{"id":2592949,"date":"2026-04-20T17:11:59","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T21:11:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/tim-kaine-admits-va-democrats-gerrymandering-was-never-about-fair-maps\/"},"modified":"2026-04-20T17:15:59","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T21:15:59","slug":"tim-kaine-admits-va-democrats-gerrymandering-was-never-about-fair-maps","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/tim-kaine-admits-va-democrats-gerrymandering-was-never-about-fair-maps\/","title":{"rendered":"Kaine Admits Dems&#8217; Gerrymandering Was Never About &#8216;Fair Maps&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ftim-kaine-admits-va-democrats-gerrymandering-was-never-about-fair-maps%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2592949&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The Federalist reports that Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va.,acknowledged that Virginia Democrats\u2019 gerrymandering effort was not about fairness,but about targeting Donald Trump. Kaine argued the plan would disenfranchise many Virginians to rig the congressional map against Trump, suggesting about 90% of Virginians would be represented by a Democrat under the new lines, while stressing that voters deserve respected election results and that Trump could interfere again.<\/p>\n<p>Key points:<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/4-politicians-and-media-outlets-giving-biased-reports-of-the-israel-conflict\/\" title=\"4 Politicians and Media Outlets Giving Biased Reports Of The Israel Conflict\">article describes<\/a> a referendum aimed at altering Virginia\u2019s congressional delegation to a 10-1 Democrat advantage, with the final voting deadline on April 21 and a 45-day discussion period.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; It notes concerns over outside funding for pro-gerrymander campaigns, pro-GOP counterefforts, and ongoing debates over election integrity, including references to the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact and tying Virginia\u2019s electoral votes to California\u2019s.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Kaine is portrayed as arguing that Republicans who defended Trump\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >2020 actions undermine election integrity<\/a>, while Democrats insist the map should stand up to Trump\u2019s potential tyranny.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The piece mentions Virginia Gov.Abigail Spanberger\u2019s unpopularity amid the gerrymandering controversy and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/cornyn-forced-into-runoff-with-ken-paxton-after-outspending-texas-ag-33-1\/\" title=\"Cornyn Forced into Runoff with Ken Paxton After Outspending Texas AG 33\u20131\">related political advertising<\/a> and messaging from both sides.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The article closes with a brief bio of the author, Breccan F. Thies, highlighting his background in political journalism.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-body body-md bdr-top-black pt-30\">\n<div class=\"row justify-content-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12\">\n<figure class=\"article-thumbnail mb-30 mb-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=3Nsk4ZD83gU\">NBC News \/ YouTube<\/a>       <\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-share text-center article-share-simple\">\n<h5 class=\"label-sm mb-10\">Share<\/h5>\n<ul class=\"article-share-list list-unstyled m-0 p-0\">\n<li class=\"article-share-facebook m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/04\/20\/tim-kaine-admits-va-democrats-gerrymandering-was-never-about-fair-maps\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-facebook\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Facebook<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-twitter m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=Tim%20Kaine%20Admits%20VA%20Democrats%E2%80%99%20Gerrymandering%20Was%20Never%20About%20%E2%80%98Fair%20Maps%E2%80%99&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/04\/20\/tim-kaine-admits-va-democrats-gerrymandering-was-never-about-fair-maps\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Twitter<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-truth-social m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/share?title=Tim%20Kaine%20Admits%20VA%20Democrats%E2%80%99%20Gerrymandering%20Was%20Never%20About%20%E2%80%98Fair%20Maps%E2%80%99&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/04\/20\/tim-kaine-admits-va-democrats-gerrymandering-was-never-about-fair-maps\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" fill=\"currentColor\" style=\"width:36px;height:auto;\" viewbox=\"0 0 92 93\"><path d=\"M69.444 55.716H56.772v10.37h12.672zM64.487 37.795V27.32H38.666v38.664h13.18v-28.19zM21.05 27.321h12.653v10.471H21.051z\" https:><\/path><\/svg>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Truth Social<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-link m-0\">       <button data-clipboard-text=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/04\/20\/tim-kaine-admits-va-democrats-gerrymandering-was-never-about-fair-maps\/\" data-tooltip-content=\"Copied!\" class=\"clip tooltip\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-link-variant\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Copy Article Link<\/span>       <\/button>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\">       <a href=\"mailto:?subject=Tim%20Kaine%20Admits%20VA%20Democrats%E2%80%99%20Gerrymandering%20Was%20Never%20About%20%E2%80%98Fair%20Maps%E2%80%99&amp;body=%20https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/04\/20\/tim-kaine-admits-va-democrats-gerrymandering-was-never-about-fair-maps\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-email\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article via Email<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\"><span class=\"printfriendly pf-button  pf-alignleft\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/thefederalist.com\/#\" rel=\"nofollow\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF &amp; Email\"><span id=\"printfriendly-text2\" class=\"pf-button-text\"><i class=\"mdi mdi-printer\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<p>Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., admitted Sunday that the Democrats&rsquo; extreme gerrymandering effort was never about &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/18\/dems-rig-virginia-vote-with-misleading-ballot-language-equating-gerrymandering-push-to-fairness\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">fairness<\/a>,&rdquo; but rather about going after President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n<p>On the eve of the election, Virginia&rsquo;s junior U.S. senator acknowledged that the point of the gerrymandering plan proposed by his party is to disenfranchise millions of his constituents in order to rig opposition to Trump in the U.S. House of Representatives.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2 d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-1180505454\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1463670073398-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>When <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/greg_price11\/status\/2045900735787814967?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">asked<\/a> how it was fair that 90 percent of Virginians will be represented by a Democrat, even though former Vice President Kamala Harris only won the commonwealth by five points, Kaine replied, &ldquo;Ninety percent of Virginians are not Democrats, that&rsquo;s true, but about 100 percent of Virginians want election results to be respected. We&rsquo;re deeply worried that Donald Trump will try to interfere with the election results this November or in 2028, cause we saw him do it before.