Last year, Donald Trump set in motion an arms race on redistricting, calling on Texas to alter its voting maps to draw more GOP seats going into the midterms.
This obviously didn’t sit well with some blue states and California voted to approve Prop 50 last year. Next week, Virginians will go to the polls to vote on a ballot measure allowing state legislators to temporarily redraw their voting districts.
Michael O’Connor is the political correspondent for The Dogwood, COURIER’s Virginia outlet. He spoke with Susan J. Demas on First Draft on what the fight looks like in the Commonwealth. Democrats are arguing that the measure is a check on Trump’s power, while Republicans like House Speaker Mike Johnson and former Gov. Glenn Youngkin are campaigning hard against the referendum.
“Part of why [Gov. Abigail] Spanberger did so well [in the 2025 election] … and other Democrats on her ticket, they did really well with independents. And … polls that have come out around redistricting, including one today, show that the redistricting vote is not as popular with these independents,” Michael said.
However, most polling shows that the “yes” side has an advantage, he notes. Find out more about this upcoming vote on Tuesday, including some race-baiting propaganda coming from the opposition, with The Dogwood’s Michael O’Connor and Susan J. Demas on First Draft, here on Lincoln Square.
