Voters on April 21, 2026 in Arlington, Virginia. WIN MCNAMEE / AFP
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday, April 22, alleged a vote in which Virginia backed a new electoral map that could favor Democrats was "rigged" – echoing his false claims over the 2020 election.
"A RIGGED ELECTION TOOK PLACE LAST NIGHT," Trump said on social media. "All day long Republicans were winning, the Spirit was unbelievable, until the very end when, of course, there was a massive 'Mail In Ballot Drop!'" The state voted in a referendum Tuesday to allow the redrawing of the congressional map, giving Democrats a strong advantage in 10 of the state's 11 House districts, up from their previous 6-5 edge.
The temporary map is the latest instance of "gerrymandering," the long-established but widely criticized US practice of drawing electoral boundaries to benefit one party. Gerrymandering has become a defining element in November's midterm elections, in which all US House Representatives and one-third of Senators are on the ballot.
Redistricting usually follows the US national census every 10 years, but Trump last year urged Republican-led states to redraw maps mid-decade to protect the party's fragile House of Representatives majority. Texas moved first, adopting a map that could add up to five Republican seats. California answered with a ballot measure designed to give Democrats five more of their own.