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Despite Democrats&rsquo; consistent election <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/rigged\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">interference<\/a> and resistance to <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/election-integrity\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">election integrity<\/a> efforts like the <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/save-america-act\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">SAVE America Act<\/a>, Kaine argued that it was Republicans pointing out questionable circumstances in 2020 (ultimately resulting in a Biden presidency, anyway) that should be feared. The senator implied the current effort by Democrats to <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/russia-collusion-hoax\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">strip the American people of yet another Trump presidency<\/a> by rigging the congressional map isn&rsquo;t worthy of voters&rsquo; concern.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We have to have a Congress that will stand up to it,&rdquo; Kaine said. &ldquo;In 2021, all five Republicans in Virginia went along with Donald Trump in his effort to overturn election results. And so we&rsquo;re giving Virginians a chance to vote, which Republican states have not done, about whether they want to have a congressional delegation that will stand up against Donald Trump&rsquo;s tyranny.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>So if Republicans represented congressional districts whose constituents expected their representatives to get to the bottom of what happened in the 2020 election, then apparently, from Democrats&rsquo; perspective, those constituents are no longer deserving of representation &mdash; because Kaine and the other Democrats disagree with them.<\/p>\n<p>The last day to vote in the referendum is April 21. The date marks the end of a 45-day period in which Virginians weighed in on whether to remove four Republicans from Congress and hand Democrats a 10-1 congressional delegation advantage.<\/p>\n<p>In the somewhat evenly split but blue-leaning commonwealth, a gerrymander failure would likely be driven by Democrats not showing up to the ballot box and independents switching from supporting Democrat Gov. Abigail Spanberger last to opposing one of her chief policy proposals only months into her first year in office.<\/p>\n<p>While the effort has made Spanberger the <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/04\/08\/spanbergers-efforts-to-deny-voters-representation-make-her-least-popular-recent-virginia-governor\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">most unpopular governor in memory<\/a> for the commonwealth, Virginians have also been bludgeoned by incessant <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/04\/01\/facing-questions-about-anti-gerrymander-gotv-operation-va-gop-expresses-confidence-in-dems-obama-ads\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">pro-gerrymander ads<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/03\/24\/left-wing-propagandists-send-virginians-fake-newspaper-promoting-democrat-gerrymander\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">mailers<\/a> funded in the tens of millions by <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/04\/09\/analysis-more-than-90-percent-of-funds-backing-dems-gerrymandering-scheme-come-from-outside-virginia\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">out-of-state donors<\/a>. A slow-starting GOP <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/04\/01\/facing-questions-about-anti-gerrymander-gotv-operation-va-gop-expresses-confidence-in-dems-obama-ads\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">countereffort<\/a> has struggled to close the distance in funding and breadth of effect. Spanberger, meanwhile, <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/04\/15\/spanberger-signs-bill-to-tie-virginias-electoral-votes-to-california\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">just moved<\/a> to further undermine Virginians&rsquo; electoral power by tying all 13 of the state&rsquo;s Electoral College votes to whichever presidential candidate California decides, should the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact take effect.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<div class=\"article-author-description fst-italic\">      Breccan F. Thies is the White House correspondent for The Federalist. He is a co-recipient of the 2025 Dao Prize for Excellence in Investigative Journalism. As an investigative journalist, he previously covered education and culture issues for the Washington Examiner and Breitbart News. He holds a degree from the University of Virginia and is a 2022 Claremont Institute Publius Fellow. You can follow him on X: @BreccanFThies.<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-30 bdr-top-bold-black\">\n<div class=\"row g-0 align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6\">\n<div class=\"article-author-profile d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center justify-content-md-start\">\n<div class=\"article-author-details\">\n<div class=\"label-md\">Breccan F. Thies<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author-twitter label-sm d-flex align-items-center mt-10\">             <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter me-5\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>             <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Visit on Twitter<\/span>            <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BreccanFThies\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-decoration-none\">@BreccanFThies<\/a>           <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6 d-flex justify-content-center justify-content-md-end mt-15 mt-md-0\">        <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/author\/breccan-thies\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">More Articles<\/a>     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-tags bdr-top-black mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-15 pt-md-45\">\n<ul class=\"list-unstyled d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center mb-0 mx-n10 p-0\">\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/abigail-spanberger\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Abigail Spanberger<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Donald Trump<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/election-interference\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">election interference<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/gerrymandering\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">gerrymandering<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/redistricting\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">redistricting<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/tim-kaine\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Tim Kaine<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/virginia\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Virginia<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Kaine: Dem gerrymandering targets Trump<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":179,"featured_media":2592950,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Screenshot-2026-04-20-153745.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546,33651],"tags":[3685,22850,16985,41831],"class_list":["post-2592949","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist","category-the-western-journal","tag-democrats","tag-gerrymandering","tag-redistricting","tag-tim-kaine"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Screenshot-2026-04-20-153745.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2592949","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/179"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2592949"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2592949\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2592953,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2592949\/revisions\/2592953"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2592950"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2592949"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2592949"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2592949"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}