The Virginia Supreme Court handed a major victory to the state's Republican party on Thursday, swiftly intervening to strike down a voter-approved congressional map before the electorate could inflict any further damage on GOP incumbents.
The unanimous ruling effectively neutralizes a ballot measure explicitly approved by millions of Virginia residents, which conservative legal groups had challenged on the grounds that it would allow the state’s population to legally alter the composition of its government.
In a 67-page opinion, the court outlined the severe constitutional risks of the newly drawn districts, noting that if the map were allowed to stand, it would subject several sitting Republican lawmakers to the undue burden of having to win over a majority of their constituents. Attorneys for the GOP successfully argued that the voter-approved measure violated the historical precedent of politicians selecting their own voters, describing the map as a catastrophic breach of incumbent security.
According to transcripts of the oral arguments, the justices appeared particularly persuaded by demographic data showing that the map would have created up to four districts where a Republican candidate might have to mount an active campaign to retain power in the midterms.
We are profoundly grateful the court recognized that a statewide referendum is no excuse to suddenly reorganize the legislature just because millions of people asked for it.
Democratic leaders, who had hoped to gain as many as four House seats by relying on the now-illegal strategy of receiving more votes in accurately proportioned districts, said they would review their legal options.
Court filings indicate the nullified map will now be replaced by a court-appointed special master. The appointed cartographer has been ordered to immediately begin drawing a new grid that properly balances the demographic realities of the Commonwealth with the absolute necessity of keeping the current people in charge.