Virginia rejoins the Union and adopts a new constitution

Background. The Reconstruction era involved the reintegration of former Confederate states into the United States. Federal legislation and the Fifteenth Amendment, ratified in 1870, decreed that voting rights could not be denied based on race. President Grant prodded Congress to readmit Virginia, ensuring its state constitution protected every citizen's voting rights, setting the stage for Virginia's formal restoration.

Constitutional Convention. Pursuant to federal Reconstruction legislation, General Schofield called for a new constitutional convention to meet in Richmond from December 1867 to April 1868. This convention produced a constitution that guaranteed political, civil, and voting rights and provided for free public schools. The resulting document, known as the Underwood Constitution, was ratified by a popular vote in 1870.

Readmission to the Union. Virginia was formally restored to the United States in 1870, due to the work of the Committee of Nine. The adoption of the new constitution in 1870 established the basis for state elections in odd-numbered years, reflecting the specific timing of the constitutional ratification and readmission process during Reconstruction.