Virginia Question 1, Redistricting Commission Amendment (2020)

Virginia Question 1
Election date November 3, 2020
Topic Redistricting measures
Status a Approved
Type Constitutional amendment	Origin State legislature
List of Virginia ballot measuresVirginia Question 1Virginia Question 2Submit

Virginia Question 1, the Redistricting Commission Amendment, was on the ballot in Virginia as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment on November 3, 2020. Question 1 was approved.

A "yes" vote supported transferring the power to draw the state's congressional and legislative districts from the state legislature to a redistricting commission composed of state legislators and citizens.

A "no" vote opposed transferring the power to draw the state's congressional and legislative districts to a redistricting commission, thus keeping the state legislature responsible for redistricting.

Election results

Virginia Question 1
Result		Votes	Percentage
Yes		2,770,489	65.69%
No		1,447,279	34.31%

Results are officially certified.

Source

Overview

What was the redistricting system in Virginia in 2020?

See also: Redistricting in Virginia

As of 2020, the Virginia General Assembly was responsible for drawing the state's congressional and state legislative district boundaries. The redistricting plans were passed as legislation and subject to the governor's veto power. Prior to 2020, the last time that the legislature adopted state legislative districts was in 2011, which followed the 2010 U.S. Census. In 2011, Republicans controlled the state House, and Democrats controlled the state Senate. The last time that the legislature adopted congressional districts was in 2012, when Republicans controlled the state House, state Senate, and governor's office, thus holding a trifecta in state government.

What did the ballot measure change about redistricting in Virginia?

See also: Changes to Virginia Constitution

Question 1 transferred the power to draw both congressional and state legislative districts to a 16-member redistricting commission composed of eight legislators and eight citizens.

Leaders of the legislature's two-largest political parties were to select members to serve on the commission. Using the membership in 2020 as an example, the commission's legislative members would have included two Senate Democrats, two Senate Republicans, two House Democrats, and two House Republicans. The commission's eight citizen members were to be recommended by legislative leaders and selected by a committee of five retired circuit court judges. Commissioners were to select one of the eight citizens to serve as chairperson of the redistricting commission.

Question 1 was designed to require the following votes by the redistricting commission to pass district maps:

• Congressional: Approval by 12 commissioners, including 6 of 8 legislators and 6 of 8 citizens.

• Virginia State Senate: Approval by 12 commissioners, including 6 of 8 legislators (with the support of 3 of 4 senators) and 6 of 8 citizens.

• Virginia House of Delegates: Approval by 12 commissioners, including 6 of 8 legislators (with the support of 3 of 4 delegates) and 6 of 8 citizens.

The redistricting commission's maps were to be filed with the General Assembly, which would vote to pass the maps into law or reject them. The General Assembly was prohibited from amending the maps. If the General Assembly rejected a map, the redistricting commission was to design a new map. If the map was rejected again, the Virginia Supreme Court was to establish the districts.

Under Question 1, what are the criteria for drawing districts?

See also: Law governing redistricting criteria

Question 1 was designed to establish two criteria that the commission would use to draw districts: (1) districts need to be drawn in accordance with "the requirements of federal and state laws that address racial and ethnic fairness federal and state laws that address racial and ethnic fairness," including the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and provisions of the Voting Rights Act, and (2) districts need to "provide, where practicable, opportunities for racial and ethnic communities to elect candidates of their choice."

During the 2020 legislative session, the Virginia General Assembly passed bills that established criteria and standards in state code. The legislation included the following nine criteria: (1) proportional population; (2) adhering to federal and state requirements; (3) no denial or abridgment of the rights of citizens to vote, participate in the political process, or elect representatives of their choice on the basis of race, color, or language group; (4) providing racial and language minorities with equal opportunity to participate in the political process and not diluting or diminishing their ability to elect candidates of their choice; (5) preserving communities of interest; (6) contiguous territory; (7) compact territory; (8) does not unduly favor or disfavor any political party; and (9) population used in redistricting to be adjusted for incarcerated persons, counting them at their address at the time of incarceration.

Text of measure

Ballot question

The ballot question was as follows:

“

Should the Constitution of Virginia be amended to establish a redistricting commission, consisting of eight members of the General Assembly and eight citizens of the Commonwealth, that is responsible for drawing the congressional and state legislative districts that will be subsequently voted on, but not changed by, the General Assembly and enacted without the Governor's involvement and to give the responsibility of drawing districts to the Supreme Court of Virginia if the redistricting commission fails to draw districts or the General Assembly fails to enact districts by certain deadlines?

”

Constitutional changes

See also: Article II, Virginia Constitution

The measure amended Section 6 and added a new section, Section 6-A, to Article II of the Virginia Constitution. The following underlined text was added and struck-through text was deleted:

Note: Use your mouse to scroll over the text below to see the full text.

Section 6. Apportionment.

Members of the House of Representatives of the United States and members of the Senate and of the House of Delegates of the General Assembly shall be elected from electoral districts established by the General Assembly pursuant to Section 6-A of this Constitution. Every electoral district shall be composed of contiguous and compact territory and shall be so constituted as to give, as nearly as is practicable, representation in proportion to the population of the district. Every electoral district shall be drawn in accordance with the requirements of federal and state laws that address racial and ethnic fairness, including the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States and provisions of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, as amended, and judicial decisions interpreting such laws. Districts shall provide, where practicable, opportunities for racial and ethnic communities to elect candidates of their choice.

