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Virginia Democrats fighting gerrymandering fire with gerrymandering fire

Chris Graham
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Photo: © klenger/stock.adobe.com

MAGA Republicans have redrawn congressional maps to give them more seats in Texas and Missouri, and they’re working on North Carolina. But with Democrats looking to do the same to give Ds two or three more seats in Virginia, all the sudden, it’s dirty politics.

“Calling a special session to undo Virginia’s bipartisan redistricting constitutional amendment is not about fairness or good government, it’s about power,” Senate Minority Leader Ryan McDougle told reporters on Thursday, as it was becoming public knowledge that lawmakers will be returning to Richmond next week, ostensibly to discuss redistricting.

I shouldn’t put the qualifier there.

“We are coming back to address actions by the Trump administration,” Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell said.

Democrats already hold six of the 11 U.S. House seats from Virginia.

They’d be looking to redo the map to get two or three more.

“The key issue for me here is, they’re trying to beat the election,” House Minority Leader Terry Kilgore said.

Well, duh.

Texas Republicans carved out five more MAGA seats in a redistricting move approved earlier this year.

Missouri Rs added a seat to their side; North Carolina Rs are working through a plan to do the same.

That’s seven. Virginia would get the net down to four or five.

California is working on a plan that would move five to the Ds column, meaning, we’d be back to, basically, square.

Raise your hand if you think the whole thing, initiated by the Trumpers, a keystone to the effort to turn their 45 percent into a permanent majority, is stupid.

But, gotta fight fire with fire.

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Chris Graham

Chris Graham

Chris Graham is the founder and editor of Augusta Free Press. A 1994 alum of the University of Virginia, Chris is the author and co-author of seven books, including Poverty of Imagination, a memoir published in 2019. For his commentaries on news, sports and politics, go to his YouTube page, TikTok, BlueSky, or subscribe to Substack or his Street Knowledge podcast. Email Chris at [email protected].