Democrats Target WIPEOUT of 4 GOP Seats

Virginia Democrats are preparing to wipe four of five Republican congressional seats off the map, and the only thing standing between them and a 10-1 supermajority is a voter referendum this spring.

Story Snapshot

House committee advanced constitutional amendment 15-7 to enable mid-decade congressional redistricting
Democrats target shifting Virginia’s delegation from 6-5 Democratic to 10-1, eliminating four GOP seats
Voters will decide April 21 whether to authorize the unprecedented map redrawing
Move represents reversal of Virginia’s 2015 bipartisan redistricting commission commitment
Democrats frame effort as defensive response to Trump-driven Republican gerrymanders in other states

The Power Play That Breaks Redistricting Norms

Virginia’s House of Delegates Appropriations Committee voted January 22 to advance a constitutional amendment allowing lawmakers to redraw congressional maps outside the normal census cycle. The 15-7 party-line vote sets an April 21 referendum date when voters will decide whether to authorize the most aggressive mid-decade redistricting effort in state history. Democrats control both legislative chambers with commanding majorities, including a 61-36 House advantage, giving them unilateral power to advance the amendment through required legislative steps.

Senate President Pro Tem L. Louise Lucas made Democrats’ intentions unmistakable: “The maps will be 10-1 and I’m sticking with that today.” Her statement eliminates any pretense that Democrats seek compromise or moderation. House Speaker Don Scott echoed support for the 10-1 configuration, signaling unified Democratic leadership behind the most extreme redistricting option. The National Democratic Redistricting Commission presented two map proposals to Virginia lawmakers, a 9-2 configuration that would protect two Republican seats and the more aggressive 10-1 map that Lucas and Scott now champion.

Abandoning Independent Redistricting When It Becomes Inconvenient

Virginia voters approved a constitutional amendment in 2015 establishing a bipartisan commission to draw legislative and congressional districts. The reform represented a commitment to fair, independent redistricting free from partisan manipulation. Democrats now seek to dismantle this framework just eight years later because it constrains their partisan ambitions. State Senator Ryan McDougle, the top Republican in Virginia’s upper chamber, identified the hypocrisy: this move marks “the permanent end of independent redistricting in the state.” Democrats justified the 2015 reform by arguing redistricting should be removed from partisan politics.

That principled position disappeared when Democrats secured unified control of state government in November 2025. Abigail Spanberger’s 15-point gubernatorial victory over Republican Winsome Earle-Sears, combined with Democrats gaining at least 13 House of Delegates seats, created an opportunity for power consolidation. Electoral mandates do not justify abandoning institutional commitments, particularly reforms voters approved through constitutional amendment. Democrats now argue circumstances changed, requiring them to abandon their 2015 principles. The circumstances that changed were Democrats gaining complete control and seeing an opportunity to entrench that power through redistricting.

The Trump Justification and National Redistricting Arms Race

Democrats frame their Virginia redistricting push as defensive necessity against Republican gerrymanders President Trump encouraged in other states. NDRC President John Bisognano characterizes the effort as response to Trump’s “redistricting manufactured war.” House Committee Chair Marcia Price declared that “Texas and North Carolina legislators themselves said their actions were in direct response to our President’s call for more House seats.” This justification contains a kernel of truth. Republican-controlled states including Texas, Missouri, North Carolina, and Florida have pursued or completed mid-decade redistricting efforts, some explicitly responding to Trump’s pressure.

The defensive framing breaks down when examining Virginia’s specific circumstances. Republicans never gerrymandered Virginia’s congressional districts during Trump’s first term. The current 6-5 Democratic advantage resulted from the bipartisan commission Democrats now seek to dismantle. Democrats are not responding to a Virginia-specific Republican gerrymander; they are preemptively creating a Democratic gerrymander justified by Republican actions in other states. This logic justifies perpetual escalation. If every state responds to partisan redistricting elsewhere by pursuing its own aggressive gerrymander, the national outcome is maximum partisan manipulation everywhere, destroying any remaining commitment to fair representation.

Democrats Are One Step Closer to Nuking Most of Virginia's GOP Congressional Seatshttps://t.co/CGHw9mB2mW

— RedState (@RedState) January 22, 2026

The Moderate Democratic Dissent Nobody Is Heeding

Representative Don Beyer represents a rare voice of caution within Virginia’s Democratic caucus. He advocates for a “subtle approach” rather than the aggressive 10-1 gerrymander, warning the effort “may be more difficult than it looks.” Beyer raises concerns about maintaining “a fairness argument from a national perspective, not just the Commonwealth,” recognizing that Virginia’s aggressive redistricting undermines Democratic criticism of Republican gerrymanders. His position acknowledges the logical inconsistency of condemning Republican partisan redistricting while pursuing identical tactics when Democrats control state government.

Beyer also highlighted potential Supreme Court complications regarding Voting Rights Act decisions that could affect redistricting authority and minority-majority district protections. His concerns carry weight given ongoing litigation over racial gerrymandering and district configurations. Democratic leadership dismissed Beyer’s moderation. Lucas’s blunt declaration that “anyone in the congressional delegation who wants a seat needs to campaign for it and not expect a safe seat” signals that Democrats will pursue maximum partisan advantage regardless of institutional norms or fairness arguments. Beyer’s position represents principled concern about precedent and national optics; Lucas’s position represents raw power politics.

What Virginia Voters Will Decide in April

Unlike Republican-controlled states that implemented mid-decade redistricting through legislative action alone, Virginia’s constitutional amendment process requires voter approval. The April 21 referendum introduces genuine uncertainty. Democrats control the legislature but cannot unilaterally impose new maps without voter consent. This procedural requirement represents Virginia’s last safeguard against partisan redistricting overreach. Voters face a straightforward question: should the state abandon its 2015 commitment to bipartisan redistricting and authorize partisan map manipulation that would eliminate four of five Republican congressional seats?

The referendum occurs in a political environment where many voters understand gerrymandering as standard partisan practice rather than democratic corruption. Democrats will argue the redistricting is necessary to counter Republican efforts elsewhere. Republicans will argue it violates Virginia’s institutional commitment to fair redistricting. The outcome will determine whether Virginia joins states that abandoned redistricting reform for partisan advantage or maintains some commitment to representative democracy principles. If voters approve the amendment, Virginia establishes precedent that constitutional redistricting reforms can be reversed through simple partisan majorities whenever one party gains unified control.