The General Assembly shall reapportion the Commonwealth shall be reapportioned into electoral districts in accordance with this section and Section 6-A in the year 2011 2021 and every ten years thereafter.

Any such decennial reapportionment law shall take effect immediately and not be subject to the limitations contained in Article IV, Section 13, of this Constitution.

The districts delineated in the decennial reapportionment law shall be implemented for the November general election for the United States House of Representatives, Senate, or House of Delegates, respectively, that is held immediately prior to the expiration of the term being served in the year that the reapportionment law is required to be enacted. A member in office at the time that a decennial redistricting law is enacted shall complete his term of office and shall continue to represent the district from which he was elected for the duration of such term of office so long as he does not move his residence from the district from which he was elected. Any vacancy occurring during such term shall be filled from the same district that elected the member whose vacancy is being filled.

Section 6-A. Virginia Redistricting Commission.

(a) In the year 2020 and every ten years thereafter, the Virginia Redistricting Commission (the Commission) shall be convened for the purpose of establishing districts for the United States House of Representatives and for the Senate and the House of Delegates of the General Assembly pursuant to Article II, Section 6 of this Constitution.

(b) The Commission shall consist of sixteen commissioners who shall be selected in accordance with the provisions of this subsection.

(1) Eight commissioners shall be legislative members, four of whom shall be members of the Senate of Virginia and four of whom shall be members of the House of Delegates. These commissioners shall be appointed no later than December 1 of the year ending in zero and shall continue to serve until their successors are appointed.

(A) Two commissioners shall represent the political party having the highest number of members in the Senate of Virginia and shall be appointed by the President pro tempore of the Senate of Virginia.

(B) Two commissioners shall represent the political party having the next highest number of members in the Senate of Virginia and shall be appointed by the leader of that political party.

(C) Two commissioners shall represent the political party having the highest number of members in the House of Delegates and shall be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Delegates.

(D) Two commissioners shall represent the political party having the next highest number of members in the House of Delegates and shall be appointed by the leader of that political party.

(2) Eight commissioners shall be citizen members who shall be selected in accordance with the provisions of this subdivision and in the manner determined by the General Assembly by general law.

(A) There shall be a Redistricting Commission Selection Committee (the Committee) consisting of five retired judges of the circuit courts of Virginia. By November 15 of the year ending in zero, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia shall certify to the Speaker of the House of Delegates, the leader in the House of Delegates of the political party having the next highest number of members in the House of Delegates, the President pro tempore of the Senate of Virginia, and the leader in the Senate of Virginia of the political party having the next highest number of members in the Senate a list of retired judges of the circuit courts of Virginia who are willing to serve on the Committee, and these members shall each select a judge from the list. The four judges selected to serve on the Committee shall select, by a majority vote, a judge from the list prescribed herein to serve as the fifth member of the Committee and to serve as the chairman of the Committee.

(B) By January 1 of the year ending in one, the Speaker of the House of Delegates, the leader in the House of Delegates of the political party having the next highest number of members in the House of Delegates, the President pro tempore of the Senate of Virginia, and the leader in the Senate of the political party having the next highest number of members in the Senate shall each submit to the Committee a list of at least sixteen citizen candidates for service on the Commission. Such citizen candidates shall meet the criteria established by the General Assembly by general law.

The Committee shall select, by a majority vote, two citizen members from each list submitted. No member or employee of the Congress of the United States or of the General Assembly shall be eligible to serve as a citizen member.

(c) By February 1 of the year ending in one, the Commission shall hold a public meeting at which it shall select a chairman from its membership. The chairman shall be a citizen member and shall be responsible for coordinating the work of the Commission.

(d) The Commission shall submit to the General Assembly plans for districts for the Senate and the House of Delegates of the General Assembly no later than 45 days following the receipt of census data and shall submit to the General Assembly plans for districts for the United States House of Representatives no later than 60 days following the receipt of census data or by the first day of July of that year, whichever occurs later.

(1) To be submitted as a proposed plan for districts for members of the United States House of Representatives, a plan shall receive affirmative votes of at least six of the eight legislative members and six of the eight citizen members.

(2) To be submitted as a proposed plan for districts for members of the Senate, a plan shall receive affirmative votes of at least six of the eight legislative members, including at least three of the four legislative members who are members of the Senate, and at least six of the eight citizen members.

(3) To be submitted as a proposed plan for districts for members of the House of Delegates, a plan shall receive affirmative votes of at least six of the eight legislative members, including at least three of the four legislative members who are members of the House of Delegates, and at least six of the eight citizen members.

(e) Plans for districts for the Senate and the House of Delegates shall be embodied in and voted on as a single bill. The vote on any bill embodying a plan for districts shall be taken in accordance with the provisions of Article IV, Section 11 of this Constitution, except that no amendments shall be permitted. Such bills shall not be subject to the provisions contained in Article V, Section 6 of this Constitution.

