- Our DC Insider newsletter has arrived. Sign up HERE for all the latest scoops inside Washington and drama inside the Trump administration.
A top Virginia Democrat‘s office has been raided by the FBI in a dramatic anti-corruption investigation.
Virginia Senator Louise Lucas watched stunned as agents tore through her office – as well as a neighboring cannabis dispensary she co-owns in Portsmouth, around 20 miles west of Virginia Beach, on Wednesday.
The FBI raid is linked to a ‘major corruption probe,’ Fox News reported, adding that the bureau is ‘serving multiple search warrants, approved by a federal judge, at her office and a next-door cannabis dispensary.’
Lucas, 82, the highest ranking member of the Virginia Senate as President Pro Tempore, was captured arriving on the scene as the FBI searched her office, per a live broadcast from the event.
Lucas told reporters on the scene that she did not know the reason for the raid.
Lucas was a key advocate of Virginia‘s 10-1 congressional map redistricting push.
Although Lucas and Governor Abigail Spanberger are both Democrats, they are not necessarily the best of friends.
Virginia state Senator Louise L. Lucas at work in the Virginia statehouse, on February, 20, 2019 in Richmond, VA
L. Louise Lucas’ arrives at her office in Portsmouth, Viriginia where she encountered multiple FBI units (Fox 5 DC)
L. Louise Lucas’ speaks with federal law enforcement outside of her office in Portsmouth, Viriginia where she encountered multiple FBI units (Fox 5 DC)
In a Wednesday statement, the FBI noted that they were ‘executing a court-authorized federal search warrant in Portsmouth, VA.’
‘There is no threat to public safety. This is an ongoing investigation and no further information is publicly available at this time,’ the agency added.
Spanberger’s Chief of Staff sued Louise Lucas’ Marketing Director earlier this year, and Lucas was reluctant to endorse Spanberger in her 2025 gubernatorial race.
Lucas had previously been skeptical of Spanberger’s candidacy as she was a top backer of encouraging Virginia Congressman Bobby Scott, a black Democrat, to run for the post instead.
Lucas is known for being a colorful character in the Virginia legislature.
The top democrat co-authoted the state’s marijuana legalization law. In 2022, she noted, “I sell hemp products and CBD.”
On 4/20, a day that marijuana users celebrate the substance, Lucas shared a graphic noting ‘I fill my bong with Republican tears.’ The post was also made the day before the voters narrowly approved Virginia’s new 10-1 congressional maps.
A prolific X user, Lucas noted on Monday that she was ‘out partying [her] a** off all weekend long, where the h**l were you?’ in response to another meme that claimed she was ‘missing.’
