitution of Virginia Article XII Section 2 – Constitutional Convention Virginia has not called one under the current constitution.
Why You Can’t Start One Yourself
Virginia has no citizen initiative for constitutional amendments. There is no petition drive, no signature threshold, no way for voters to place a question on the ballot on their own. Every amendment must originate in the General Assembly or at a convention the General Assembly calls. If a proposal cannot find legislative sponsors willing to carry it through two sessions, it never reaches the ballot, no matter how popular it may be.
Federal Limits Still Apply
Ratification is not the end of the inquiry. Under the Supremacy Clause, a state constitutional provision that conflicts with federal law or the U.S. Constitution is unenforceable, and federal courts can strike down amendments that violate the Fourteenth Amendment’s equal protection and due process guarantees or other federal protections. The Voting Rights Act also reaches the referendum itself: Section 2 prohibits any voting practice that denies or limits the right to vote on account of race or color, and that protection extends to how a state structures, publicizes, and administers a constitutional amendment vote.