<\/p>\n Virginia Senate President pro tempore Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, listens to debate on the Senate floor, Feb. 17, 2026, in Richmond, Va. (AP Photo\/Ryan M. Kelly, File)<\/p>\n Virginia Senate President pro tempore Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, listens to debate on the Senate floor, Feb. 17, 2026, in Richmond, Va. (AP Photo\/Ryan M. Kelly, File)<\/p>\n Add AP News on Google <\/p>\n Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google.<\/p>\n Share<\/p>\n Read More<\/p>\n The FBI said only that it was conducting a court-authorized search in Portsmouth. The person who confirmed the FBI\u2019s search was not authorized to discuss an ongoing investigation by name and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.<\/p>\n A message seeking comment was left Wednesday on a cellphone for Lucas, who has been a state senator for 34 years. Her daughter Lisa Lucas Burke told WAVY-TV that the family had no idea what the federal action was about.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re trying to figure it out. That\u2019s all I know,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Besides the search at Lucas\u2019 office, which houses her disabilities-services business and is her political base in Portsmouth, agents in FBI T-shirts also went into the nearby cannabis store that she opened in 2021. Several entrances to the Cannabis Outlet\u2019s parking lot were blocked by unmarked vehicles with flashing blue lights, as was an entrance to the politician\u2019s office.<\/p>\n Lucas, a prominent backer of legalizing marijuana<\/a>, has said the store sells legal hemp and CBD products. It has drawn scrutiny<\/a> from local media amid allegations that some products were mislabeled. <\/p>\n Virginia has legalized pot possession<\/a>, but retail sales of recreational marijuana remain illegal in the state. <\/p>\n State House Speaker Don Scott said he was deeply concerned by the FBI search.<\/p>\n \u201cRight now, there is far more theatrics and speculation than actual information available to the public,\u201d Scott, a Democrat, said in a statement, adding that more facts were needed \u201cbefore anyone rushes to political conclusions.\u201d<\/p>\n Gov. Abigail Spanberger declined to comment.<\/p>\n Virginia Democrats point to other recent prosecutions<\/p>\n Other Virginia Democrats were quick to note that the search comes as the FBI and Justice Department have opened a spate of politically charged investigations into perceived adversaries of President Donald Trump. <\/p>\n Last week, the Justice Department charged former FBI Director James Comey<\/a> with making a threatening Instagram post against Trump, an accusation that Comey \u2014 who for nearly a decade has drawn the president\u2019s ire \u2014 has denied. A court had dismissed<\/a> federal prosecutors\u2019 earlier case accusing Comey of lying to Congress. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n FBI personnel enter a building in Portsmouth, Va., Wednesday, May 6, 2026. (Peter Casey\/The Virginian-Pilot via AP)<\/p>\n FBI personnel enter a building in Portsmouth, Va., Wednesday, May 6, 2026. (Peter Casey\/The Virginian-Pilot via AP)<\/p>\n Add AP News on Google <\/p>\n Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google.<\/p>\n Share<\/p>\n Read More<\/p>\n A separate mortgage fraud case, also ultimately dismissed<\/a> by a court, targeted Democratic New York state Attorney General Letitia James, who had brought a major civil fraud lawsuit<\/a> against Trump and his business. Both she and Comey, a Republican-turned-independent, denied the charges and said the prosecutions were vindictive.<\/p>\n Such cases \u201chave undermined public confidence\u201d in federal prosecutors in Virginia, state Attorney General Jay Jones, a Democrat, said in a statement. <\/p>\n The FBI and Justice Department have also provoked concerns among Democrats about ongoing election-related investigations, including the seizure by agents of ballots<\/a> and other information from Fulton County, Georgia.<\/p>\n Lucas has been a vocal leader of Virginia\u2019s redistricting effort, which voters approved<\/a> last month. A sign urging people to \u201cvote yes\u201d to \u201cstop the MAGA power grab\u201d still hung Wednesday on a fence separating her office\u2019s parking lot from that of the cannabis shop.<\/p>\n Lucas played a leading role in Virginia redistricting<\/p>\n Amid a national, state-by-state partisan redistricting fight<\/a> kicked off by Trump\u2019s desire to aid his fellow Republicans, Virginia voters OK\u2019d a Democrat-backed constitutional amendment authorizing new U.S. House districts. The plan could help the party win up to four additional seats.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are not going to let anyone tilt the system without a response,\u201d Lucas said after the vote. Trump, meanwhile, denounced the results.<\/p>\n The state Supreme Court<\/a> let the referendum proceed, but has yet to rule whether the effort is legal. The court is considering an appeal of a lower court judge\u2019s ruling that the amendment is invalid<\/a> because lawmakers violated procedural requirements.<\/p>\n![\"Virginia](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1778100552_281_.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n![\"FBI](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1778100552_190_.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n