By a 4-3 margin Friday, members of the Supreme Court of Virginia issued a ruling voiding the results of the state’s April 21 redistricting special election—keeping in place the current congressional district boundaries, including the 1st Congressional District, which is where both Gloucester and Mathews are located. The 1st Congressional District was one of several that were being redrawn in an attempt to turn the state’s 5-4 Democratic Party advantage into a potentially 10-1 Democratic Party edge. In the case of Scott v. McDougle, the court found that the General Assembly, when it approved submitting the referendum to Virginia voters, had violated the state’s Constitution, which requires a 90-day minimum period between the legislature’s final approval and the voting process. Early voting on the referendum began on Friday, March 6, with the mid-decade redistricting map referendum receiving final approval by the Virginia Senate on Jan. 16. Two days before early voting began, the state S...