(f) Within fifteen days of receipt of a plan for districts, the General Assembly shall take a vote on the bill embodying that plan in accordance with the provisions of subsection (e). If the General Assembly fails to adopt such bill by this deadline, the Commission shall submit a new plan for districts to the General Assembly within fourteen days of the General Assembly's failure to adopt the bill. The General Assembly shall take a vote on the bill embodying such plan within seven days of receipt of the plan. If the General Assembly fails to adopt such bill by this deadline, the districts shall be established by the Supreme Court of Virginia.

(g) If the Commission fails to submit a plan for districts by the deadline set forth in subsection (d), the Commission shall have fourteen days following its initial failure to submit a plan to the General Assembly. If the Commission fails to submit a plan for districts to the General Assembly by this deadline, the districts shall be established by the Supreme Court of Virginia.

If the Commission submits a plan for districts within fourteen days following its initial failure to submit a plan, the General Assembly shall take a vote on the bill embodying such plan within seven days of its receipt. If the General Assembly fails to adopt such bill by this deadline, the districts shall be established by the Supreme Court of Virginia.

(h) All meetings of the Commission shall be open to the public. Prior to proposing any redistricting plans and prior to voting on redistricting plans, the Commission shall hold at least three public hearings in different parts of the Commonwealth to receive and consider comments from the public.

(i) All records and documents of the Commission, or any individual or group performing delegated functions of or advising the Commission, related to the Commission's work, including internal communications and communications from outside parties, shall be considered public information.

Readability score

See also: Ballot measure readability scores, 2020

Using the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL and Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) formulas, Ballotpedia scored the readability of the ballot title and summary for this measure. Readability scores are designed to indicate the reading difficulty of text. The Flesch-Kincaid formulas account for the number of words, syllables, and sentences in a text; they do not account for the difficulty of the ideas in the text. The state legislature wrote the ballot language for this measure. The FKGL for the ballot title is grade level 42, and the FRE is -45. The word count for the ballot title is 89, and the estimated reading time is 23 seconds.

Support

Fair Maps Virginia led the campaign in support of Question 1. OneVirginia2021, a nonprofit organization, launched the campaign.

Supporters

Officials

• U.S. Senator Tim Kaine (D)
• U.S. Representative Donald Sternoff Beyer Jr. (D)
• State Senator Adam Ebbin (D)
• State Senator Barbara Favola (D)
• State Senator Janet Howell (D)
• State Senator Mamie Locke (D)
• State Senator Louise Lucas (D)
• State Senator Jennifer McClellan (D)
• House Delegate Rob Bell (R)
• House Delegate Kathy Byron (R)
• House Delegate Ronnie Campbell (R)
• House Delegate Mark Cole (R)
• House Delegate Kirk Cox (R)
• House Delegate Matt Fariss (R)
• House Delegate Buddy Fowler (R)
• House Delegate Barry Knight (R)
• House Delegate Jay Leftwich (R)
• House Delegate Danny Marshall (R)
• House Delegate Joseph McNamara (R)
• House Delegate Jason Miyares (R)
• House Delegate Ken Plum (D)
• House Delegate Charles Poindexter (R)
• House Delegate Chris Runion (R)
• House Delegate Schuyler VanValkenburg (D)
• House Delegate Wendell Walker (R)
• House Delegate Michael Webert (R)
• House Delegate Tony Wilt (R)

Former Officials

• Former Governor George Allen (R)
• Former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder

Organizations

• AARP Virginia
• ACLU of Virginia
• Action Now Initiative
• Brennan Center For Justice
• Common Cause
• FairVote
• League of Women Voters of Virginia
• Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce
• Represent.Us
• State Government Leadership Foundation
• Unite America
• Virginia League of Conservation Voters

Arguments

• U.S. Rep. Don Beyer (D-8): "If this proposal is approved, Virginia would make history in creating the commonwealth’s first redistricting commission — a plan that would finally include citizens at the table when legislative lines are drawn after the 2020 Census. What’s more, the commission would require publicly available data for all meetings and a supermajority of members for approval of district maps. Put simply, this amendment is an enormous improvement on the undemocratic system Virginia has had for centuries."
• Virginia Commonwealth Caucus: "The constitutional amendment and redistricting commission would establish the clearest, fairest and least political mechanism for drawing fair districts in Virginia’s 400-year legislative history."
• Del. Ken Plum (D-36): "The partisan grip of one party over the redistricting process has dictated the legislative outcome of so many issues over the decades first by Democrats and more recently in the last two decades by Republicans. This abuse of political power increased in the public mind the need for a change in the process of drawing legislative boundary lines. ... The old way of doing business also resulted in overt racial discrimination in the business of government. The new amendment addresses that concern directly: Every electoral district shall be drawn in accordance with the requirements of federal and state laws that address racial and ethnic fairness, including the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States and provisions of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, as amended, and judicial decisions interpreting such laws. Districts shall provide, where practicable, opportunities for racial and ethnic communities to elect candidates of their choice."
• Brian Cannon, executive director of OneVirginia2021: "Although this bipartisan plan does not reflect every provision we urged in our original proposal, make no mistake: This reform will end partisan gerrymandering in Virginia."

Opposition

Fair Districts led the campaign in opposition to Question 1.

