A federal court on Thursday approved new district boundaries for the Virginia House of Delegates that were drawn by a court-appointed expert and are likely to benefit Democrats in November’s state election. The U.S. District Court for Eastern District of Virginia voted 2 to 1 to finalize the map, which would put six Republicans into districts that would probably become majority Democratic, according to an analysis of recent elections by the nonpartisan Virginia Public Access Project. Several of those Republicans hold leadership positions — including House Speaker Kirk Cox (R-Colonial Heights).
Federal judges ruled last year that 11 of Virginia’s House of Delegates districts in the Richmond and Hampton Roads areas were racially gerrymandered — designed to concentrate black voters and deprive them of representation. After the General Assembly failed to agree on a redistricting plan last fall, the judges appointed Bernard Grofman, a professor at the University of California at Irvine, to draw new boundaries.
Republicans hold slim majorities in the Senate — at 21 to 19 — and the House, which is split 51 to 48 with one seat open for a special election in a district previously held by a Democrat.
Full Article: Federal court approves Virginia redistricting plan – The Washington Post.