Virginia senator hosts passport fair in Annandale to help with delays

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ANNANDALE, Va. - As Americans gear up for the travel season, Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) held a passport fair for more than 200 Virginians in Annandale.

The event Wednesday was in response to months of record delays in processing passports.

The fair began at 11:00 AM in Annandale with Sen. Warner providing on-site application assistance.

The Virginia Senator has been actively addressing last summer’s dramatic passport delays, which jeopardized travel plans for many Americans.

He stopped by the fair to greet applicants, hear about their travel plans, and thank passport agency staff for their efforts in reducing processing times and assisting Virginians.

"There is nothing like hosting an event where constituents tell me, ‘This is the fastest service I’ve EVER gotten from a federal agency!’ Thrilled to host a Passport Day in Annandale today to help folks apply for passports," Senator Warner said via X.

"Today’s event is also part of a larger story of success," he added. "When folks experienced terrible passport delays last summer, I pushed directly on the State Department and got the backlog cleared. Glad Virginians that applied today will have their passports processed quickly!"

Passport processing times return to pre-pandemic levels

Passport processing times are back to pre-pandemic levels, the State Department said Monday. The announcement comes after years of sometimes excruciatingly long wait times, due in part to unprecedented demand for passports. FOX 5's Josh Rosenthal breaks down why things are going a lot quicker nowadays.

At 12:30 PM in Arlington, Sen. Warner joined Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Wally Adeyemo for a roundtable discussion, highlighting the progress in increasing access to capital in underserved communities through Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs).

To apply for a passport visit travel.state.gov.