Virginia voters to weigh in on redistricting

Virginia redistricting referendum election set for April 21

Virginia voters will be able to weigh in on redistricting in two months as part of a statewide referendum. 

RICHMOND, Va. - Virginia’s redistricting election is moving ahead after the Virginia Supreme Court said Friday that a statewide referendum can be held April 21 on whether to authorize mid-decade redistricting, and the court will decide sometime later whether the plan is legal.

Democrats celebrated the green light for the election. But the court’s schedule raises the possibility that it could all be for naught, if the Supreme Court ultimately upholds a lower court ruling that the mid-decade redistricting amendment is invalid.

What they're saying:

"It looks like the state Supreme Court might not even issue a ruling on whether this whole process is legal until after the vote was held, so that’s kind of the intrigue when it comes to all this," said J. Miles Coleman from the UVA Center for Politics. 

"It seems unlikely to me if they had a strong inclination to strike the amendment, they wouldn’t wait until after voters weigh in," said Rebecca Green from the William & Mary Election Law Program. 

Big picture view:

Virginia Democrats hold six of the state’s 11 U.S. House seats, but they are backing a revised map that could help them win up to ten seats in this year’s midterm elections. The new districts are a key part of Democrats’ national strategy to try to offset potential Republican gains in several other states that redrew their districts last year at the urging of President Donald Trump.

The other side:

What's next:

Early voting starts March 6, and the election is on April 21.