Virginia voters approved a mid-decade redistricting referendum that would allow Democrats to redraw the state’s congressional map before the 2026 midterm elections. According to NBC News, 51.5 percent of voters said yes and 48.5 percent said no, with approximately 97 percent of the vote tallied. As a result, the state legislature will temporarily redraw congressional districts, which are expected to give Democrats a 10-1 advantage. Virginia’s congressional delegation currently consists of 6 Democrats and 5 Republicans. According to The Blaze, the proposed constitutional amendment was framed as ‘restoring fairness in the upcoming elections.’ ORWELLIAN: Redistricting push that would hand Democrats near-total control over the state of Virginia is framed at the ballot box as “restoring fairness in the upcoming elections” pic.twitter.com/Zf9TDuJJY8 — TheBlaze (@theblaze) April 21, 2026 USA TODAY shared further: Typically, Virginia’s state law requires redistricting every 10 years by a bipartisan commission. The recently-approved amendment allows for a unique mid-decade temporary redistricting, which will either be abandoned or adopted permanently after the 2030 census. Opponents may take some countermeasures, McGlennon says. The Virginia Supreme Court permitted the vote to happen, but has yet to rule on a lower-court appeal against the redistricting referendum. The state’s high court has precedent that it can annul election results if justices say the constitution or the law wasn’t followed. “They could still throw a wrench in the plans,” McGlennon says, should the court rule against the election. Could Republicans send the election to the U.S. Supreme Court? McGlennon says “yes,” but that effort must take into consideration the U.S. Supreme Court already permitted Texas and California redistricting moves to stand. And there’s the other thing: Democrats have to win. Now that they have the map redrawn, they face the challenge of translating this to electoral results, McGlennon says. While Democrats have performed well in special elections so far this year, the party is still staring down how to clarify its platform to voters, political experts previously told USA TODAY. “Thank you to all the voters who turned out to vote against this egregious power grab. The race was much closer than the left expected because Virginians know a 10-1 map is not Virginia,” former Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin said. “I urge the Virginia Supreme Court to rule against this unconstitutional process that will disenfranchise millions of Virginians,” he added. Thank you to all the voters who turned out to vote against this egregious power grab. The race was much closer than the left expected because Virginians know a 10-1 map is not Virginia. I urge the Virginia Supreme Court to rule against this unconstitutional process that will… — Glenn Youngkin (@GlennYoungkin) April 22, 2026 Here’s a graphic of what the proposed congressional map would resemble: BREAKING The Virginia Redistricting Amendment has passed. This changes Virginia’s congressional maps from a 6–5 Democratic split to a 10–1 Democratic split, representing a four-seat gain for Democrats. pic.twitter.com/ocV4oOyv1v — The Political HQ (@ThePoliticalHQ) April 22, 2026 Fox News has more: Former Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli II, a Republican, said “the legal fight is just beginning” after voters in the commonwealth approved a redistricting referendum. “The ‘yes’ vote has won Va’s redistricting referendum — but the legal fight is just beginning. Four Va Constitutional challenges are now teed up,” Cuccinelli, who also previously served in the Virginia Senate, wrote on X. He said there will be three challenges to the amendment process itself, arguing that the referendum’s first passage was invalid, that an election must intervene between the first and second passage of the measure, and that insufficient time elapsed between final passage and the vote on Tuesday. Cuccinelli also cited a statute that requires that “every electoral district shall be composed of contiguous and compact territory,” as he argued that the new redistricting maps violate the contiguity requirement “Next stop, court. Stay tuned,” he said.