A Dem who helped push Virginia’s redistricting effort nominated a judge who did it wrong

A Virginia Democrat’s high support for his district’s redistricting referendum comes in sharp contrast after a previously appointed judge helped achieve his party’s goal of redistricting the state’s congressional districts.

Sen. Rep. Mark Warner, D-Va., who endorsed the referendum and appeared at events representing the referendum, gave $100,000 to the campaign behind Virginia Democrats’ redistricting effort, which was approved by voters in April. On Friday, judge Warner was appointed when he was governor in 2002, D. Arthur Kelsey, was among the four justices who voted to overturn the referendum on constitutional grounds. In fact, Judge Kelsey upheld the existing opinion 4-3.

The voter-approved ballot measure was poised to give Democrats a big advantage heading into November’s midterm elections, and heavily leverage Republicans in their bid for passage. However, Kelsey wrote of the existing opinion that the sequence in which the Democrats held the referendum vote violated the state Constitution, which requires that there be an intervening election between the state legislature’s first and second powers to amend the proposed constitution.

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Warner, who was Governor of Virginia from 2002 to 2006, previously appointed Kelsey, a former District Court judge, to the Virginia Court of Appeals. Kelsey served two terms before the GOP state legislature nominated him to the state Supreme Court, where Kelsey has served since 2015.

When Warner appointed Kelsey to the Virginia Court of Appeals in 2002, he praised the then-Suffolk County judge for showing “deep intelligence, a strong work ethic and a commitment to equal justice,” according to a report from Virginia Lawyers Weekly at the time.

“Although I had never met Judge Kelsey before this program began, I spoke with him extensively, reviewed many of his opinions and interviewed those who knew him well,” Warner added in 2002.

After the Virginia Supreme Court’s decision, Warner issued a press release saying he respected the decision, but added that “it is impossible to ignore that over three million Virginians have already voted on this amendment and their voices deserved to be heard.”

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Fox News Digital reached out to Warner to ask if he thought the decision was fair, but a spokesperson for the senator referred Fox News Digital to a news release about his public statement.

Justice D. Arthur Kelsey speaks during the investiture ceremony for Chief Justice Cleo E. Powell, the first African-American woman Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia, inside the Virginia Supreme Court chamber, March 2, 2026, in Richmond, Virginia. (Mike Kropf-Pool/Getty Images)

“Donald Trump thought he could tilt the field and be locked in politics before even one vote. But the people of Virginia are paying attention,” Warner said in his public statement. “They want leaders who will protect their rights, protect their freedoms, and actually focus on cutting costs and getting things done. Democrats are still going to show up this November, we’re still going to be competitive everywhere, and when the votes are counted, Virginians will send a strong message about the kind of leadership they want.”

An opinion piece written by Kelsey said the Democrats’ proposed map would replace Virginia’s current 6-5 split with a “more mixed map” expected to create a 10-1 advantage for one party.

Kelsey continued to highlight that under the new map proposed by the Democrats, about 47% of Virginians who voted for one political party during the last congressional election will end up being represented by 9% of Virginia’s delegation in the US House of Representatives, while 51% of Virginians who voted for another major political party will be represented by 91% of the congress.

Signs urge early voters to vote yes or no in Virginia’s redistricting referendum at the Ellen M. Bozman Government Center in Arlington, Va., Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

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Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger said Friday she was “disappointed” in the Supreme Court’s decision and, along with other Democrats, criticized the state Supreme Court for legalizing the will of the voters.

“More than three million Virginians voted in the Virginia redistricting referendum, and the majority of Virginia voters voted to back down against the President who said he was ‘entitled’ to get more Republican seats in Congress through a temporary and responsive referendum. They made their voices heard,” said Spanberger after the decision.

“I am disappointed by the decision of the Supreme Court of Virginia, but I as Governor will focus on making sure that all voters have the information they need to be heard in November in the midterm elections because in that election we – the voters – will have the final say.”