Opponents

Officials

• State Senator Scott Surovell (D)
• House Delegate Lashrecse Aird (D)
• House Delegate Lamont Bagby (D)
• House Delegate Patrick Hope (D)
• House Delegate Mark Levine (D)
• House Delegate Marcia Price (D)
• House Delegate Mark Sickles (D)
• House Delegate Marcus Simon (D)

Political Parties

• Arlington County Democratic Committee
• Democratic Party of Virginia
• Fairfax County Democratic Committee

Organizations

• New Virginia Majority
• Progress Virginia
• Virginia NAACP

Arguments

• Del. Lamont Bagby (D-74), chairman of Legislative Black Caucus: "I don’t think its better than what we have now and in fact I think it takes a step back because now at least we have African Americans at the table and in the room. I would be willing to bet this reform will lead to African Americans not even being involved in the process."
• Del. Marcia Price (D-95): "To think that in the middle of the political climate that we are in and all the racial equity talk that we have heard, we’d move forward with a proposed constitutional amendment with language that does not protect the voters who clearly need to be protected. I think is a major overstep and a major misstep."
• Del. Mark Levine (D-45): "Requiring only two legislators to shelve its non-independent commission, map-drawing power could devolve quickly to the Virginia Supreme Court. ... I fear any “democracy” in which control of the legislature is chosen by judges who were chosen by a legislature that was chosen by the judges chosen by the legislature in a never-ending loop that permanently circumvents voters. ... I’m now convinced the proposed amendment is worse than imperfect: It could lock in partisan gerrymandering forever."
• Del. Lashrecse Aird (D-63): "There’s a false sense that this amendment is non-partisan redistricting or independent redistricting, when the reality is it is neither. Working with others, we will make sure that voters know that a yes vote on Amendment 1 will guarantee politicians will not only be involved in the redistricting process, but will still control the redistricting progress. We believe that voters should pick their representatives, not the other way around. To be able to make that happen, voters must vote no this November and push for a truly non-partisan and independent redistricting progress."
• Robert N. Barnette, president of the Virginia NAACP: "Voters should choose their elected officials, not the other way around. But for too many years, politicians have drawn rigged districts that strip Black voters of our voice. We need to reform the system, not make it worse. Any redistricting amendment must include explicit and strong protections for Black voters and voters of color."

Campaign finance

The FairMapsVirginia PAC and Conservatives for Redistricting Reform were registered to support the ballot measure. The committees had raised $2.56 million, including $1.13 million from Unite America.

The Fair Districts PAC was registered to oppose the ballot measure. The committee had raised $132,792.

	Cash Contributions	In-Kind Contributions	Total Contributions	Cash Expenditures	Total Expenditures
Support	$2,537,829.94	$25,830.37	$2,563,660.31	$2,576,816.89	$2,602,647.26
Oppose	$96,704.63	$36,087.03	$132,791.66	$100,178.53	$136,265.56
Total	$2,634,534.57	$61,917.40	$2,696,451.97	$2,676,995.42	$2,738,912.82

Support

The following table includes contribution and expenditure totals for the committee in support of the ballot initiative.

Committees in support of Question 1
Committee	Cash Contributions	In-Kind Contributions	Total Contributions	Cash Expenditures	Total Expenditures
FairMapsVirginia	$2,409,129.94	$23,985.47	$2,433,115.41	$2,448,116.89	$2,472,102.36
Conservatives for Redistricting Reform	$128,700.00	$1,844.90	$130,544.90	$128,700.00	$130,544.90
Total	$2,537,829.94	$25,830.37	$2,563,660.31	$2,576,816.89	$2,602,647.26

Donors

The following were the top donors to the support committee.

Donor	Cash Contributions	In-Kind Contributions	Total Contributions
Unite America	$1,125,000.00	$2,500.00	$1,127,500.00
Action Now Initiative	$555,567.00	$5,000.00	$560,567.00
Jeff Chambers	$150,000.00	$0.00	$150,000.00
Unite and Renew Fund, Inc.	$150,000.00	$0.00	$150,000.00
OneVirginia2021	$75,000.00	$444.70	$75,444.70
State Government Leadership Foundation	$75,000.00	$0.00	$75,000.00

Opposition

The following table includes contribution and expenditure totals for the committee in opposition to the ballot initiative.

Committees in opposition to Question 1
Committee	Cash Contributions	In-Kind Contributions	Total Contributions	Cash Expenditures	Total Expenditures
Fair Districts	$96,704.63	$36,087.03	$132,791.66	$100,178.53	$136,265.56
Total	$96,704.63	$36,087.03	$132,791.66	$100,178.53	$136,265.56

Donors

The following were the top donors to the opposition committee.

