Princeton Election Consortium

Following a close floor vote in the House, Virginia’s General Assembly has now passed its constitutional amendment, SJ18, creating a 16-member bipartisan, hybrid redistricting commission. As a result, this amendment will head to the voters this November to be considered as a ballot question. Huge steps towards reform in the Commonwealth!

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Last week, the Princeton Gerrymandering Project, in conjunction with other redistricting reform organizations, sent two letters to Virginia Speaker of the House Eileen Filler-Corn, imploring her to introduce the reform amendment, SJ18, on the floor of House of Delegates. The introduction of, and eventual floor vote on, this proposal is key to ensuring that redistricting […]

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On Tuesday, both chambers of the Virginia General Assembly were hectically busy as they raced to pass legislation before the “crossover” deadline, by which bills must switch from one chamber to the other. Only a few redistricting form bills are left standing after crossover, but two paths remain: the constitutional amendment (HJ71/SJ18) and its enabling […]

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This morning, the full House Privileges & Elections Committee voted to send three redistricting bills to the House floor, leaving open the two paths to reform we mentioned yesterday. These bills, as well as their Senate counterparts, will be voted on in their respective chambers next week. That means the committee process for reform is […]

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Redistricting reform proposals in Virginia are starting to get sorted out. A number of bills have died. What’s left is a choice between two paths: (A) a constitutional amendment with an accompanying bill, which together create an independent commission with constraints to ensure fairness; or (B) pass a regular law to create an advisory commission, […]

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In 1789, Virginia was the site of the first gerrymander – even before the word “gerrymander” was coined. Now the Virginia General Assembly has a chance to take a big step toward doing away with gerrymanders entirely. Whether they do depends some complex negotiations taking place this week. Based on the Princeton Gerrymandering Project’s detailed […]

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All 33,261 of Thomas Hofeller’s documents were made available online last week. The Princeton Gerrymandering Project is taking a close look at the files for lessons on what to do, what not to do, and what’s needed for expert districting, both fair and otherwise. The original archive has been taken down, and alternative mirrors are […]

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Last year in Virginia, Democrats and Republicans came together to pass redistricting reform. Now they have to pass it again. But some Democrats appear to be waffling. Today in the Richmond Times-Dispatch, I argue for a way forward. Read on! Also, read our Voter’s Guide To Redistricting Reform in Virginia.

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