Virginia Supreme Court strikes down Virginia Democrat redistricting push

thebesig | May 8, 2026 | 2 Comments

Virginia state lawmakers rammed through an effort that would allow them to redistrict the state. The state constitution currently requires a bipartisan commission to do this task. However, Democrat state lawmakers wanted to take control of this process in order to redistrict the state to have 10 Democrats and one Republican going to Congress. They pointed to Texas and other states redistricting in favor of Republicans to justify this move. However, not only did the Democrats violate the state constitution, but they also violated state law to get this referendum to the voters. The Virginia Supreme Court struck that effort down.

From Fox News:

The Virginia Supreme Court on Friday invalidated a new, voter-approved redistricting map, delivering a significant victory for Republicans in the state ahead of the fast-approaching 2026 midterm elections.

“We hold that the legislative process employed to advance this proposal violated Article XII, Section 1 of the Constitution of Virginia,” the Virginia Supreme Court said in the ruling. “This constitutional violation incurably taints the resulting referendum vote and nullifies its legal efficacy.”

The Virginia Supreme Court heard oral arguments last month over the newly passed congressional map, which voters in the state approved by a narrow 51% to 49% margin.

The ballot measure would have given the Democrat-controlled Virginia legislature — rather than the state’s current nonpartisan commission — temporary redistricting power through 2030.

It was also expected to yield a 10-1 advantage for Democrats in Virginia’s congressional delegation, up from their current 6-5 edge.

Republicans quickly sued to block the effort, prompting the state supreme court to hear oral arguments last month.

RNC chair Joe Gruters praised the ruling Friday, describing it on social media as a “HUGE WIN” for election integrity.

“This was a clear violation of the Constitution — that’s why the RNC stepped in to stop Democrats’ rigged maps and WON!” he said.

Additional Reading:

Deppisch, B, & Steinhauser, P. (2026, May 8). Virginia Supreme Court tosses Dem-backed redistricting map, upending expected 10–1 edge. Fox News. Link.