Virginia Democrats are one step closer to gerrymandering the state's congressional maps that could give them four additional seats in the midterm elections.
The state Senate approved a constitutional amendment on party lines Friday to allow state lawmakers to begin redrawing its maps.
The House of Delegates previously approved the bill 62-33 and it will now head to voters to approve in a spring special election.
Democrats will control all levers of state government when Abigail Spanberger is sworn as governor Saturday.
They have argued the move is necessary to keep up with red states like Texas, which is redrawing its own maps to be more favorable to Republicans.
State Sen. Mark Peake, a Republican, blasted the move as a blatant power grab.
"Because you hate the man that's in the White House, and that's really the only thing that's behind this ... you want to blunt his power, then [Democrats are] going to politically gerrymander and take away the rights of the people," Peake said to Politico.
Virginians previously passed an amendment to get rid of gerrymandering by having congressional maps drawn by a bipartisan commission of lawmakers and residents.
"Virginia Democrats broke the law and violated the Virginia Constitution to get this far," Republican strategist Michael Young told Politico. "We will fight them in any available venue if they continue to pursue this lawless power grab."
Of Virginia's 11 congressional seats, six are held by Democrats and five by Republicans.
Two maps have been presented to lawmakers, one that would give Democrats the edge in nine seats, protecting Republican Reps. Ben Cline and Morgan Griffith, while another that would give them the edge in 10 seats, protecting Griffith.
A special election will likely be held in April.
Voters will also be tasked with deciding whether to remove a state ban on same-sex marriage, codifying access to abortion and restoring the voting rights of those with felony convictions no longer serving in prison.
Redistricting typically occurs at the start of each decade to incorporate new census data.
Last summer, Texas redrew its congressional maps in a bid to help Republicans pick up five seats in Congress to preserve their razor-thin majority in the House.
California voters approved a new congressional map that could give Democrats an additional five seats.
States such as North Carolina and Ohio have also redrawn their maps to boost Republicans in Congress, while redistricting efforts stalled in Kansas and Indiana.
Maryland is also considering redrawing its maps to give Democrats an additional seat in Congress.
Sam Barron ✉
Sam Barron has almost two decades of experience covering a wide range of topics including politics, crime and business.
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