politics
Court Rulings Throw Out Virginia Election Results, Reshape House Map Battles in Virginia and Southern States
House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said back-to-back court decisions wiped out gains from a redrawn Virginia map and now endanger Black-held seats across the Deep South. Jeffries told colleagues the rulings were "disgusting" and warned of an "unprecedented assault on Black political representation" not seen since the Jim Crow era.
May 14, 7:34 AM·2m read2 sources
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Back-to-back court rulings have wiped out Democratic gains from a redrawn Virginia map and now threaten to erode Black representation by Democrats in the Deep South, resetting the battle for control of the House. House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries had warned Republicans they would come to regret the congressional redistricting fight.
When Democrats counterpunched last month with a redrawn Virginia map, the net tally of seats gained and lost was a wash.
“F— around and find out,” Jeffries said after the election victory. In a matter of days the race for the House majority and the speaker’s gavel was dramatically reset. The Virginia Supreme Court tossed last month's election results.
Democrats had been favored to win back the House this November. Jeffries’ aligned outside group has spent some $60 million, much of it on Virginia alone.
Jeffries, who is in line to make history as America’s first Black speaker of the House, acknowledged that Democrats may need to flip twice as many Republican seats — a total gain of six rather than just three — to win the majority. He noted that Democrats picked up seats in the 2018 midterm elections during Trump's first term.
” He warned colleagues that Republicans would proceed with “diabolical intensity” in their campaigns.
Jeffries told House Democrats “Failure is not an option. ” Republicans hold a slim majority in the House, among the most narrow in modern House history. Trump said last summer that Republicans were “entitled” to five more GOP seats from Texas.
