Brothers,
I attended a meeting in Hanover County sponsored by the Family Foundation to get more information on the proposed Abortion Amendment (more information to come) but found the other item on the agenda specific to the proposed Congressional Districts something I thought I should share. For those of you that might not be aware, the current district lines were voted for by 66% of Virginians in 2020 resulting in the current 6 Democrats and 5 Republicans representing Virginia in the US Congress. The proposed changes would result in 10 Democrats and 1 Republican representing Virginia. If adopted, Hanover County would be absorbed into Congressional District 1 based in Fairfax County. I don’t think many people in Hanover County would think that was a very good idea.
Why is this important now? Early voting for this amendment starts now – March 6th with the election day of April 21st! That caught me a little off guard. If you feel strongly about this proposal, one way or the other, I’d suggest that you get out and vote. I’ve talked to quite a few people over the last week from both sides of the aisle, and all have agreed that this isn’t a fair representation of our State and the ballot language is misleading. The ballot reads – “Should the Constitution of Virgina be amended to allow the General Assembly to temporarily adopt new congressional districts to restore fairness in the upcoming elections, while ensuring Virginia’s standard redistricting process resumes for all future redistricting after the 2030 census”. One key problem is the language “temporarily adopt ” which is simply not accurate if you read the amendment. The amendment allows the General Assembly to redraw maps at will. However, you can draw your own conclusions. Here is a link to the proposed amendment: Congressional Districts HJR 6007
I’ll be updating the council on other Legislative actions including the upcoming Abortion and Marriage Amendments. While that wasn’t my plan as I started working on Life issues, there isn’t any way to avoid it based on the number of bills being passed. If you have any questions just reach out.
Protect Life,
Pat
410-336-9100
Pat:
Thank you for taking the time to draft this piece on one of the most impactful legislations on our voting rights. If this passes, we will never be able to haver fair and equal elections. As it is now, the Fairfax area already dominates our voting capabilities and overrides how many other districts vote at the federal level.. We see it time and time again where you go to bed thinking one thing only to wake up the next morning and the northern Virginia results sway the state’s vote a different way. We definitely should NOT be lumped int the same district as Fairfax as would never have a say again in any political decisions. I did not agree with Texas doing the redistricting because I feared this would happen.
VIVAT JESUS,
Mario