Donor	Cash Contributions	In-Kind Contributions	Total Contributions
New Virginia Majority	$25,000.00	$6,000.00	$31,000.00
ProgressNow	$0.00	$29,700.00	$29,700.00
Hines, Cragg	$5,100.00	$0.00	$5,100.00
Dwoskin, Albert	$5,000.00	$0.00	$5,000.00
Galdo-Hirst, Magaly	$5,000.00	$0.00	$5,000.00
Hirst, Thomson	$5,000.00	$0.00	$5,000.00
Omeechevarria, Alberto	$5,000.00	$0.00	$5,000.00
Rice, Edward	$5,000.00	$0.00	$5,000.00
Rice, Nancy	$5,000.00	$0.00	$5,000.00

Media editorials

Support

The following media editorial boards published an editorial supporting the ballot measure:

• The Washington Post Editorial Board: "Virginians who cast a ballot this fall face what may be a once-in-a-lifetime chance to dampen political opportunism and manipulation in the process by which their state legislative and congressional districts are drawn. They should seize it by voting “yes” on Constitutional Amendment 1... A dozen or so states have adopted some form of redistricting reform in recent years; Virginia’s is as good or better than most. It allows bright sunshine into a procedure that has been shielded from scrutiny and promotes balance in place of blatant power politics."

Opposition

Ballotpedia had not identified media editorial boards in opposition to the ballot measure.

Background

Redistricting in Virginia

See also: Redistricting in Virginia

In Virginia, the state legislature is responsible for drawing congressional and state legislative district boundaries. These lines are subject to the governor's veto power. The Virginia Constitution requires that congressional and state legislative districts be compact and contiguous.

Redistricting after the 2010 census

See also: Redistricting in Virginia after the 2010 census

In 2011, the Virginia General Assembly had divided partisan control. Republicans controlled the Virginia House of Delegates. Democrats controlled the Virginia State Senate. The Joint Reapportionment Committee included four Republicans and four Democrats. Legislators agreed to a state legislative redistricting map in 2011, but a congressional redistricting plan was not completed before the election on November 8, 2011. Republicans took control of the Senate, and retained control of the House, at the election. In 2012, a congressional redistricting plan was passed, and Gov. Bob McDonnell signed the legislation on January 25, 2012.

Law governing redistricting criteria

During the 2020 legislative session of the Virginia General Assembly, two identical bills—House Bill 1255 and Senate Bill 7171—regarding redistricting criteria were approved. The legislation stated that congressional and state legislative districts needed to adhere to the following criteria:

“

1. Districts shall be so constituted as to give, as nearly as is practicable, representation in proportion to the population of the district. A deviation of no more than five percent shall be permitted for state legislative districts. 2. Districts shall be drawn in accordance with the requirements of the Constitution of the United States, including the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, and the Constitution of Virginia; federal and state laws, including the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965, as amended; and relevant judicial decisions relating to racial and ethnic fairness. 3. No district shall be drawn that results in a denial or abridgement of the right of any citizen to vote on account of race or color or membership in a language minority group. No district shall be drawn that results in a denial or abridgement of the rights of any racial or language minority group to participate in the political process and to elect representatives of their choice. A violation of this subdivision is established if, on the basis of the totality of the circumstances, it is shown that districts were drawn in such a way that members of a racial or language minority group are dispersed into districts in which they constitute an ineffective minority of voters or are concentrated into districts where they constitute an excessive majority. The extent to which members of a racial or language minority group have been elected to office in the state or the political subdivision is one circumstance that may be considered. Nothing in this subdivision shall establish a right to have members of a racial or language minority group elected in numbers equal to their proportion in the population. 4. Districts shall be drawn to give racial and language minorities an equal opportunity to participate in the political process and shall not dilute or diminish their ability to elect candidates of choice either alone or in coalition with others. 5. Districts shall be drawn to preserve communities of interest. For purposes of this subdivision, a "community of interest" means a neighborhood or any geographically defined group of people living in an area who share similar social, cultural, and economic interests. A "community of interest" does not include a community based upon political affiliation or relationship with a political party, elected official, or candidate for office. 6. Districts shall be composed of contiguous territory, with no district contiguous only by connections by water running downstream or upriver, and political boundaries may be considered. 7. Districts shall be composed of compact territory and shall be drawn employing one or more standard numerical measures of individual and average district compactness, both statewide and district by district. 8. A map of districts shall not, when considered on a statewide basis, unduly favor or disfavor any political party. 9. The whole number of persons reported in the most recent federal decennial census by the United States Bureau of the Census shall be the basis for determining district populations, except that no person shall be deemed to have gained or lost a residence by reason of conviction and incarceration in a federal, state, or local correctional facility. Persons incarcerated in a federal, state, or local correctional facility shall be counted in the locality of their address at the time of incarceration, and the Division of Legislative Services shall adjust the census data pursuant to §24.2-314 for this purpose.

”

Procedures for congressional redistricting in U.S.

Most states are required to draw new congressional district lines every 10 years following completion of United States Census (those states comprising one congressional district are not required to redistrict). In 33 of these states, state legislatures play the dominant role in congressional redistricting. In nine states, commissions draw congressional district lines. In two states, hybrid systems are used, in which the legislatures share redistricting authority with commissions. The remaining states comprise one congressional district each, rendering redistricting unnecessary. See the map and table below for further details.

Procedures for state legislative redistricting in U.S.

In 34 of the 50 states, state legislatures play the dominant role in state legislative redistricting. Commissions draw state legislative district lines in 14 states. In two states, hybrid systems are used, in which state legislature share redistricting authority with commissions. See the map and table below for further details.

Election policy on the ballot in 2020

In 2020, voters in 14 states voted on 18 ballot measures addressing election-related policies. One of the measures addressed campaign finance, one were related to election dates, five addressed election systems, three addressed redistricting, five addressed suffrage, and three addressed term limits.

