As Virginia political strategists set their campaign game plans heading into this fall’s election season, 2011 is in the back of their minds. That’s because four years from now, the General Assembly will engage in the once-a-decade chore of redrawing the boundaries for all legislative and congressional districts.
The state senators voters chose in November, who all serve four-year terms, will be in office during the next redistricting round. Controlling the legislature during redistricting, which must occur after every U.S. census, pays off for the party in power. Majorities can eliminate their opposition by forcing legislators from the same party into one district or putting a foe in a district with unfriendly constituents. In 2001, for example, legislative Republicans put three Roanoke-area Democrats into one district.
The Democrats are working this year to field strong challengers to Senate Republicans, especially in Northern Virginia, hoping to pick up the four seats they need for a majority in the 40-person chamber before redistricting.They know capturing a majority will be harder in the 2011 elections, which will be the first contests with the new boundaries.
“All the Republican senators are being targeted,” said Sen. Jeannemarie Devolites Davis, R-Vienna, who is facing J. Chapman Petersen, a former delegate, in what is forecast to be a tight race.
“That’s OK. We have a lot of good challengers to run against the Democrats, too,” she said.
The House members in office for the 2011 redistricting will be elected in 2009, when all 100 seats are again on the ballot. That doesn’t mean delegates are not looking ahead to 2011, however. Democrats remember well the 2001 redistricting process when five of their House members from southern Virginia were ousted.
“They pretty much wiped out rural Democrats that year,” said Del. Brian Moran, D-Alexandria, who has introduced legislation that would create a bipartisan commission to draw the legislative districts.
“It is extremely important for us to control at least the House, Senate or governorship then,” Moran said.
