The Virginia Supreme Court blocked a new Democratic-drawn congressional map from taking effect.
Weeks after voters narrowly approved the plan in a statewide referendum, the court ruled that Democratic lawmakers did not meet the procedural requirements to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot, which was written to pave the way for the redrawn district lines.
They violated the Constitution in several areas. They could bring this back next year, but it’s over for this year.
There were many reasons to throw this out, but the necessity of having a full election intervening between the proposal and a referendum became the hinge for the 4-3 decision. The Commonwealth argued that the 2025 election counted because the legislature approved it before Election Day, but the majority quickly dismissed the idea that 1.3 million early voters had not participated in an election:
They planned to turn almost every seat Democrat while only 51% of the state is registered Democrat.
This November, Democrats in Virginia will go with the current map, with 6 seats representing Democrats. Spanberger loses this one.