Click Show to read details about the election-related measures on statewide ballots in 2020.

Election-related policy ballot measures in 2020

Campaign finance See also: Campaign finance on the ballot a Oregon Measure 107: Measure 107 authorizes the state legislature and local governments to (1) enact laws or ordinances limiting campaign contributions and expenditures; (2) require disclosure of contributions and expenditures; and (3) require that political advertisements identify the people or entities that paid for them. Going into the election, Oregon was one of five states with no limits on campaign contributions. Election dates a New Mexico Constitutional Amendment 2: The amendment allowed the state legislature to pass laws adjusting the election dates of state or county officeholders and adjusting office terms according to those date changes. Under the measure, laws proposing adjustments to election dates of non-statewide officeholders must be supported by a legislative finding that such a change would promote consistency or that it would evenly distribute the number of offices appearing on the ballot. Election systems a Alaska Ballot Measure 2: Ballot Measure 2 replaced the state's partisan primaries with open top-four primaries for state executive, state legislative, and congressional offices and established ranked-choice voting for general elections, including the presidential election, in which voters would rank the candidates. Ballot Measure 2 also required persons and entities that contribute more than $2,000 that were themselves derived from donations, contributions, dues, or gifts to disclose the true sources, as defined in the law, of the political contributions. a Colorado Proposition 113: In 2019, the Colorado State Legislature passed a bill to add Colorado to the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC). NPVIC member states have agreed to give the state’s electoral votes to the presidential candidate who wins the national popular vote, provided the NPVIC goes into effect. The NPVIC was designed to go into effect if states representing at least 270 electoral votes join the NPVIC. The campaign Protect Colorado's Vote filed a veto referendum to overturn the law, which resulted in Proposition 113. On November 3, voters upheld the law and voted in favor of adding Colorado to the NPVIC. d Florida Amendment 3: Amendment 3 would have replaced Florida's closed primaries with top-two open primaries for elected state offices. Under Amendment 3, all candidates would have run in the same primary election. The top-two candidates, regardless of their partisan affiliation, would have moved on to the general election under Amendment 3. d Massachusetts Question 2: Question 2 would have enacted ranked-choice voting (RCV) for primary and general elections for state executive officials, state legislators, federal congressional representatives, and certain county offices. As of 2020, statewide elections in Massachusetts used a plurality voting system. a Mississippi Ballot Measure 2: As of 2020, Mississippi required that a candidate for governor or elected state office receive the most votes in a majority of the state's 122 state House of Representatives districts (known as the electoral vote requirement). Ballot Measure 2 repealed this requirement. Instead, Ballot Measure 2 provided that a candidate for governor or state office must receive a majority vote to win and that a runoff election would be held between the two highest vote-getters in the event that no candidate receives a majority vote. Redistricting See also: Redistricting measures on the ballot a Missouri Amendment 3: In 2018, Missouri voters approved Amendment 1, the Lobbying, Campaign Finance, and Redistricting Initiative, which created the nonpartisan state demographer responsible for state legislative redistricting. Amendment 3 repealed the nonpartisan state demographer and returned the state to the use of bipartisan redistricting commissions, with changes to the number and selection of commissioners. The 2020 amendment also maintained the criteria of competitiveness and partisan fairness that was enacted in 2018, but it loosened the partisan fairness requirement and required that population, voter rights abridgment, contiguous districts, simple shapes, and the rules for counties be considered with a higher priority. a New Jersey Public Question 3: As of 2020, the New Jersey Constitution required the state legislative redistricting commission to pass a redistricting plan within a month of receiving the official census data. Question 3 postponed state legislative redistricting until after the election on November 2, 2021, should the state receive federal census data after February 15, 2021. The U.S. Census Bureau asked Congress to extend the deadline to deliver census data from April 1, 2021, to July 31, 2021, due to delays related to the coronavirus pandemic. a Virginia Question 1: Question 1 transferred the power to draw the state's congressional and legislative districts from the state legislature to a redistricting commission composed of state legislators and citizens. Going into 2020, the Virginia General Assembly was responsible for drawing the state's congressional and state legislative district boundaries. The redistricting plans were passed as legislation and subject to the governor's veto power. Suffrage See also: Suffrage on the ballot a Alabama Amendment 1: Amendment 1 amended the Alabama Constitution to state that "only a citizen of the United States," rather than "every citizen of the United States," who is 18 years old or older has the right to vote in Alabama. a California Proposition 17: Proposition 17 amended the state constitution to allow people with felonies who are on parole to vote; therefore, the ballot measure kept imprisonment as a disqualification for voting but removed parole status. Going into 2020, the California Constitution disqualified people with felonies from voting until the completion of their imprisonment and parole. d California Proposition 18: Proposition 18 would have allowed 17-year-olds who will be 18 at the time of the next general election to vote in primary elections and special elections. a Colorado Amendment 76: Amendment 76 amended the Colorado Constitution to state that “only a citizen”, instead of "every citizen", of the U.S. who is 18 years of age or older can vote in Colorado. Under the Colorado Votes Act, which went into effect in August 2019, individuals who are 17 years of age at the time of a primary election but who will be 18 years of age at the time of a general election were allowed to register to vote and vote in the primary election. According to the Colorado Blue Book, prevents 17-year-olds from voting. a Florida Amendment 1: Amendment 1 amended the Florida Constitution to state that “only a citizen” of the U.S. who is 18 years old or older can vote in Florida instead of saying that "every citizen" of the U.S. who is 18 years old or older can vote in Florida. Term limits and term lengths See also: Term limits on the ballot a Arkansas Issue 2: Issue 2 changed term limits of state legislators to twelve consecutive years with the opportunity to return after a four-year break. The 12-year limit applied to anyone elected in 2021 or after. Going into 2020, Arkansas legislators could serve up to 16 years throughout their lifetimes in the House or Senate. d Kentucky Constitutional Amendment 2: The amendment would have increased the office terms of commonwealth's attorneys from six years to eight years starting in 2030; increased the office terms of district judges from four years to eight years starting in 2022; and changed attorney licensing requirements for district judges from two years to eight years beginning in 2022. d Missouri Amendment 1: Amendment 1 would have limited the lieutenant governor, secretary of state, state auditor, and attorney general to two terms of office in a lifetime. Going into 2020, the state constitution limited the governor and state treasurer to two terms of office in a lifetime but not the other executive offices.

