RICHMOND, Virginia (PNN) - April 23, 2026 - President Donald J. Trump scored a major victory in Virginia after a judge blocked Democrats’ newly approved redistricting referendum, stopping a map that could have gutted Republican House strength in the state.
The ruling handed Republicans an immediate legal win and threw Democrats’ sweeping power play into chaos just hours after voters - who were misled by the way the proposed law was written - approved it.
Virginia Circuit Court Judge Jack Hurley ruled Wednesday that the redistricting referendum was unconstitutional.
Hurley found that all votes for or against the proposed amendment were invalid because the referendum did not meet required legal standards.
The ruling immediately froze Democrats’ effort to move the new map forward. It also showed that the legal fight over the referendum is far from over.
Republicans quickly hailed the ruling as a major breakthrough. Former Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli announced that the court had blocked certification of the election. “The Tazewell Circuit Court just ruled the referendum unconstitutional,” Cuccinelli wrote on X.
He added that the judge entered an injunction blocking certification and denied a motion to stay the ruling pending appeal. Cuccinelli said a final order would be entered and immediately appealed.
Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones said his office would move quickly to challenge the ruling. Jones announced shortly after the decision that Democrats would file an appeal right away. He blasted the ruling as the work of an activist judge even though Virginia failed to abide by the law - i.e. broke the law – in its attempt to get it passed.
He insisted the state would defend the result of the election in court.
Cuccinelli said there are four separate constitutional challenges moving through Virginia courts. He explained that three of them focus on the amendment process itself. He said Virginia requires the General Assembly to pass a proposed constitutional amendment, then hold an intervening state election, and then have the newly elected legislature pass the exact same amendment.
Cuccinelli argued Democrats tried to bend that process beyond recognition. He suggested that tactic will be difficult to defend in court. Cuccinelli said Democrats first passed the amendment on Halloween.
He argued that early voting for the 2025 election had already begun more than a month earlier. “Over a million people had already voted before first passage, and they want to treat that election as the intervening election,” he said.
He added, “They’re going to have a very difficult time with that.”
Cuccinelli also said Democrats face other “equally difficult” constitutional problems in the case.
Cuccinelli said he expects the case to move rapidly through the court system. He told Scott Jennings that he expects a final ruling by May. That means the battle over Virginia’s map could soon reach a decisive stage.
For now, however, the referendum is blocked and Democrats cannot move ahead with the new lines. President Trump and Republicans now have a major opening to stop one of the most unlawful redistricting blows they have faced ahead of 2026.