Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) confirmed that Virginia would use its current congressional map, drawn in 2021, rather than the Democratic-drawn map from the April referendum, in this year’s midterm elections.
Spanberger’s confirmation that the state will retain its current map for 2026, consisting of six Democratic and five Republican districts, clarifies how the Democratic governor will proceed as the litigation plays out over this year’s redraw.
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Her comments in an interview with WTOP News come just days after state Attorney General Jay Jones filed an emergency petition to the U.S. Supreme Court, requesting the justices reinstate the Democratic map approved by voters in April and struck down by the Virginia Supreme Court last week.
Spanberger told the outlet that the petition to the Supreme Court is “important, but when it comes to the execution of elections, no matter the outcome in that case, we will be running our elections beginning next month with early voting on the current maps that we have.”
She also pointed to the state’s lapsed Tuesday deadline for changes to the congressional map. Virginia’s 2026 primaries are set for Aug. 4, with early voting beginning on June 19. All of the state’s U.S. representatives are up for reelection for the midterm elections.
The redistricting debacle was bound to cause a bit of confusion either way, as some candidates had already planned on running in new districts created by the map approved by voters. That map, crafted by the Democratic state legislature, would likely have given Democrats a 10-1 advantage in the commonwealth’s congressional delegation.
“What needs to happen is we need to focus on the task at hand, which is winning races in November,” Spanberger said.
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She told the outlet that she “somewhat doggedly” believes Democrats can flip two to four GOP-held seats in Virginia’s House delegation this year.
She did not specify which seats she is eyeing, but Democrats have been vocal about targeting Reps. Rob Wittman (R-VA) and Jen Kiggans (R-VA). Wittman’s seat in Virginia’s 1st Congressional District is listed as “Leans Republican” by the Cook Political Report, while Kiggans’s seat in the state’s 2nd Congressional District is a toss-up. Kiggans is being challenged by former Rep. Elaine Luria, the Democrat whom she defeated in 2022.
