Tazewell judge blocks Virginia Democrats’ mid-decade redistricting plan over Special Session violations
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TAZEWELL COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) -- A Tazewell County judge has blocked Virginia Democrats' redistricting amendment, ruling that the General Assembly violated 2024 Special Session procedures. This prevents mid-decade congressional redistricting amendments from going before voters.
In a filing on Tuesday, Jan. 27, a judge found that the General Assembly added a proposed constitutional amendment on redistricting to the 2024 Special Session on May 13, 2024 -- though the judge determined this was done illegally.
Under House Joint Resolutions, the General Assembly was required to follow strict limits on what legislation could be considered. This includes rules on amendments, supermajority approval and unanimous decisions on certain matters.
However, the judge determined that the General Assembly did not follow these rules, meaning any actions taken to advance the redistricting plan were deemed invalid, per the Tuesday ruling.
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The judge also found that the General Assembly did not follow the Virginia Constitution's requirement that a proposed constitutional amendment pass two separate General Assemblies, with a general election in between, before being submitted to voters.
The court ruled that the General Assembly failed to comply with state notice requirements. Per Virginia Code, the Clerk of the House of Delegates is required to properly publish and post the proposed amendment before the next House of Delegates election. However, the judge found the General Assembly did not follow these procedures.
Virginia House and Senate Democrats shared the following statement to 8News on the Tazewell ruling on Tuesday:
“Nothing that happened today will dissuade us from continuing to move forward and put this matter directly to the voters. Republicans who can’t win at the ballot box are abusing the legal process in an attempt to sow confusion and block Virginians from voting. We will be appealing this ruling immediately and we expect to prevail. This was court-shopping, plain and simple. We’re prepared for the next step, and voters – not politicians – will have the final say.”
By contrast, in a joint statement, multiple Virginia Republicans -- including Sen. Ryan McDougle (R-Hanover County), who is named as the plaintiff in the suit -- celebrated the judge's decision:
"Today's ruling is a decisive victory for the rule of law and Virginia voters. The court confirmed that Democrat legislative leaders unlawfully expanded a Special Session, violated their own rules and attempted to force through a redistricting constitutional amendment while Virginians were already voting.
The court rightly declared those actions void from the start. If they continue to move forward with the unconstitutional amendment process, the Democrats would be defying the order of the Court.
This case was never about partisanship. It was about process, fairness and the simple principle that you cannot change the Constitution by ignoring the Constitution. The court made clear that elections matter, notice matters and the rules apply to everyone -- even those in power.
Virginians for Fair Maps exists to defend fair representation and constitutional integrity. Today, the court did exactly that."
This comes less than a week after the Democratic-controlled House of Delegates advanced a bill on Thursday, Jan. 22, that would set April 21 as the date for a redistricting referendum. This would have allowed voters to decide whether to allow a mid-decade redrawing of Virginia’s congressional districts.
The four constitutional amendments were previously advanced out of the House of Delegates on Wednesday, Jan. 14, as lawmakers work to redraw Virginia’s congressional maps ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
Several Republican-led states, such as California and Texas, have redrawn their maps to their benefit to hurt Democrats in the 2026 midterm elections.
However, due to the illegality of the redistricting amendment in the Special Session, the proposed amendment cannot be submitted to Virginia voters in the spring, even if Democrats try to move it forward.
