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A Virginia judge dealt a significant setback to Democrats and their effort to redraw the state’s congressional districts before the 2026 midterm elections.
A Tazewell County Circuit Court judge granted an emergency injunction to block the planned April referendum while the case moves through court.
Democrats are attempting to pass a congressional map expected to give the party four additional U.S. House seats.
Judge Temporarily Blocks Democrat-Backed Referendum To Redraw Virginia’s Congressional Map https://t.co/5EzvPJXSrZ
— zerohedge (@zerohedge) February 20, 2026
More from the Associated Press:
Virginia Democratic Attorney General Jay Jones has already vowed to appeal the ruling by a Tazewell Circuit Court, which granted a temporary restraining order requested by the Republican National Committee and the National Republican Congressional Committee. The plaintiffs argue that the ballot referendum’s timing and phrasing are illegal.
The court’s decision on Thursday, while temporary, could kill the referendum for this year if it withstands appeal. The restraining order is in effect until March 18 and early voting is slated to start March 6.
The Republican request for a restraining order — also signed by Republican U.S. Reps. Ben Cline and Morgan Griffith — argued that Democrats were ramming redistricting-related bills through the legislature despite legal hurdles that prevent such a rushed process.
In a statement, the GOP national committee said the latest ruling was “a massive win in defending honest representation for every Virginian.”
It’s the second time Tazewell Circuit Court Judge Jack Hurley Jr. has ruled against Democrats’ redistricting agenda. In January, he ruled that a resolution for a constitutional amendment was illegally passed in a special legislative session and taken up too close to an intervening election.
That case has been appealed to the state Supreme Court, and justices had said they would allow the referendum to proceed while they review the appeal.
According to Virginia Mercury, Hurley found the plaintiffs have an “extraordinarily high likelihood of success on the merits.”
The plaintiffs claimed that the “referendum violates the timing requirement of Article XII, Section 1 of the Virginia Constitution because early voting is set for ‘sooner than 90 days after’ the January passage of House Joint Resolution 4,” the outlet stated.
If successful, the proposed congressional map drawn by Democrats would likely give them a 10-1 advantage in the state’s congressional delegation.
Virginia’s congressional delegation currently consists of 6 Democrats and 5 Republicans.
🚨Just in: A judge has issued an emergency injunction halting voting on the referendum to redraw Virginia’s Congressional maps
The map is below is 10D-1R👇 pic.twitter.com/SKYkVYV4q7
— The Calvin Coolidge Project (@TheCalvinCooli1) February 19, 2026
Virginia Mercury explained further:
Hurley also found the ballot language — particularly the phrase “restore fairness” — is likely misleading and violates the Constitution because it “would lead a voter to believe he or she were doing something unfair by voting against the proposed amendment.”
The order states that “the equities of this case warrant temporary relief ‘for the limited purpose of preserving the status quo between the parties pending a hearing on a motion for a preliminary injunction.’”
The court denied the commonwealth’s motions to transfer venue and to stay the case, and ordered that defendants are “temporarily restrained” from administering or taking action to advance the referendum.
The order remains in effect until March 18, unless modified or extended.