The 2026 Virginia redistricting referendum was a proposed legislatively referred constitutional amendment that appeared before voters in the U.S. state of Virginia. The amendment would have authorized a mid-decade redrawing of the state's congressional districts for the 2026, 2028, and 2030 elections. On April 21, 2026, the amendment passed by a slim margin, but it was subsequently struck down by the Supreme Court of Virginia. As such, the power to draw the state's congressional districts was retained by a bipartisan commission, and was not given back to Virginia General Assembly, as the amendment had intended to do.
The proposed map was gerrymandered to favor Democrats in 10 out of 11 congressional districts, which would have represented a gain of four seats for the party. The amendment, mostly favored by Democrats and opposed by Republicans, was part of a larger, nationwide gerrymandering battle, and was proposed after Texas, California, and other U.S. states had engaged in mid-decade redistricting after the 2024 elections. It was first considered by Virginia lawmakers in October 2025, and was given preliminary approval on October 31. The Virginia General Assembly passed the amendment a second time on January 16, 2026.
The amendment faced numerous legal battles, with its first setback coming on January 27, 2026, when Virginia Judge Jack Hurley Jr. ruled it unlawful. Virginia Democrats appealed that decision, and on February 13, the Virginia Supreme Court allowed the referendum to proceed as scheduled while they reviewed the case. On February 19, Judge Hurley ruled the amendment to be unlawful on grounds unrelated to the original ruling and unrelated to the ruling of the Virginia Supreme Court, once again blocking the measure from appearing on the April ballot. The Virginia Supreme Court stayed that ruling on March 4, allowing for the referendum to be held.
Early voting was open from March 6 until April 18. On April 21, voters passed the referendum, with over 51% of votes cast in favor. The day after the vote, Judge Hurley issued an injunction against the certification and implementation of the results. Democratic Attorney General Jay Jones sought a stay on this ruling from the Supreme Court of Virginia, but the Court denied the request.
The Virginia Supreme Court struck down the amendment on May 8, 2026, on the grounds that the General Assembly did not follow a procedural requirement for amending the state's constitution when it placed the amendment before voters. An emergency appeal of this ruling was made to the U.S. Supreme Court, but it was rejected by the court on May 15.
Background 2020 amendment In 2020, Virginia voters approved a constitutional amendment giving the power to draw congressional districts in the state to a bipartisan commission, which is composed of eight legislators and eight citizens. The measure was passed with 65% of votes in favor, and with every county and independent city of the state voting in support, except for Arlington County. Prior to this, the Virginia General Assembly held the power.
First passage of amendment legislation
In 2025, Texas lawmakers adopted a new congressional map, which is expected to grant Republicans as many as five additional congressional seats. Other states, including California, followed suit with their own redistricting plans. On October 23, 2025, The New York Times reported that Virginia was planning a constitutional amendment to allow for redistricting, with the goal of the change being, according to Virginia Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell, "address[ing] actions by the Trump administration."
In Virginia, constitutional amendments have to be approved by the legislature in two consecutive legislative sessions, with a general election in between them, prior to being sent to the public for final passage. On October 24, Democratic House Majority Leader Charniele Herring introduced a resolution to expand the scope of a 2024 special session to allow the Virginia General Assembly to consider constitutional amendments related to redistricting in the session. On October 27, the resolution was agreed to by the House of Delegates in a 50–42 vote, and on October 29, the state Senate agreed to it in a 21–17 vote.
On October 28, four Democratic Virginia Delegates introduced the redistricting constitutional amendment during the special session. On the same day, Jason Miyares, then the Republican Attorney General of Virginia who was also running for a second term in 2025, issued a non-binding opinion saying that the process required to add a constitutional amendment to the ballot cannot be shortened by the General Assembly calling a special session during an ongoing election.
On October 29, the Virginia House of Delegates passed the amendment in a 51–42 vote on party lines. Before the vote took place, there was contentious debate, and the Sergeant-at-Arms was called to the floor at one point. The bill then moved on to the Senate Privileges & Elections Committee, which approved the bill in an 8–6 vote the same day. The Senate passed the bill 21–16 on October 31, sending it to the 164th General Assembly for further consideration.
Second passage Virginia Democrats retained and expanded their majority in the Virginia House of Delegates in the 2025 election, in addition to flipping all three executive offices. Upon winning the trifecta, Virginia Democrats intended to re-approve the amendment and send it to a referendum for voters’ consideration. As the amendment needed to be passed a second time, the Senate, on January 16, 2026, passed the constitutional amendment, following the House of Delegates which had done so earlier in the week. Governor Abigail Spanberger signed enabling legislation for the referendum on February 4.
Contents and amendment
Ballot wording On the ballot, voters were shown the following question:Question: Should the Constitution of Virginia be amended to allow the General Assembly to temporarily adopt new congressional districts to restore fairness in the upcoming elections, while ensuring Virginia's standard redistricting process resumes for all future redistricting after the 2030 census?
