Virginia's Supreme Court Strikes Down Democratic Gerrymander Approved by Voters

Virginia's Supreme Court delivered a 4-3 ruling striking down a 10-1 Democratic gerrymander that 3.1 million voters had approved in an April 2026 referendum — a gutsy legal call made just two weeks after the vote passed 51.7% to 48.3%. The court found the amendment was never properly proposed in the first place, making the entire referendum void.

The constitutional flaw was procedural but significant: Virginia's constitution requires redistricting amendments to pass through the Legislature twice, with an election in between. Democrats fast-tracked the first legislative approval on October 31, 2025 — but by that date, over 1.3 million early votes had already been cast, representing roughly 40% of the total electorate for that cycle. Justice D. Arthur Kelsey, writing for the majority, called it "wholly unprecedented" to count a partially-completed election as the required intervening vote. In effect, early voters had "unknowingly forfeited their constitutionally protected opportunity" to weigh in on delegates who would decide the amendment.

Democrats had a tactical reason for the delay: they were reportedly betting the court would hesitate to strike down the amendment after voters ratified it at the ballot box. The state itself kept insisting the court couldn't rule before the referendum. Justice Kelsey rejected that logic — if you can't get a pre-vote ruling, you have to rule afterward, or judicial review becomes meaningless.

The practical fallout: Virginia's 2026 midterms revert to the old House map, which is split 6-5 in favor of Democrats — a more proportional reflection of the state's purple political leanings. The Democratic gerrymander would have dramatically reshaped those odds. Meanwhile, Tennessee is advancing a 9-0 Republican map that would eliminate the state's only congressional Democrat, Rep. Steve Cohen, by splitting his majority-Black Memphis district. The WSJ editorial board concludes Republicans are currently winning the gerrymander wars — but warns that spreading GOP voters thin across swing districts could backfire in November.