Barbara Henley Is Apparent District 2 Winner, Keeping Agriculture and Local History at the Table

Barbara Henley emerged as the apparent winner in Virginia Beach’s District 2, putting a familiar agricultural and historical perspective in position to continue on City Council. Her public-service story is closely connected to the working land and communities of southern Virginia Beach.

Farming, teaching and public service

A partner in Henley Farms and a former public-school teacher, Henley has also served as president of the Princess Anne County/Virginia Beach Historical Society and written about southern Princess Anne County history. Her council service began with the former Pungo Borough in 1978; after later periods on council, she returned in 2006.

Those experiences bring a long view to decisions about land and water. Her council assignments have included the Agricultural Advisory Commission and bodies concerned with open space, stormwater and the Transition Area.

The next decisions about a changing landscape

For Pungo and the wider southern city, agriculture is part of daily economic life as well as local identity. Drainage, the uses allowed beside working land and the location of new development affect farms and neighboring households together.

The city’s imagineVB 2040 comprehensive plan, adopted in April 2026, supplies the broader framework for long-range planning and public investment. Henley’s background keeps the practical needs of working land and established communities visible within that larger conversation. Individual projects, funding choices and public hearings will show how those priorities take shape.

Stay connected

Email Barbara Henley.

Follow local decisions and participation opportunities: Her biography details that service. · Virginia Beach City Council.

Barbara M. Henley received 8,537 votes. The lead over Jeff L. Bruzzesi was 1,384 votes. Figures are from Virginia ELECT’s unofficial November 4, 2026, 1:34 p.m. EST export; canvassing and certification remained pending.

election guide · Civic & Community · Pungo · Meet the council leaders across seven Hampton Roads cities.