RICHMOND, Va. — The General Assembly started about two hours late at its reconvened session Wednesday because of an apparent discord over a judicial nomination for a Virginia Beach court.

The drama started when the confirmations, expected to be passed in both chambers quickly, ground to a halt, apparently over conflict surrounding Aaron Kass, an attorney in Portsmouth.

The General Assembly voted to confirm Junius Fulton from the Virginia Court of Appeals to the Supreme Court of Virginia, then for Virginia Beach Circuit Judge Kevin Duffan to take the appellate seat. That meant there was an opening on the Virginia Beach Circuit Court — and Democratic lawmakers were putting Kass’ name into consideration.

As the delay dragged on, House Speaker Don Scott, D-Portsmouth, told reporters he was hearing rumors that Senate Republicans were concerned, specifically, that Kass is Jewish, saying that there was already Jewish representation on the bench.

Before the Senate voted to approve HR 6005, a block of judicial appointments, Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell, D-Fairfax, said the resolution “does not include election of a certain judge in Virginia Beach.”

Ultimately, both the House and the Senate voted to approve the resolution, with Kass off the slate of nominees.

“(Kass) is a personal friend,” DeSteph said. “I think the world of him, and I nominated him the last time when we brought him up here and invited him out for interviews with the entire delegation. That didn’t happen this time. Half my delegation doesn’t know who he is.”

DeSteph said the Virginia Beach Bar Association had also not yet weighed in on Kass’ qualifications, though it vetted him previously.

“Traditionally, the General Assembly seeks evaluation of potential judicial nominees by the local bar association prior to appointment,” he said. “Despite this well-established practice, Democrats have falsely claimed that opposition to a recent nomination for a vacancy in the Virginia Beach Circuit Court — which emerged without warning just hours before the Special Session without any bar association review — was based on the candidate’s religious background. This accusation is not only untrue but represents a regrettable attempt to politicize the process through false claims.”

Scott said he had heard the allegations from Jewish constituents.

“I had friends from the Jewish community calling,” Scott said. “I’m not Jewish. I don’t know that. I didn’t make it up. Jewish people called me and said they believed that he’s being blocked because he’s Jewish, because that’s the history in Virginia Beach.

“Last year was the first time in 20 years that a Jewish judge was placed on the bench. The second year we try to put one more on, and then he’s blocked.”

A year ago, lawmakers elected Scott Joseph Flax, who is Jewish, to a spot on the Virginia Beach Circuit Court. Jewish News reported last year he was the third Jewish circuit court judge appointed in Virginia Beach. The other two Jewish judges are no longer on the bench there.

Kass, 45, lives in Virginia Beach but has a law office in Portsmouth. He did not return a phone call seeking comment on Wednesday afternoon.

“I see becoming a Circuit Court judge as a perfect way of combining my professional experience with my desire to be engaged with my community,” Kass told a joint session of the House and Senate Courts of Justice Committees on Tuesday.

Kass said he’s been a practicing attorney for more than 19 years, working mostly on personal injury and insurance matters in recent years. The first part of his career, he said, he handled criminal and traffic matters as a court-appointed lawyer.

Outside of work, he said, he spends time with his family, serves on the boards of three-different nonprofit organizations — his synagogue, a school and a summer camp. He also organizes food drives “for three different bar associations,” and serves on a committee for the Virginia State Bar that investigates misconduct cases against local lawyers.

Kass’ nomination could be revisited at another time.

“We’ll be back up here for special session at least one or two more times, so we have the opportunity to get it done then, and we have the opportunity to run through the process properly,” DeSteph said.

When the General Assembly’s legislative session finally began, the House voted to lump most of Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s 95 vetoes into a single block. Those 82 vetoes were immediately sustained. Democrats spoke on bills that would have raised the minimum wage, banned assault firearms, and prevented the purge of voter registration records 90 days before an election, saying with each speech that Republicans were afraid to stand up to President Donald Trump. But Democrats lacked the two-thirds majority required to overturn any of vetoes, meaning all of those bills are now dead.

Votes on the the governor’s proposed amendments were still ongoing as of press time Wednesday.

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