Block · one region of the page, as the scanner read it. It may hold a whole story, part of one, several, or an advertisement; stitching blocks into articles is the next step. Text is supplied OCR.
Page 5 · column 4 of 6 · from the scan, no model involved
William P. Robinson Jr. of Norfolk has indicated he wouldn’t be a candidate.
The GOP has created a special redistricting committee to raise money to draft alternative plans to those presented by Democrats and to pay legal fees should court challenges result.
It’s essential that Republicans introduce alternative plans no matter how futile that effort may be since a successful court action would require they demonstrate a credible effort to make their case legislatively.
Mindful that parts of redistricting plans approved by the legislature in both 1971 and 1981 were eventually overruled by federal courts, the Virginia Republican group has enlisted the help of legal talent from the Republican National Committee. The group even plans to maintain liaison with the ACLU and NAACP as it drafts its own reapportionment plans for a special legislative session next spring.
The rewards of favorable redistricting could give the GOP not only an additional congressional seat or two, but control of the Virginia House of Delegates where they now have 39 out of 100 members, their largest number ever.
Some observers think the redistricting process, even if a highly partisan Deomcratic plan prevails, may still net the GOP a gain or two or three delegate seats next year because of hard demographic realities.
There is also a chance that in tandem with redistricting efforts, Republicans may seek to amend the state constitution to have General Assembly and gubernatorial elections held in even numbered years as is the case for presidential and congressional elections.
Though Democrats would never let such an amendment get on the ballot, such a revised schedule would pose a huge advantage for Republicans whose presidential candidates routinely carry the state by large majorities.
In fact, Virginia’s system of elections every year dates back to the Byrd Organization’s formative years when it was decided state elections could be better controlled if held in years when there were no federal elections on the ballot. The organization was afraid a popular Democratic candidate for president might help put anti-organization Democratic candidates in office.
John Goolrick, a former political reporter, is now an aide to Seventh District Congressman D. French Slaughter Jr. Opinions expressed are his own.
93.4%