Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell on Monday announced that he will create a bipartisan commission to oversee the state’s redistricting this year, a process that will undoubtedly affect lawmakers in Northern Virginia looking to hold onto their seats in 2011 and 2012. The commission, tasked with crafting redistricting plans to forward to the General Assembly based on 2010 census data, consists of 11 members, including former state lawmakers and former judges. Bob Holsworth, a longtime Virginia political analyst and founder of the nonpartisan Web site VirginiaTomorrow.com, will be chairman of the panel. “As Virginia redraws its legislative districts later this year, the process should take place in a manner that is fair and open,” said McDonnell, who pledged in the 2009 campaign to make redistricting more bipartisan.
Redistricting stands to have wide-ranging implications for fast-growing Northern Virginia, which is poised to gain additional representation in the state House and Senate.
