We are starting to see some demographic trends that finally work to parts of Virginia not named Northern Virginia. Not all parts, mind you, but enough to start making a difference.
These trends come in the form of the latest population estimates from the Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service at the University of Virginia. This isn’t the census; that will come later. That’s an actual count. These are estimates based on a variety of state records — births, deaths, school enrollment, driver’s licenses, building permits and so forth. While the census provides the formal numbers, if you fear a census undercount, you might find these estimates superior in some ways because they’re grounded in official data.