Early voting underway with redistricting referendum on the ballot in Virginia
Early voting underway with redistricting referendum on the ballot in Virginia
The redistricting battle continues in the Commonwealth with thousands of people heading to the polls for early voting and thousands of dollars poured into the campaigns.
VIRGINIA - The redistricting battle continues in the Commonwealth with thousands of people heading to the polls for early voting and thousands of dollars poured into the campaigns.
Early voting on the statewide redistricting referendum began on March 6. Data from the Virginia Public Access Project shows just over 73,000 people have voted early as of March 10.
Big picture view:
J. Miles Coleman with the UVA Center for Politics said this election is uncharted waters to some extent.
"It's very rare we have a standalone ballot question like this. Usually they are held in conjunction with the November general election," Coleman said.
The redistricting plan could help Democrats win four more seats in the House of Representatives as we see similar redistricting battles play out in states like Texas, Ohio and North Carolina.
Some of the early voting data shows Northern Virginia counties lagging behind, but there could be a good reason for that.
According to VPAP, Loudoun has seen 2,039 voters, Fairfax with 4,684 voters, Prince William at 1,105 voters. That represents less than a percentage of registered voters in those counties.
In more Republican-leaning areas, however, data shows 2% to 3% of registered voters are already weighing in.
"The Democrats would love to have these extra three or four seats if this measure passes but for Republicans, it might be more existential," Coleman said.
Dig deeper:
One reason also may be that more polling places will open in Northern Virginia closer to the election.
Right now, there are currently three polling locations in Fairfax County, with an additional 26 locations set to open on April 11th.
We are also seeing new names join the race.
On Tuesday, former State Department official and Virginia first lady Dorothy McAuliffe announced her campaign in Virginia's anticipated 7th congressional district.
Money is also a big topic of conversation in the referendum. The pro-redistricting group Virginians for Fair Elections has raised about $22 million, while the GOP group Virginians for Fair Maps has about $350,000.
"It is a lopsided story right now. People trying to make this happen are trying to throw money at this, people against it are struggling to raise money," said Virginia Public Radio Reporter Michael Pope.
And you're going to be seeing a lot more of those ads in the coming weeks, as we get closer to that April 21 election.