Rosalyn Randolph Dance (born February 10, 1948) is an American politician and retired nurse who is currently serving as Vice-Chairman of the Virginia Department of Elections. A member of the Democratic Party, she served in the Senate of Virginia from 2014 until 2020, in the Virginia House of Delegates from 2005 to 2014, and was Mayor of Petersburg, Virginia from 1992 to 2004. (campaign/constituent website)
Early Life & Education Dance was one of 11 children. She dropped out of high school, but went on to earn earn a nursing degree summa cum laude from Virginia State University and a master's in public administration from Virginia Commonwealth University. Dance worked as a nurse for 34 years, retiring in 2000.
Political Career Dance was elected to the Petersburg City Council in 1992.
In 2001, the 63rd Virginia House of Delegates district incumbent, Democrat Jay DeBoer, retired after 18 years. Dance, then mayor of Petersburg, ran for the seat as an independent but lost to the Democratic nominee, funeral director Fenton Bland.
On January 25, 2005, Bland pleaded guilty in federal court to a charge of conspiracy to commit bank fraud; he resigned the 63rd district seat the next day. Dance received the Democratic nomination and was chosen to replace Bland in a special election on March 22. The 63rd district is southeast of Richmond, made up of the city of Petersburg and part of Hopewell, plus parts of Chesterfield, Dinwiddie and Prince George Counties. Dance was reelected multiple times, the last in November 2013.
Dance served on the House committees on Appropriations, General Laws, Health, Welfare and Institutions, and Privileges and Elections.
Dance served in the Senate of Virginia, where she represented District 16, having won a special election on November 4, 2014, to fill the seat once held by Henry L. Marsh.
In 2019, Dance sponsored a bill to gradually increase Virginia's minimum wage from $7.25 an hour to $15 per hour by 2021. Later that year, she ran for reelection to her state senate seat, but was defeated in the primary by disbarred attorney Joe Morrissey.
In 2023, Governor Glenn Youngkin nominated Dance to become Vice-Chairman of the Virginia Department of Elections.
Date Election Candidate Party Votes % Virginia House of Delegates, 63rd district November 6, 2001 General Fenton Bland Democratic 8,774 52.48 Rosalyn DanceIndependent 7,926 47.40 Write Ins 20 0.12 March 22, 2005 Special Rosalyn Dance Democratic 4,342 68.78 A G Sims Republican 1,690 26.77 M W BratschiIndependent 271 4.29 Write Ins 10 0.16 Fenton Bland resigned; seat stayed Democratic November 8, 2005 General Rosalyn Dance Democratic 9,456 60.29 D H DphrepaulezzIndependent 6,177 39.38 Write Ins 52 0.33 November 6, 2007 General Rosalyn Dance Democratic 8,684 98.07 Write Ins 170 1.92 November 3, 2009 General Rosalyn Dance Democratic 12,375 96.42 Write Ins 459 3.57 November 8, 2011 General Rosalyn Dance Democratic 10,775 96.64 Write Ins 374 3.35 June 11, 2013 Democratic primary Rosalyn Dance 2,471 52.82 Evandra D. Thompson 2,207 47.18 November 5, 2013 General Rosalyn Dance Democratic 15,962 95.72 Write Ins 714 4.28 Senate of Virginia, 16th district August 9, 2014 Special primary Rosalyn Dance 1,725 45.4 Delores McQuinn 1,375 36.2 Rudy McCollum 592 15.6 Gerry Rawlinson 108 2.8 November 4, 2014 Special general Rosalyn DanceDemocratic 29,237 73.0 Preston "Famous" BrownIndependent 10,154 25.4 Write Ins 645 1.6 Henry L. Marsh resigned; seat stayed Democratic June 9, 2015 Democratic Primary Rosalyn Dance 4,967 62.0 Joseph E. Preston 3,039 37.9 Write Ins 2 0.0 November 3, 2015 General election Rosalyn DanceDemocratic 17,331 72.7 Joe MorrisseyIndependent 6,090 25.5 Write Ins 428 1.8 June 11, 2019 Democratic primary Joe Morrissey 8,741 55.0 Rosalyn Dance 6,873 44.0 Write Ins 6 0.0
See also List of mayors of Petersburg, Virginia
References
External links (campaign finance)