Path to the ballot

See also: Amending the Virginia Constitution

In Virginia, a majority vote is required in two successive sessions of the Virginia General Assembly to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot.

2019 legislative session

The ballot measure was proposed as Senate Joint Resolution 306 (SJR 306) and House Joint Resolution 615 (HJR 615). Originally, the resolutions were different proposals to change the redistricting process. In a conference committee, the texts of the resolutions were made identical, and both were passed by the General Assembly.

SJR 306

Sen. George Barker (D-39) introduced SJR 306 on January 9, 2019. The final version of SJR 306 was passed on February 23, 2019. In the House of Delegates, SJR 306 was approved 85 to 13. At least 51 votes were needed to pass the resolution. In the Senate, SJR 306 was approved 39 to 1. At least 21 votes were needed to pass the resolution.

Vote in the Virginia House of Delegates February 23, 2019
Requirement: Simple majority vote of all members in each chamber in two sessions
Number of yes votes required: 51  a
	Yes	No	Not voting
Total	85	13	2
Total percent	85.0%	13.0%	2.0%
Democrat	35	12	2
Republican	50	1	0

Vote in the Virginia State Senate February 23, 2019
Requirement: Simple majority vote of all members in each chamber in two sessions
Number of yes votes required: 21  a
	Yes	No	Not voting
Total	39	1	0
Total percent	97.50%	2.50%	0%
Democrat	19	0	0
Republican	20	1	0

HJR 615

Del. Mark Cole (R-88) introduced HJR 615 on January 1, 2019. The final version of HJR 615 was passed on February 23, 2019. In the House of Delegates, SJR 306 was approved 83 to 15. At least 51 votes were needed to pass the resolution. In the Senate, SJR 306 was approved 40 to 0. At least 21 votes were needed to pass the resolution.

Vote in the Virginia House of Delegates February 23, 2019
Requirement: Simple majority vote of all members in each chamber in two sessions
Number of yes votes required: 51  a
	Yes	No	Not voting
Total	83	15	2
Total percent	83.0%	15.0%	2.0%
Democrat	33	14	2
Republican	50	1	0

Vote in the Virginia State Senate February 23, 2019
Requirement: Simple majority vote of all members in each chamber in two sessions
Number of yes votes required: 21  a
	Yes	No	Not voting
Total	40	0	0
Total percent	100%	0%	0%
Democrat	19	0	0
Republican	21	0	0

2020 legislative session

SJR 18

During the 2020 legislative session, the constitutional amendment was reintroduced as Senate Joint Resolution 18 (SJR 18).

On February 11, 2020, the state Senate voted 38-2 to pass the constitutional amendment. Two Democrats voted against the proposal. At least 21 votes were required.

On March 5, 2020, the state House voted 54-46 to pass SJR 18. Republicans and nine Democrats supported the proposal, while 46 Democrats opposed the proposal. At least 51 votes were needed to pass the constitutional amendment.

In the state House, 14 of 15 members of the Legislative Black Caucus voted against SJR 18. Del. Don Scott (D-80) stated, "The vast majority of the black caucus here now, we are against this." House Speaker Eileen Filler-Corn (D-41), who voted for the constitutional amendment in 2019 but not 2020, said, "I could not ignore the fact that the amendment, as written, fails to prevent politicization of map-drawing and does not sufficiently ensure inclusion of communities of color in the redistricting process. We must be vigilant and adhere to an extraordinarily high standard when proceeding with permanently changing the Constitution." After the House vote, Sen. Jennifer McClellan (D-9), said, "I think the enabling legislation and the criteria we adopted with the constitutional amendment ensures that the lines that will be drawn in 2021 will be done in a way that ends political, racial and prison gerrymandering." Senate Majority Leader Dick Saslaw (D-35) responded to the opposition in the state House, saying, "The arguments against that were pure bullshit. I’ve been around here long enough."

