Virginia Supreme Court Strikes Down Voter-Approved Redistricting Amendment, Keeps 2022-2024 Maps

The Supreme Court of Virginia struck down the voter-approved redistricting amendment that had been approved by voters on April 21, a ruling that ordered the state to keep using the same congressional district map in the upcoming election as it used in 2022 and 2024.

The court said the legislature violated the multi-step process for putting constitutional amendments on the ballot, writing, "This constitutional violation incurably taints the resulting referendum vote and nullifies its legal efficacy."

BBC

The decision leaves Virginia’s current congressional districts in place throughout the 2026 midterm election and the rest of the decade, instead of proposed districts that Democrats believed could produce a 10-1 advantage.

Virginia Mercury reported that the Supreme Court found the amendment itself was flawed because lawmakers approved the proposal after voting had already started in the 2025 House of Delegates elections, depriving more than 1.3 million Virginians of an opportunity to weigh the issue when choosing their representatives.

The ruling also capped a months-long legal fight that had briefly halted the amendment’s implementation less than 24 hours after last week’s special election, according to Virginia Mercury.

Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones criticized the ruling, saying, "Today the Supreme Court of Virginia has chosen to put politics over the rule of law" by overturning the April 21 special election on redistricting.

House Speaker Don Scott, D-Portsmouth, said the referendum still reflected the will of millions of Virginians who backed the measure at the ballot box, telling reporters, "Three million people voted in a free and fair election."

CNBC

Politico described the decision as a massive loss for Democrats ahead of the 2026 midterms, saying the ruling gives Republicans a clear lead in the gerrymandering efforts over the last year.

Politico also reported that Trump celebrated the decision in a social media post on Friday, writing on Truth Social, "Huge win for the Republican Party, and America, in Virginia."

The NBC News account said the court blocked a new Democratic-drawn congressional map from taking effect and that Democrats were seeking a map designed to give the party up to four new House seats.

The Virginia Supreme Court’s ruling means the state’s redistricting battle will proceed under the current congressional map, where Virginia is represented by six Democrats and five Republicans, with the new districts having been intended to improve Democrats’ chances across the state’s 11 congressional seats.

NPR said the redistricting could have helped Democrats win four House seats held by Republicans, but the ruling now puts the GOP and President Trump’s redistricting push far in the lead by perhaps 10 or even 12 seats.

Axios reported that the decision effectively blocks Democrats from redrawing congressional maps mid-decade, after voters narrowly approved the referendum last month.

NBC News said Republicans could gain as many as 14 seats from redrawn maps across six states so far, compared to six for Democrats from redrawn maps, while also noting that Democrats need a net gain of at least three House seats in November to flip the House majority.

WRIC ABC 8News said candidates and voters were left in limbo because the Supreme Court was considering two cases, including an appeal that bars the State Board of Elections from certifying the results, meaning Virginia’s new congressional map can’t go into effect.