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Downballot Matters
April 22, 2026
Posted 2 hours ago by
Redistricting not only happens in legislatures and ballot measures Democrats’ narrow victory in Tuesday’s redistricting referendum in Virginia was the latest battle in the two major parties’ gerrymandering war. Democrats, for once, did not roll over when Republicans launched the war in Texas at Donald Trump’s command. They fought back: “We cannot bring a stick to a knife fight,” said Kelly Hall, the executive director of the Fairness Project, which spent more than 12 million backing the redistricting referendum.
With Republicans “assaulting the integrity of representation in the U.S. Congress, we need to be able to respond with every tool that we have,” she said. The new map could turn the state’s 5D-5R congressional delegation (with one seat open) into a 10D-1R affair. But the redistricting war of control of Congress is not only fought in legislatures, ballot measures, and congressional races. They also happen in lower-profile spots on your ballot. Judicial elections are on the ballot this fall. And they matter. A lot. Bolts offers a state-by-state guide: Nineteen states are holding regular elections for their supreme courts this year, meaning races where candidates can challenge incumbent judges or run for an open seat. How those work is straightforward; think of what you’re used to seeing for Congress or governor. But 13 states are holding retention elections, which are simple up-or-down votes, with no challengers, where voters decide if a judge who is already on the court should stay in office. (Explore these rules in our state-by-state guide to each state’s high
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