2026 Virginia redistricting amendment
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The 2026 Virginia redistricting amendment was a legislatively referred constitutional amendment that appeared on the April 21, 2026, ballot in the state of Virginia. The amendment passed by a slim margin, but it was subsequently struck down by the Supreme Court of Virginia. As such, the power to draw the state's congressional districts was retained by a bipartisan commission, and was not given back to the state legislature, as the amendment had intended to do. The amendment, mostly favored by Democrats and opposed by Republicans, is part of a larger, nationwide gerrymandering battle. It was first considered by Virginia lawmakers in October 2025, and was given preliminary approval on October 31. The Virginia General Assembly passed the amendment a second time on January 16, 2026. On January 27, 2026, a Virginia judge ruled the amendment to be unlawful, blocking it from appearing on the April ballot. However, Virginia Democrats appealed the decision, and on February 13, the Virginia Supreme Court allowed the referendum to proceed as scheduled. On February 19, following the Virginia Supreme Court ruling, a Virginia judge ruled the amendment to be unlawful on grounds unrelated to the original ruling and unrelated to the ruling of the Virginia Supreme Court, once again blocking the proposed amendment from appearing on the April ballot. On March 2, a court ruled that the election can still take place and legal battles will be resolved after the election. Early voting began on March 6, 2026, and ended on April 18, 2026. As voters approved the referendum, a new map already passed by the General Assembly would have been used for the 2026 elections, as well as in 2028 and 2030, had the amendment survived a legal challenge before the Virginia Supreme Court. The map was gerrymandered to favor Democrats in 10 out of 11 congressional districts, which would have represented a gain of four seats for the Democratic party. On April 22, a Virginia judge issued an injunction against the certification and implementation of the results; Attorney General Jay Jones sought a stay from the Supreme Court of Virginia. On April 28, the Supreme Court of Virginia denied the stay, leaving the lower court's injunction in place, until the constitutionality of the proposal was adjudicated. The Supreme Court struck down the amendment on May 8, 2026. Following the ruling, Virginia House Speaker Don Scott and Attorney General Jay Jones filed an emergency appeal to the US Supreme Court and filed a motion requesting the state Supreme Court to pause its ruling from taking effect while the appeal plays out.