The Virginia Supreme Court strikes down the Democrats’ redistricting map 4-3
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Republicans erupted in cheers and jeers after the Virginia Supreme Court issued a stinging sentence for Democrats’ hasty efforts to remove all but one Republican from the Old Dominion congressional delegation — the lead plaintiff in the case told Fox News Digital that the decision vindicated the plan’s critics.
The Virginia Supreme Court issued a 4-3 decision to overturn the Democrats’ major redistricting effort, as Justice D. Arthur Kelsey directly called out Attorney General Jay Jones and said the failure of the Democratic-led legislature to properly follow state law during its redistricting amendment – including the “inappropriate election clause” – was the reason for April’s party vote or popular politics.
The celebration erupted as soon as Republicans and supporters of “Vote NO” mocked the architect of the so-called “gerrymander”, Senate President Pro Tem Lillie Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, whose office and cannabis plant were raided by the FBI earlier this week.
Former Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, a Republican, and former AG Jason Miyares, who led the charge against the re-ban, celebrated with a storm of analysis within the time frame of the decision.
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Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger speaks during the Virginians For Fair Elections campaign event in Woodbridge, Va., on April 18, 2026. (Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Cuccinelli mocked Lucas, who often attacked anti-restriction critics like Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, also portrayed the Virginia GOP delegation as future McDonald’s workers or people being voted out of a possible chairmanship.
“BTW [by the way] the vote was 4-3 – maybe Senator Lucas will sell ‘4 f’in 3’ t-shirts or maybe 6-f’in-5 t-shirts.”
“The court explains its decision not to intervene before the referendum, and cites an exchange with Justice Russell at the beginning of oral argument about the outcome (ie, “yes” winning by 3 pts) where [Jones’] the lawyer admitted that the result does not matter,” Cuccinelli added in one of several tweets.
Virginia Senate Minority Leader Ryan McDougle, R-Hanover, the lead plaintiff in the case, told Fox News Digital that the entire country should applaud the court.
“The Supreme Court’s decision today confirms what we all know: you can’t violate the Constitution to change the Constitution,” McDougle told Fox News Digital.
“The Judges of the Supreme Court of Virginia after careful and careful consideration of this matter affirmed that even the General Assembly must follow the law. This decision is not biased – it is in accordance with the constitution. The law is the foundation of our Commonwealth, and today it is preserved.”
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“Every Virginian wins,” he said.
Democratic Alliance President Pro Tempore Sen. L. Louise Lucas listens to speakers during a session in the Senate Chambers at the Virginia State Capitol in Richmond on Feb. 18, 2026. (Kendall Warner/The Virginian-Pilot via Getty Images)
McDougle’s colleague in the lower house – House Minority Leader Terry Kilgore of Gate City – added that “you can’t break the law. [state] To amend the Constitution.”
“Today’s decision reaffirms that the Virginia Constitution means what it says. The law requires Virginians to have an opportunity to review a constitutional amendment before they vote in the House of Delegates in a meaningful way,” Kilgore told Fox News Digital.
Rep. Ben Cline of Botetourt, one of the Republican congressmen poised to be unseated by the new map, called the court’s decision “the right decision.”
“It was going to end up like this,” Cline said.
“Democrats broke the rules they helped write in the first place, wasted the deadline, wrote a biased and misleading question, and lied to voters in all their advertising to support the referendum,” Cline said.
The lawmaker said voters previously ruled out “gerrymandering” in their 2020 decision to create an independent commission to draw annual maps.
“This is a great day for fair and legal elections, and a great day for the Commonwealth of Virginia.”
Some observers noted that Kelsey was nominated by Democratic Senator Mark Warner, a former governor who supported the ban.
GLENN YOUNGKIN ACCUSES GOV SPANBERGER OF ‘UNLAWFUL AND UNCONSTITUTIONAL’ GERRYMANDERING IN VIRGINIA MAP FIGHT
State Sen. Ryan McDougle, R-Hanover, delivers remarks on the floor of the Virginia Senate regarding a proposed mid-decade redistricting amendment during the General Assembly session Tuesday, January 27, 2026 in Richmond, Virginia. (Shaban Athuman/VPM News)
Former Gov. Glenn Youngkin added that “justice has been served” and that Gov. Abigail Spanberger, Lucas and others “knowingly violated our constitution to exclude millions of Virginians.”
“The Constitution prevailed, and the people of Virginia will never forget this illegal attempt to deprive them of their voice in Congress.”
Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts called the decision a major legislative victory and described the failed gerrymander effort as “a blatant usurpation of Governor Spanberger’s power to silence the voices of half of Virginians in Congress.”
Sen. Timothy Kaine, D-Va., however, was not celebrating.
The governor, who has been critical of the court, said that unlike Republican-led states that use “room deals” to redraw maps, Richmond has taken its plan directly to voters.
“[T]he Supreme Court of Virginia blocked the people’s choice. So we have to campaign and win on their maps. We can do it,” he said.
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Fox News Digital has reached out to Spanberger for comment.
It remains to be seen what avenues are available for Democrats to seek relief from the US Supreme Court.
