Tuesday is the last day to vote in the special election to fill the Richmond-anchored congressional seat formerly held by the late Rep. Don McEachin.

What's happening: Democratic state Sen. Jenn McClellan is the heavy favorite in the bright blue district, which stretches from the Richmond area to the North Carolina border.

• She faces Republican Leon Benjamin, a conservative pastor and Navy veteran who ran for the seat twice before and lost in a landslide both times.

🗳 Be smart: Early voting has been underway since January at local voter registration offices and continues through Saturday.

• You can also vote Tuesday at your usual polling precinct between 6am and 7pm.

What they're saying: McClellan, a corporate lawyer for Verizon who has represented Richmond in the General Assembly since 2006, called the decision to enter the race difficult but also, ultimately, obvious.

• "I came to believe, you know, I can help more people," she said. "It's the next logical step. And how do you say no to Congress?"

She says her focus in Washington would mirror her work in the General Assembly, noting legislation she passed rolling back GOP abortion restrictions, mandating Virginia's transition to renewable electric generation and the passage of a state-level voting rights act.

Congress' reputation for not actually doing much doesn't concern her because all those Virginia bills she sponsored took years to pass, she says.

• "I'm used to persisting," she said.

She has no regrets about her failed run for governor in 2021, a primary campaign she says set her up to successfully compete in the special election for McEachin's seat.

• "I had never been in a televised debate. I had never done TV commercials — it was like another level of campaigns," she said.

Finally, she says she's not writing off her opponent despite his track record for losing in the district.

• "Anything can happen, so I don't take it for granted," she said.

Leon Benjamin says this year will be different for him.

What's happening: Benjamin lost his last run for the seat by 27 points. But he says he's holding out hope that inflation and gas prices have changed some peoples' minds about him.

• "You know, not to be cliché, but third time's a charm," he told Axios.

Catch up fast: Benjamin is an outspoken Trump supporter. In addition to his ministry, he hosts a show on a conservative video network in which he has spread a range of conspiracy theories, including the belief that vaccines are part of a plot to control people using 5G networks.

Benjamin said his top priority in Congress would be school choice. He has voiced support for legislation that would require public school funding to follow children if their parents decide to enroll them in private schools.

He would not address questions about his refusal to concede his past losses to McEachin and vague claims of voting irregularities.

• "The real question is, what are the issues?" he said.

He also would not answer directly when asked if his views on LGBTQ+ people have changed since 2011, when he compared gay and transgender people to people with alcohol and drug use disorders.

Benjamin nonetheless promised to be a unifying voice in Washington.

• "This is very important — critical for our nation, that we have a uniter and not a divider. And that's, that's what I am," he said.

🏞 Henrico County signed a $20 million contract to build a 99-acre park in Sandston near the airport. (WRIC)

• It will include nature trails, a splash pad and a skate park, among other amenities.

🛴 City Council voted to extend the curfew for electric scooter rentals from 9pm to 1am. (Times-Dispatch)

⚖️ A judge in Chesterfield publicly chastised the county's police chief and commonwealth's attorney for openly feuding over a charging decision in a prostitution sting. (Times-Dispatch)

📺 If you were wondering how much a regional Super Bowl ad costs in the Richmond market, VCU tells Axios it paid $7,768 for a 30-second spot that aired near the end of Sunday's game.

• "We'd not aired an ad locally for the Super Bowl before, so we tried something new," said Grant Heston, the school's vice president for marketing and communications. "Based on what we're hearing, lots of people saw it and loved it."

After a couple of beautiful days, it's supposed to rain on Friday and cool down Saturday, so it's the perfect weekend to watch some movies.

🏆 Ashland Theatre is hosting an Oscar Weekend Friday through Monday, featuring four Oscar-nominated films, one each day. Matinee tickets are $7, and $10 for evening shows.

• The films: "Everything Everywhere All at Once," "The Banshees of Inisherin," "Tár" and "Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio."

🎥 Prefer something free? It's the third Saturday documentary night at Elegba Folklore Society, which this month is showing "James Baldwin: The Price of the Ticket."

• The documentary is dedicated to the famed author and activist in his own words. A discussion will follow. Starts at 5pm.

🚗 Want to be outside anyway? Henrico County is hosting a free drive-in showing of "Wakanda Forever" at Dorey Park.

• Gates open at 5pm, and the movie starts at 6pm.

💼 Check out who’s hiring now.

1. Director, Associate User Experience at Marriott.
2. Senior Director, Campaign Success at EAB.
3. Association Accounting Manager at YMCA of Greater Richmond.

Want more opportunities? Check out our Job Board.

Hiring? Post a Job.

Apparently New Mexico is trying to make roasted chiles the official state aroma. It would become the first state to create one.

It made us wonder: What would Richmond's official aroma be?

💭 Karri's thought bubble: At the moment, I'm thinking the smell of an outdoor fire pit in mild weather, a charcoal grill warming up on the porch, or even fried chicken wafting out the back of a convenience store.

The bottom line: We can do better than New Mexico. Let's get an official city aroma. What should it be?

Hit reply and share your ideas.