The "Richmond Dudes For Democrats" gathered in Henrico County on Tuesday night to watch election returns on MSNOW. To add entertainment value, they had a raffle for who could guess when the election would be called.
"It's been called?" one person asked.
"It's been called!" another answered, before cheers erupted.
It was 8:44 p.m. when the network called the race in favor of a Democrat-led plan to redraw Virginia's congressional districts. The Associated Press, which VPM News uses for election decisions, declared a victory for Yes five minutes later. (Click here for more on the referendum results.)
Earlier in the evening, Del. Rodney Willett (D–Henrico) addressed the so-called Dudes.
"I did not wake up back in October and say, 'I really feel like changing the constitution today for no good reason,'" said Willett, who carried the legislation to amend the Virginia Constitution and enable the redraw. "But when a bully punches you in the face — not twice, but three or four times — at some point, you got to fight back."
Virginia Democrats, broadly speaking, made the election about President Donald Trump throughout the campaign and in their victory statements. Last summer, Trump first sparked a nationwide wave of gerrymandering when he urged Republican-led states, including Texas, to redraw election maps that would help the GOP maintain control of the US House of Representatives.
As it stands Wednesday, Republicans hold a 217–213 majority in the US House, with one independent and four vacancies. Democrats' redistricting campaign emphasized the need to take control of Congress and check what they see as Trump's abuse of power.
"Tonight, Virginians sent a message heard across this country: we will not let Donald Trump or MAGA Republicans rig our democracy," said Virginia House Speaker Don Scott (D–Portsmouth) in a statement.
Reactions from Virginia Republicans focused on ongoing litigation: Multiple pending lawsuits seek to stop the referendum's outcome. And while the Supreme Court of Virginia denied attempts to keep the vote from going forward, now that the ballot measure has passed, the court will weigh in on those challenges — including whether a Tazewell County judge correctly ruled in January that Virginia Democrats violated state law in their attempt to get the amendment in front of voters in time for the 2026 federal midterm elections.
"Tonight marks the end of the campaign. It does not mark the end of this fight," said Del.Terry Kilgore (R–Gate City), the House minority leader, in a statement. "But the ballot box was never the final word here. Serious legal questions remain about both the wording of this referendum and the process used to put it before voters. Those questions have not been resolved, and they now move where they belong: to the courts."
Republican Party of Virginia Chairman Jeff Ryer expressed confidence about the ongoing legal challenges that still loom over Tuesday's results. But if the Democrat-led map survives those lawsuits, Virginia's sitting GOP members of Congress will need to file to run in the new districts.
"We do have candidates who are running in the old district that will undoubtedly evaluate their circumstances over the course of the next several days," Ryer told VPM News. "Our goal will be to get a full slate of candidates in all 11 districts and do everything the party can to support them, probably building upon some of the foundations that you saw over the course of the last several weeks."
Even before Tuesday ended, some Democrats who had previously lined up midterm bids also announced intentions to run in the new districts. Adam Dunigan, who has been running to replace Rep. Don Beyer in the current 8th District, said in a statement he would run in the newly drawn 7th District. Salaam Bhatti, who is running in the 1st Congressional District, said he would run in the newly drawn 5th CD if the result is upheld.
Scott said that Virginia changed the trajectory of the midterms.
"At a moment when Trump and his allies are trying to lock in power before voters have a say, Virginians stepped up and leveled the playing field for the entire country," he said in his statement.
At the No campaign's watch party in Chesterfield, Ryer addressed a small group of supporters in a private room scattered with "No Rigged Maps" posters.
He told VPM News that while it was not a victory, he thought Tuesday was a "positive result" for Virginia Republicans after sweeping election losses last year, arguing the close vote showed the party could unite around one cause.
"It's clearly a lot closer than anybody would have anticipated even three weeks ago," he said.
Anti-gerrymandering campaigner Brian Cannon said the results sent a "powerful" message on Virginians' attitudes on redistricting.
"Over a million Virginians stood up against a partisan power grab," said Cannon, co-chair of No Gerrymandering Virginia's advisory council, in an emailed statement. "The extraordinary lengths the pro-gerrymandering side had to resort to to secure that small percentage of a win shows that Virginians really don't want gerrymandering."
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