Virginia Supreme Court strikes down Democrats’ redistricting plan, dimming party’s midterm hopes

The ruling voids a voter-approved referendum that could have helped Democrats gain several U.S. House seats in Virginia.

The Virginia Supreme Court has struck down a Democratic-backed congressional redistricting plan, blocking a map that could have given the party a major advantage in the 2026 midterm elections.

The court ruled Friday that Virginia’s Democratic-led legislature failed to follow required procedures when it placed a constitutional amendment on the ballot to allow mid-decade redistricting. Voters had approved the measure in an April 21 special election, but the court said the procedural violation made the referendum invalid.

The decision is a significant setback for Democrats, who had hoped the new map could help them win as many as four additional U.S. House seats. Virginia currently has 11 congressional districts, represented by six Democrats and five Republicans. Under the Democratic-backed proposal, the party could have had a stronger chance of winning nearly all of them.

The case did not focus mainly on the shape of the proposed districts, but on the process lawmakers used to get the plan before voters. Virginia’s Constitution requires a proposed amendment to be approved in two separate legislative sessions, with a state election taking place between those votes.

Democratic lawmakers first approved the amendment in October, while early voting was already underway for the 2025 general election. They approved it again in January, after a new legislative session began, and later passed a separate bill setting out the new congressional map if voters approved the amendment.

Republican challengers argued that the first legislative vote came too late because Virginians had already started casting ballots. Democrats countered that the relevant “election” should be understood as Election Day itself, not the entire early-voting period. The state’s highest court sided with the challenge and nullified the referendum.

The ruling also keeps Virginia’s existing congressional map in place for now. Those districts were imposed by a court after the state’s bipartisan redistricting commission failed to agree on new lines following the 2020 census.

The decision comes amid a broader national fight over redistricting before the midterms. Republicans and Democrats in several states have pushed unusual mid-decade map changes as both parties try to improve their chances of controlling the U.S. House. Reuters reported that Virginia voters approved the Democratic-backed referendum by 51.7% to 48.3%, but the court’s decision prevents that result from taking effect.