Gov. Glen Youngkin’s mask choice executive order took effect Monday, January 24, giving parents the option to send their children to school without a facemask. Afterward, many parents who sent their child to school without a mask said their children were segregated from their classmates, sat along in the backs of classrooms, or removed from classrooms altogether, forced to spend the day in administrative offices, and denied a proper education.

The Prince William County School Board voted unanimously to sue Youngkin, joining multiple Northern Virginia school divisions who chose to ignore the executive order from the newly-inaugurated Republican governor.

On Thursday, March 17, during his 28th annual St. Patrick’s Day Fete, held online, Connolly announced he would seek reelection to represent Virginia’s 11th Congressional District. 

The 11th District no longer includes Prince William County following the Virginia Supreme Court’s decision to draw new political maps for federal and state offices. The newly-drawn 11th District lies within the boundaries of Fairfax County, where Connolly served as Board of County Supervisors Chairman and includes Tysons, Fairfax City, Chantilly, and Reston.