Dems Look to Ax Virginia’s First Black, Female Justice to Bring Radical Redistricting Map Back to Life
Democrats in Virginia are reportedly considering a “bank-shot” strategy to replace the Virginia Supreme Court in order to advance a more radical redistricting plan. The idea follows the court striking down a Democrat-backed redistricting map, which had been projected to help Democrats win at least 10 of 11 U.S. House seats.
According to the report cited, the approach would involve: using a prior circuit court ruling about improper public notice requirements to invalidate an earlier constitutional amendment that created Virginia’s self-reliant redistricting commission; using that invalidation to allow the legislature to draw its own map; and then lowering the mandatory retirement age for Supreme Court justices so Democrats can install new justices.
Critics say this would result in the removal of two Black justices, including Cleo Powell, the frist Black chief justice of the court, and could undermine Democrats’ claims about fighting racism. republicans have condemned the proposal as an attempted power grab that disregards constitutional legitimacy, while some Democrats express doubt. Still, at least one Democrat supports the plan, arguing it’s necessary to prevent Republicans from exploiting similar tactics.
Democrats are considering using a “bank-shot” move to replace the entire Virginia Supreme Court, including two black justices, so that they can move forward with a radical redistricting map.
The plan is a response to the Virginia high court striking down a Democrat-friendly redistricting map that would have granted the party at least 10 out of 11 U.S. House seats going into the midterms.
According to The New York Times, the plan calls for Gov. Abigail Spanberger to sign off on legislation that would lower the mandatory retirement age for state Supreme Court justices, but it would have a major impact on one of the Democratic Party’s loudest talking points.
The move would lead to the elimination of two black justices, including the high court’s first-ever black chief justice, Cleo Powell. Powell, who became the first black woman on the court when she joined in 2011, became chief justice at an investiture ceremony in March.
Sorry Justice Cleo Powell, first Black woman to serve as Chief Justice of SCOVA.
Much like Virginia voters, you’re about to become collateral damage in Democrats’ Machiavellian attempt to usurp power. pic.twitter.com/e3A3FYWFER
— EllyKayUSA (@EllyKayUSA) May 11, 2026
That could serve as an embarrassment for a political party relies on the support of an overwhelming percentage of the black electorate and claims that fighting “racism” is one of its major goals. Yet it was only last year that the party defeated black Republican Winsome Sears to elect Spanberger — a white woman — to lead the state. Sears would have been the Old Dominion’s first black, female governor.
The report made clear that the plan is only tentative right now, driven by “desperation and fury” in the wake of the Virginia Supreme Court’s decision.
The report further noted that Democrats aren’t even sure whether the plan would “viable,” let alone “palatable” to the governor, not to mention to the state legislature.
According to the report, the plan would involve three steps, beginning with the invocation of a circuit court ruling from January “that said the … effort to redraw the maps was invalid because county officials did not post notice of it at courthouses and other public locations three months before a general election.”
Using this, Democrats could then invalidate the earlier constitutional amendment that reportedly created Virginia’s independent redistricting commission. This would empower the legislature with the authority to enact its own map.
The last step would be for the Democrat-controlled General Assembly to lower the mandatory retirement age for high court justices, thus allowing Democrats to fill the court.
Republicans have taken to slamming the Democrats over this proposal:
The Democrats’ gerrymandering scheme in Virginia was defeated by the Virginia Supreme Court last week yet they continue pushing their blatant power grab. Democrat politicians want to fire our Virginia Supreme Court justices and replace them with their “yes” men. Pay attention… pic.twitter.com/8AqkFeXpm4
— Jen Kiggans (@JenKiggans) May 11, 2026
“They want to lower the mandatory retirement age so that it’s younger than the youngest judge, so that they fire all the members and reappoint new members,” Virginia Rep. Jen Kiggans, a Republican, said in the clip above d to social media.
“That’s the most un-American, slap-in-the-face-to-the-Constitution thing I’ve ever heard,” she added.
Even some Democrats have their doubts.
Former Rep. James P. Moran, a Virginia Democrat, told the newspaper that this plan would be “just a bridge too far” — one that could easily backfire on the Democrats.
He explained that while he understands why Democrats feel their party “needs to fight back and not just be victims of unparalleled aggression,” he stressed that “we do have to keep our credibility.”
“We have to do things that pass the legitimacy test,” Moran added.
On the other hand, Rep. Suhas Subramanyam, another Democrat, said that he supports the plan because he’s down with doing whatever’s necessary to preserve the party’s radical redistricting map.
“Everyone has got to have a strong stomach right now; this is a complete disaster waiting to happen if people are timid,” he told The New York Times. “We have Republican states ignoring their constitutions and interrupting early voting and ignoring their Supreme Courts all together. We know based on that, Republicans would explore every single option possible to move this forward.”
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