Gov. McDonnell to Approve New Redistricting Plan

Gov. Bob McDonnell (R) has said he will approve the new redistricting plan that the General Assembly passed Thursday. Gov. McDonnell made a statement late Thursday night expressing his gratitude for the new plan, after he vetoed the first attempt because he said he didn't think it was legal and that it lacked bipartisan support.

Woodbridge will keep its boundaries, with a little bit of shifting between the 51st and 52nd House districts. 

Del. Luke Torian (D-52) will pick up Del. Rich Anderson's (R-51) Occoquan precinct as Del. Anderson will be moving a bit further west, taking a few precincts that were originally in Del. Bob Marshall's 13th district. 

Del. Bob Marshall, R-Manassas Park, exits Loudoun County completely and becomes a full-time Manassas Park delegate, with parts of Prince William County.

Sen. Toddy Puller (D-36) will keep her eastern Prince William County precincts. Sen. George Barker (D-39) will keep all of his Lake Ridge-area precincts but will pick up Benton, Parkside and from Senator Charles Colgan.

• Del. Rich Anderson's (R-51) district will now contain: Bennett (102), Bethel (506), Brentsville (101), Buckhall (103), Chinn (507), Kerrydale (607), Lake Ridge (501), Marshall (202), McCoart (204), Mohican (505), Nokesville (104), Old Bridge (503), Penn (210), Rockledge (504), Springwoods (508), Westridge (208), and Woodbine (209) Precincts and part of the Benton (203) Precinct.
• Del. Luke Torian's (D-52) district, will now contain: Bel Air (606), Civic Center (604), Dale (601), Dumfries (301), Freedom (609), Graham Park (303), Kilby (707), Library (702), Lynn (703), Neabsco (602), Occoquan (502), and Potomac (302) Precincts and parts of the Godwin (603), Henderson (307), and Minnieville (605) Precincts.
• Sen. Charles Colgan, D-Prince William: Cities of Manassas and Manassas Park; and part of Prince William County comprised of the Bel Air (606), Beville (205), Buckhall (103), Civic Center (604), Dale (601), Ellis (106), Enterprise (608), Freedom (609), Godwin (603), Kerrydale (607), King (206), Library (702), Neabsco (602), Potomac (302), Pr. William A (000), Saunders (201), Stonewall (405), and Westgate (407) Precincts and parts of the Bennett (102), Benton (203), Buckland Mills (110), Cedar Point (112), Featherstone (704), Lodge (207), Lynn (703), Marsteller (107), Minnieville (605), Nokesville (104), Occoquan (502), Parkside (105), Penn (210), Rippon (706), River Oaks (708), Sinclair (404), Sudley North (409), Swans Creek (311), Victory (108), and Woodbine (209) precincts.

The plan approved Thursday has a new senatorial district that includes precincts from Loudoun and Prince William counties. This plan also splits Prince William County fewer times than the six different senate districts proposed in the plan that the governor vetoed earlier this month. 

Sen. Richard Stuart, R-Stafford,  would represent a much larger portion of Prince William. According to the bill, Stuart would represent: part of Prince William County comprised of the Alvey (406), Brentsville (101), Marshall (202), Mountain View (410), and Park (109) Precincts and parts of the Bennett (102), Benton (203), Buckland Mills (110), Cedar Point (112), Evergreen (401), Forest Park (310), Nokesville (104), and Woodbine (209) precincts.

Prince William County Chairman Corey Stewart said this plan is marginally better but he is still concerned that it appears there will be just one local resident in the Senate representing Prince William County, Manassas and Manassas Park. The 36th District could be a majority Prince William district but the seat is held by Puller, an incumbent living in Fairfax County.

"And with the sole exception of the 29th, the other districts are anchored elsewhere," Stewart stated in a late-night email Thursday. "It irks me that, in the State Senate, the county will likely remain a vassal of our neighbors in Fairfax. This plan violates the first principle of a democracy: self-governance. It is a disservice to the 412,000 residents of the county."