Proposed constitutional changes Had the amendment taken effect, the Virginia Constitution would have been amended as follows:
Replacement map On February 20, 2026, the Virginia General Assembly passed and Governor Spanberger signed legislation drawing a new congressional map for Virginia, which was to take effect should voters approve the amendment. The map was considered a Democratic gerrymander, which, based on previous election results, would have favored Democrats in 10 out of the 11 districts. This would have been an increase from the 6 they won in the 2024 congressional elections. The University of Virginia Center for Politics believed that two of the Democratic-favored districts could potentially be competitive for Republicans, and described the map as "baconmandered," where strongly-Democratic Northern Virginia was cut up across multiple districts stretching to the rest of the state. Notable county split increases included Prince William County, which would have gone from two congressional districts to five, and Fairfax County, which would have gone from three congressional districts to five. Sabato's Crystal Ball rated the putative 9th district as Safe Republican, the putative 2nd district as Tossup, the putative 6th district as Leans Democratic, the putative 5th district as Likely Democratic, and the putative 1st, 3rd, 4th, 7th, 8th, 10th and 11th districts as Safe Democratic.
2021 gubernatorial election DistrictOld mapNew mapDemRepMarginDemRepMargin141.4%58.0%16.6%49.7%49.6%0.1%244.2%55.1%10.9%44.9%54.4%9.5%363.3%35.5%27.9%61.3%37.5%23.8%461.4%37.0%24.4%53.0%45.7%7.3%539.4%60.0%20.5%47.9%51.2%3.2%633.1%66.2%33.1%47.2%52.0%4.8%747.0%52.2%5.2%49.8%49.6%0.2%872.3%27.0%45.2%55.3%44.0%11.3%924.8%74.6%49.7%22.6%76.8%54.2%1050.7%48.7%2.0%53.0%46.4%6.6%1164.3%35.0%29.3%53.7%45.7%7.9%
2024 presidential election DistrictOld mapNew mapDemRepMarginDemRepMargin146.7%51.6%4.9%52.5%44.9%7.5%249.1%49.3%0.3%49.8%48.5%1.3%366.4%31.8%34.6%64.6%33.7%30.9%465.4%32.8%32.6%57.2%41.3%15.9%543.2%55.4%12.2%53.3%44.8%8.5%637.2%61.2%24.1%50.6%47.5%3.1%750.3%47.4%2.8%52.8%44.8%8.0%873.0%23.8%49.3%57.6%40.1%17.5%927.5%71.4%43.9%25.0%74.0%49.0%1052.6%44.3%8.3%54.6%42.2%12.4%1165.2%31.2%34.0%55.3%41.8%13.4%
Campaign The campaign was the most expensive for any ballot measure in Virginia's history, with over $83 million spent during the campaign. As of April 16, $93 million had been raised, with 95% of funding raised by dark money groups not required to disclose their donors.
Support
As of April 6, the main Democratic-aligned group supporting the referendum, Virginians for Fair Elections, had raised $64 million, including $40 million from House Majority Forward, a group aligned with House Democratic leaders; $12 million from the Fairness Project; and $5 million from the Fund for Policy Reform, founded by George Soros. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine contributed $100,000 through their leadership PACs. By April 6, the group had spent $39.1 million in advertising. Key figures in support of the amendment included governor Abigail Spanberger and former president Barack Obama. A billboard by the Page County Democratic Committee implied that president Donald Trump was in favor of the amendment.
Opposition As of April 6, the main Republican-aligned group opposing the referendum, Virginians for Fair Maps, had raised around $20 million, the majority of which came from a group of the same name which had not disclosed its donors. By April 6, the group had spent $4.8 million in advertising.
The Justice for Democracy PAC, a group largely financed by Peter Thiel, raised over $9 million. The group utilized imagery from the civil rights movement and of the KKK in its advertising, alleging that the amendment would lead to "black and brown voices silenced". It also sent mailers implying that former president Barack Obama opposed the amendment. The NAACP and civil rights leaders condemned the ads as misinformation.
Additionally, the Justice for Democracy PAC sent mailers implying that Governor Abigail Spanberger opposed the amendment, using a 2019 quote in which she referred to gerrymandering as "detrimental to our democracy." Both President Obama and Governor Spanberger had endorsed the amendment.
The bipartisan group No Gerrymandering Virginia launched in February 2026 with an advisory council consisting of George Allen, William J. Howell, William Fralin, Chap Petersen, and Brian Cannon.
Sign theft
Both pro- and anti-referendum signs were stolen. In Isle of Wight County, for example, the chairman of the county's Republican chapter reported that more than 50 opposition signs were stolen, and the county's Democratic chapter reported that several signs in support were stolen. In Petersburg, a surveillance camera recorded an individual stealing a "Vote No" sign.
Endorsements Support Arguments in favor of the measure included that it was a temporary change, that it intended to counteract other states that had gerrymandered their congressional maps, and that it allowed voters to decide whether to redistrict, rather than only politicians.
Opposition Arguments in opposition included that it was a partisan gerrymander, that rural and conservative voters would have their voice diluted, and that Virginia voters already decided on the issue in 2020, approving a bipartisan commission.
Polling