A group of Virginia citizens file a lawsuit against the General Assembly, arguing that the state House and Senate districts in which they live are unconstitutional and rigged to benefit one candidate over another.
The plaintiffs say the election districts they live in are not compact, which the state’s Constitution requires, making their constitutional rights to live and vote in a contiguous and compact legislative district violated.
“In striving to protect incumbents and gain partisan advantage, the constitutional requirement that every district be compact was rarely, if ever, considered,” the lawsuit says referring to the 2011 political map.
The Virginia nonprofit organization, OneVirginia2021, supports the lawsuit on behalf of the Virginia citizens, asking that 11 House and senate districts be redrawn.
According to the OneVirginia2021 website, Executive Director Brian Cannon said, “The legislature effectively ignored the Constitution on this point, and gave distorted, weirdly shaped districts that break up communities and rig elections by depriving voters of meaningful competition.”
He said the process is unconstitutional and the results are unfair.
State Republicans defend the boundaries, arguing that they are legal and appropriate.
This lawsuit follows two separate federal lawsuits filed against the General Assembly back in 2012 by Democrats, which alleged that the legislative body illegally grouped black voters into a congressional district and 12 state house districts when redrawing the boundaries.
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If the citizens win the case, they will have the court bar future General Assembly elections until the political map is redrawn. The lawsuit will not block the upcoming election on Nov. 3.