Stewart went on to criticize Democratic Sen. George Barker for drafting the original senate plan that the governor vetoed. He said Barker is a Fairfax resident who is supposed to look out for the interests of his constituents in both Fairfax and Prince William.

"The fact that Senator Barker would draft a plan that was contrary to the interests of his constituents in Prince William County exemplifies why citizens should be represented by residents of their own community," Stewart stated in the email.

Whether the governor will amend the plan remains to be seen. But McDonnell thanked the General Assembly for passing the new redistricting plan Thursday. The Senate approved its plan on a 32-5 vote, with five Republicans voting "nay."

Here is the entire statement from the governor:

"I will sign this legislation as soon as it reaches my desk," McDonnell said in a prepared statement Thursday night. "The plan as passed does address most of the criteria I outlined in my veto letter, and ensures that the elected members of the legislative branch fulfill their constitutional obligation to draw our electoral lines every 10 years. In my veto letter, I asked the Senate to send me a plan that was bipartisan and addressed potential legal issues.  The plan approved today is in line with those goals.  This plan retains more geographic and municipal boundaries, contains districts that are somewhat more compact, and passed the Senate on a strong bipartisan vote. In these aspects it is similar to the House plan. It is a great improvement over the previous plan that I vetoed, and which failed to gain a single vote from the minority party.  I applaud the Republican and Democratic members of the Senate who worked well together to craft this compromise plan. At my request, the Attorney General's office has reviewed the preliminary data regarding the plan.  Based on this review, they concluded that the plan meets the relevant legal requirements of the U.S. Constitution, the Virginia Constitution, and the Voting Rights Act. I have asked the Attorney General to ensure that the legislation will be precleared in a timely fashion so that the 2011 election process can get underway. While additional improvements in measures of compactness and preservation of communities of interest would have been ideal, and no plan is perfect, the Constitution of Virginia tasks the General Assembly with drawing lines, and further delay could have turned that authority over to the courts.  With state and federal lawsuits currently pending that request court-drawn lines, prompt action was required to preserve this inherently legislative function, and permit timely preclearance under the Voting Rights Act. I also wish to thank the many groups that have been involved throughout the redistricting process, including the Independent Bipartisan Advisory Commission on Redistricting.  I am confident that their involvement and detailed report had a significant positive impact on the process by allowing members of the General Assembly to consider further options as they worked together to pass today’s plan. I look forward to continuing to work with the members of the General Assembly, and all Virginians, in our crucial ongoing effort to bring new jobs and more opportunities to every region of Virginia.”

 

Here are the rest of the county's delegation:

• The 50th District, Del. Jackson Miller, R-Manassas: All of the City of Manassas; and part of Prince William County comprised of the Bristow Run (111), Cedar Point (112), Ellis (106), Marsteller (107), Pr. William A (000), Victory (108), and Westgate (407) Precincts and part of the Stonewall (405) Precinct.

• The 13th District, Del. Robert G. Marshall, R-Manassas Park, makes a complete exit out of Loudoun County: All of the City of Manassas Park; and part of Prince William County comprised of the Buckland Mills (110), Bull Run (403), Glenkirk (408), Limestone (113), Mullen (411), Pace West (412), Parkside (105), Signal Hill (114), Sinclair (404), and Sudley North (409) Precincts and parts of the Battlefield (402) and Stonewall (405) Precincts.

• The 31st District, L. Scott Lingamfelter, R-Fauquier: Part of Fauquier County comprised of the Casanova (103), Catlett (102), Kettle Run (101), and New Baltimore (502) Precincts; and part of Prince William County comprised of the Ashland (309), Beville (205), Enterprise (608), Forest Park (310), King (206), Lodge (207), Montclair (308), Park (109), Pattie (305), Powell (211), Saunders (201), and Washington-Reid (306) Precincts and parts of the Benton (203), Godwin (603), Henderson (307), and Minnieville (605) Precincts.