Vote in the Virginia State Senate February 11, 2020
Requirement: Simple majority vote of all members in each chamber in two sessions
Number of yes votes required: 21  a
	Yes	No	Not voting
Total	38	2	0
Total percent	95.00%	5.00%	0%
Democrat	19	2	0
Republican	19	0	0

Vote in the Virginia House of Delegates March 5, 2020
Requirement: Simple majority vote of all members in each chamber in two sessions
Number of yes votes required: 51  a
	Yes	No	Not voting
Total	54	46	0
Total percent	54.00%	46.00%	0.00%
Democrat	9	46	0
Republican	45	0	0

Substitute SJR 18

Before the final vote on March 5, Del. Marcus Simon (D-53) offered a substitute for SJR 18. The substitute resolution was rejected 47-53. Substitute SJR 18 would have created an independent redistricting commission composed of 11 commissioners "who are, as a whole, representative of the racial, gender, political, and geographic diversity of the Commonwealth." The substitute would have also included redistricting criteria not included in the version of SJR 18 that was passed. Approval of Substitute SJR 18 would have restarted the process of amending the Virginia Constitution.

How to cast a vote

See also: Voting in Virginia

Click "Show" to learn more about voter registration, identification requirements, and poll times in Virginia.

How to cast a vote in Virginia

The information below covers regular voting policies in the state. Information may have not applied to the election on November 3, 2020, because of temporary changes in response to coronavirus. Click here to read about changes made for the 2020 elections. Poll times In Virginia, all polls open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Eastern Time. An individual who is in line at the time polls close must be allowed to vote. Registration Check your voter registration status here. To vote in Virginia, one must be a United States citizen, a resident of Virginia, and at least 18 years of age. Registration can be completed online, in person at a local voter registration office, or by mail. Voters can also register at the following locations: “ State or local government offices when applying or re-certifying for Aid to Dependent Children, Food Stamps, WIC, Medicaid, or Rehabilitation Services Government offices in the state that provide state-funded programs primarily engaged in providing services to persons with disabilities Armed forces recruitment offices Public libraries Virginia Department of Elections office Department of Motor Vehicles offices Voter registration drives ” —Virginia Department of Elections The deadline to register is 22 days before a primary or general election. Automatic registration On April 12, 2020, Governor Ralph Northam (D) signed SB219 into law, establishing automatic voter registration for individuals conducting business with the Department of Motor Vehicles. Online registration See also: Online voter registration Virginia has implemented an online voter registration system. Residents can register to vote by visiting this website. Same-day registration Virginia allows same-day voter registration in-person at local registrars' offices, satellite early voting sites during the early voting period, and at the precinct on Election Day. Residency requirements To register to vote in Virginia, you must be a resident of the state. State law does not specify a length of time for which you must have been a resident to be eligible. Verification of citizenship See also: Laws permitting noncitizens to vote in the United States Virginia does not require proof of citizenship for voter registration. An individual must attest that they are a U.S. citizen when registering to vote. According to the state's voter registration application, a voter who makes a materially false statement may be "sentenced to up to 10 years in prison, or up to 12 months in jail and/or fined up to $2,500." All 49 states with voter registration systems require applicants to declare that they are U.S. citizens in order to register to vote in state and federal elections, under penalty of perjury or other punishment. As of January 2025, six states — Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, and New Hampshire — had passed laws requiring verification of citizenship at the time of voter registration. However, only two of those states' laws were in effect, in Arizona and New Hampshire. In three states — California, Maryland, and Vermont — at least one local jurisdiction allowed noncitizens to vote in some local elections as of November 2024. Noncitizens registering to vote in those elections must complete a voter registration application provided by the local jurisdiction and are not eligible to register as state or federal voters. Verifying your registration This page, run by the Virginia Department of elections, allows residents to check their voter registration status online. Voter ID requirements According to the Department of Elections website, "All voters casting a ballot in-person will be asked to show one form of identification. Any voter who does not present acceptable identification may instead sign a statement, subject to felony penalties, that they are the named registered voter who they claim to be. Any voter who does not present acceptable identification or sign this statement must vote a provisional ballot." The following documents were considered acceptable identification for voting as of May 2023: Virginia driver's license or DMV-issued ID card Valid employee ID, containing a photo, issued by the voter's employer in ordinary course of business U.S. military ID Valid student ID, containing a photo, issued by any public or private school college, or university Valid student ID issued by a public or private school high school, college, or university in Virginia (with or without a photo) Valid U.S. passport or passport card ID card issued by the federal government or a Virginia state or local authority. Voter ID card issued by the department of elections Voter confirmation documents Valid tribal enrollment or ID issued by one of the 11 tribes recognized in Virginia Government nursing home resident ID Any other current government document containing the name and address of the voter Signed ID Confirmation Statement

See also

2020 measures

• 2020 ballot measures
• Redistricting measures on the ballot

Virginia

• Virginia ballot measures
• Virginia ballot measure laws
• Redistricting in Virginia

News and analysis

• Ballot measure lawsuits
• Ballot measure readability
• Ballot measure polls

External links

• House Joint Resolution 615 (2019)
• Senate Joint Resolution 306 (2019)
• Senate Joint Resolution 18 (2020)

Support

• FairMapsVirginia campaign website
• FairMapsVirginia Facebook page
• FairMapsVirginia Twitter page

Opposition

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