Former Governor Linwood Holton died Thursday at his home in Kilmarnock. Holton was the commonwealth’s first Republican governor since reconstruction and served from 1970 to 1974. U.S. Senator Tim Kaine who is Holton’s son-in-law issued a statement saying Holton’s efforts to end racial discrimination in Virginia, born out of a deep religious conviction about the equality of all God’s children, made him a moral pillar for so many. Holton was 98. Gov, Ralph Northam orders flags to half-staff in Holton’s honor until Nov. 27.