Redistricting in Virginia

Redistricting in Virginia has been a controversial topic due to allegations of gerrymandering. In the 2017 Virginia General Assembly, all of the redistricting reform bills were killed.[1] The Virginia Constitution states, "Members of the House of Representatives of the United States and members of the Senate and of the House of Delegates of the General Assembly shall be elected from electoral districts established by the General Assembly. Every electoral district shall be composed of contiguous and compact territory and shall be so constituted as to give, as nearly as is practicable, representation in proportion to the population of the district. The General Assembly shall reapportion the Commonwealth into electoral districts in accordance with this section in the year 2011 and every ten years thereafter."[2]

Congressional districts

The Republican Party lost one of its seats in Congress when a federal court redrew Virginia's 4th congressional district. A suit claimed the district had been racially gerrymandered to give an advantage to white Republicans. The ruling in that case found that the General Assembly in 2012 unconstitutionally packed too many black voters into Bobby Scott's district, weakening the clout of blacks in nearby districts.[3] This ruling allowed Democrat Donald McEachin to represent the 4th District in the newly convened U.S. House of Representatives.[4]

House of Delegates districts

Delegate Mark L. Cole noted that even without gerrymandering, political polarization will exist because of the stark political differences between urban and rural areas, which makes drawing competitive districts impossible in some regions of the state.[5] On 1 March 2017, the U.S. Supreme Court sent a case involving 12 Virginia House of Delegates districts back to a lower court to rule on 11 of those districts.[6] Richmond Circuit Court Judge W. Reilly Marchant ruled that the constitutionality of the map was "fairly debatable" and therefore upheld it.[7]

References

  1. ↑ 4:06 p.m. ET Feb. 14, 2017 (2017-02-14). "Virginia House panel rejects redistricting reform bills". Newsleader.com. Retrieved 2017-04-06.
  2. ↑ "Constitution of Virginia - Article II. Franchise and Officers". Law.lis.virginia.gov. Retrieved 2017-04-06.
  3. ↑ "Supreme Court rejects request to delay Virginia's new congressional districts | Virginia Politics". pilotonline.com. 2016-02-01. Retrieved 2017-04-06.
  4. ↑ Thursday, April 6, 2017. "Momentum Grows In Virginia To Improve Redistricting Process - New Journal Guide". Thenewjournalandguide.com. Retrieved 2017-04-06.
  5. ↑ By GRAHAM MOOMAW Richmond Times-Dispatch (2017-02-14). "Virginia redistricting reform efforts dead for the year as House kills bipartisan Senate proposals | Virginia Politics". richmond.com. Retrieved 2017-04-06.
  6. ↑ D.J. Spiker / March 1, 2017 @danieljspiker (2017-03-01). "Supreme Court sends Virginia House of Delegates Redistricting Back to Lower Court". Bearing Drift. Retrieved 2017-04-06.
  7. ↑ https://www.apnews.com/5f7a8115ccbc4c598db0fecdc138d1d7
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