Virginia Voters Approve Controversial Redistricting Amendment After Heavy Dark-Money Spending

Virginia voters narrowly approved a constitutional amendment on Tuesday that will allow the state’s General Assembly to temporarily adopt new congressional districts, a change that opponents and some analysts say amounts to a highly partisan gerrymander expected to favor Democrats in upcoming congressional elections.

With roughly 94% of votes counted, the referendum passed 51% to 49%, according to the Associated Press. The new map is projected to add about four Democratic seats in the midterms and, by some calculations, will result in 91% of Virginia’s House seats being drawn to favor Democrats. Prior to the change, Democrats held six of the state’s 11 congressional seats — roughly 55% — a share only slightly higher than the portion of Virginia voters who supported Joe Biden’s running mate in 2024, when former Vice President Kamala Harris won less than 52% of the state’s vote.

The plan redraws districts currently held by Republican Reps. Rob Wittman, Jen Kiggans, John McGuire and Ben Cline in a manner that analysts say will tilt those seats toward Democratic candidates, leaving the Ninth District as the lone remaining Republican-held seat. Critics have warned that the overhaul will disenfranchise rural areas of the state by diluting their voting power in favor of more densely populated, Democratic-leaning regions.

The campaign in favor of the amendment was buoyed by an influx of outside money. Virginians for Fair Elections, the principal group backing the “yes” campaign, raised approximately $64 million, with about a quarter of that sum reportedly spent on television advertising, The Washington Post reported on April 16. The group accepted a $5 million contribution from the Fund for Policy Reform Inc., an organization linked to and funded by the Open Society Foundations network associated with billionaire philanthropist George Soros, according to reporting cited by Fox News and the Virginia Public Access Project.

House Majority Forward, a left-leaning political spending organization connected to House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and not required to disclose donors, also funneled substantial resources into the pro-amendment effort, contributing roughly $40 million, the Washington Post reported. On the opposing side, Virginians for Fair Maps, the principal “no” campaign organization, spent about $20 million in total, a fraction of the outlays backing passage.

Prominent Democrats campaigned for the measure, arguing it would protect fairness in congressional representation and counter GOP redistricting moves in other states. Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger actively urged supporters to vote “yes,” posting on X, “I’ve talked a lot about how Virginia’s approach to redistricting is different. It’s temporary, it’s responsive to other states, but most importantly — it’s up to YOU.

Find your polling location at https://t.co/zlFMUhsjmV and join me in voting YES! pic.twitter.com/Yr0RvdxikO”

The governor followed with another post on Election Day: “Today’s redistricting referendum is about one thing: President Trump’s power grab,” the governor later wrote in an X post Tuesday afternoon. “Last summer, he said he’s ‘entitled’ to more seats in Congress, and states across the country got to work to give him what he demanded.” Former President Barack Obama also appeared in a pro-amendment advertisement released by Virginians for Fair Elections, asserting, “Republicans want to steal enough seats in Congress to rig the next election and wield unchecked power for two more years. But you can stop them by voting ‘yes’ on April 21.”

Opponents framed the measure as an overreach that would let Democrats engineer their way to a larger congressional delegation. Former President Donald Trump and House allies campaigned for a “no” vote: in a tele-rally with Speaker Mike Johnson on Monday, Trump urged Virginians to reject the amendment and said, “The whole country is watching. So important and so unfair what they’ve done. We need every Virginia patriot to get out and vote no, no, no on the radical Democrats’ unfair ballot referendum. It is so crazy what they’re doing. So go to your polling place tomorrow and vote.”

Voters were presented with a 40-word question on the ballot that asked: “Should the Constitution of Virginia be amended to allow the General Assembly to temporarily adopt new congressional districts to restore fairness in the upcoming elections, while ensuring Virginia’s standard redistricting process resumes for all future redistricting after the 2030 census?” Supporters said the language emphasized the measure’s temporary nature and its goal of restoring fairness, while critics said the change would amount to partisan advantage rather than neutral reform.

The result marks a significant development in the national political landscape ahead of the midterm elections, as changes to a single state’s congressional map could alter the balance of power in the House. The heavy spending by nontransparent groups and the involvement of nationally prominent figures underscore the growing role of outside money and nationalized political messaging in state-level ballot fights.