Photo by GRandallJ

Good morning, Washington. It looks like control of the Virginia Senate is coming down to a single hotly contested seat, with the Democratic incumbent 86 votes behind his Republican challenger as vote-counting ended late last night. As it stands now, the Virginia Senate is stuck in a 20-20 split between Democrats and Republicans, with the Republican lieutenant governor being able to break ties. Should Republican Bryce Reeves come out ahead of Democratic Sen. Edd Houck, the Republicans will gain a working majority.

More Details on Georgetown Halloween Shooting Victim: The 17-year-old victim of a Halloween shooting in Georgetown succumbed to his injuries last night, but it didn’t have to be — the Post reports that he was a ward of the D.C. Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services and was supposed to have been sent to a facility in Pennsylvania earlier this year. He never was, though. NBC4 additionally reports that the victim’s brother was himself killed in 2006, when he was also 17. The Georgetown shooting capped off a violent October, with 13 homicides.

Member of Metro Advisory Group Resigns: A Virginia member of Metro’s Riders’ Advisory Council resigned yesterday, accusing the agency of not providing him with information on on-time arrivals. The Examiner reports that Christopher Schmitt tried to for eight months to get information on train arrivals from Metro; the agency and some fellow members of the council claimed that his request was unreasonable. The council is made of 21 riders from D.C., Virginia and Maryland who serve as a focus group and rider advocates for the transit agency.

And More Trouble for D.C. Democrats: After recently changing the way it elects its members and leaders, the D.C. Democratic State Committee seems to have run into a problem — it might not be legally sound. The Post’s Mike DeBonis reported yesterday that the new plan to replace direct elections with a party caucus may violate the party’s constitution; moreover, the plan isn’t being forced upon the local party by the DNC, as party officials originally claimed. Critics of the plan argue that it would limit influence of the party’s leadership and direction to existing insiders.

Briefly Noted: Northwest recreation center to get overhaul … Ben and Jerry’s founder distributes ice cream to Occupy D.C. protesters … D.C. surveillance case heard by Supreme Court … D.C. CFO ducks deposition in lottery case once again … Arlington is for shoppers … Unlikely 57-mph cyclist ends deal between town and speed cameras.

This Day in DCist: On this day in 2010, the D.C. Council clowned around and the Fenty administration coached employees on how to resign. In 2009, there was a big shakeup at The Washington Times and D.C. eased regulations on posters.