Virginia Democrats move forward in push for new congressional districts

BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) — Abigail Spanberger, the Democratic candidate for Virginia governor, said Monday that she would not oppose a push by the state’s Democratic-controlled legislature to redraw congressional districts ahead of next year’s midterm elections.

Virginia Democrats earlier in the day began taking steps to change the state’s constitution to allow for a new congressional map, a change that must ultimately be approved by voters before it becomes law. The change is designed to counter President Donald Trump’s push to create more partisan districts in several Republican-run states.

In an interview on her campaign bus just eight days before Election Day, Spanberger told The Associated Press that she would not stand in the way of the Democratic leaders in the state General Assembly, although it’s unclear whether congressional districts could be changed in time for the 2026 midterm elections.

“What they are doing at this moment is keeping alive the option of taking action into the future,” said Spanberger, who would become the governor in January if she wins next week. “While I like to plan for everything, on this one, because I’m on the bus tour, because we are eight days away (from Election Day), I’m like, I will let the General Assembly take this step, and then we’ll talk calendar issues later.”

Her position marks a shift of sorts from this summer when she said she had “no plans to redistrict Virginia.”

Virginia Republicans, including Spanberger’s Republican opponent, Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, blasted the move in a news conference outside the statehouse.

“This, my friends, is not about party, it’s about principle,” Earle-Sears said, standing in front of a podium marked with the words, “Spanberger’s sideshow session.” “The voters created an independent redistricting commission. Only the voters have the right to decide a future, not gerrymandering Democrats.”

The Democratic-led legislature’s push to enter Virginia into a redistricting battle comes after California made a similar move earlier this year.

If Democrats gain just three more seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, they would take control of the House and with it, the power to impede Trump’s agenda. But Republicans in other states, at Trump’s urging, are working aggressively to extend their advantage in redistricting moves of their own.

Republican lawmakers in Texas, Missouri and North Carolina have already approved new congressional maps aimed at winning more GOP seats. The Republican governor of Indiana also said Monday he’s scheduling a special session to redraw congressional boundaries.

In Virginia on Monday, the House amended its agenda to allow a redistricting constitutional amendment to be put forward, with details to come later. The state senate is expected to follow suit this week.

Democratic state Sen. Schuyler VanValkenburg, who has championed Virginia’s current redistricting law, said he still supports the concept of a bipartisan redistricting commission, “but I’m also not going to let Donald Trump go around to states that have the majorities that he likes and try to make it so that he can’t lose.”

Virginia is currently represented by six Democrats and five Republicans who ran in districts established by a court in 2021 after a bipartisan commission failed to agree on a map.

Because Virginia’s redistricting commission was created by a voter-approved constitutional amendment, voters must sign off on any changes to the redistricting process. A proposed constitutional amendment would have to pass the General Assembly in two separate sessions and then be placed on the statewide ballot.

Democrats are scrambling to hold that first legislative vote this year in order to take a second vote after a new legislative session begins Jan. 14.