Virginia Democrats are seething after the Virginia Supreme Court ended the long-contested drama of “non-partisan redistricting” redraws the congressional and General Assembly lines using the mathematics of a Democratic high-water mark during the Trump era.
Progressive Democrats such as State Senator Scott Surovell took to social media to voice their displeasure at not being able to select their constituents:
Most telling piece of Special Master's memo for me was repeated assertion that the map gives each side a 50/50 shot at a majority- that is NOT what 24.2-302.2 says that was passed by the Senate/House and signed by @GovernorVA and unanimously opposed by every R
— Senator Scott Surovell (@ssurovell) December 29, 2021
Virginia Democrats had needlessly prolonged what was supposed to an amicable yet bureaucratically driven process with a series of sharp partisan demands. Republicans effectively counterpunched throughout the dramatic process, which ultimately led to a series of evenly split and narrowly partisan votes pushing the final result towards two “special masters” to redraw the lines.
While it appears as if the special master lines survived for the General Assembly districts by and large, the congressional districts took a rather violent turn back towards some degree of normalcy, with a much more compact 1st District and a Fredericksburg-oriented 7th District. While Representative Morgan Griffith and Ben Cline were lumped together by the new lines, the fact that federal representatives of both parties do not have to live in their districts means that each has time to figure out next steps.
Democrats remain openly angry at their lost opportunity to gerrymander themselves into power in 2023, having hoisted themselves on their own petard and now at risk to lose as many as 10 HOD seats, 6 State Senate seats, and as many as three House of Representative seats.
For more information:
SCV Final House of Delegates Map (interactive)
SCV Final House of Delegates Map (pdf)
SCV Final Senate Districts Map (interactive)
SCV Final Senate Districts Map (pdf)
SCV Final Congressional District Map (interactive)
SCV Final Congressional Districts Map (pdf)
Special Masters’ Final Memorandum (pdf) 12/27/2021
