In Virginia, the population spoke out in favor of redrawing the electoral districts – a judge has now declared the vote invalid.Image: keystone
In the fight for a better starting position in the US midterm elections in November, the Democrats in Virginia suffered a defeat in court.
April 23, 2026, 06:29April 23, 2026, 06:29
Less than 24 hours after voters voted to redraw electoral districts in their state, a court declared the vote invalid.
According to media reports, by redrawing the electoral districts, the Democrats would have had the chance to take four seats in the House of Representatives from the Republicans in the midterm elections. The Republicans want to defend their razor-thin majority in Congress in the midterm elections.
Judge declares all votes cast invalid
The judge based his decision on the fact that the question on the ballot paper was worded “manifestly misleading,” according to court documents published by ABC News. In addition, the proposal was presented to voters earlier than required by the Virginia Constitution. All votes cast are therefore inadmissible and Virginia’s electoral districts cannot be redrawn.
Virginia’s Democratic Attorney General Jay Jones announced he would appeal the ruling. “An activist judge should not have the right to veto the vote of the population,” he said on the X platform.
The redrawing of electoral districts, known as gerrymandering, has a centuries-old tradition in the USA. The background is that after the census, which is collected every ten years, the constituencies have to be redesigned so that they each contain a similar number of residents. However, in practice, parties often use this process to gain advantages. In this way, areas from a part of the constituency with a clear majority can be moved to another constituency where the race is tighter.
Virginia’s governor sees Trump as responsible
US President Donald Trump had previously urged his party to push forward a similar initiative in Texas. The realignment there could give the Republicans five additional seats in the November election.
The Democratic Governor of Virginia, Abigail Spanberger, defended the reorganization of her state in response to Trump’s actions. According to her, the president wants his party to go to the constituencies because otherwise he cannot win the election. In the election in Virginia, people gave a “loud and clear” answer. (sda/dpa)