Army Veteran TAKES ON Virginia Court Power Grab

Added: 2026-05-12

[00:00:00]Today, the Virginia State Supreme Court struck down the congressional redistricting approved by Virginia voters 17 days ago. It is a big blow to democracy as voters there opted for this new map. But it's also a blow to the Democratic party ahead of the 2026 midterms as they seek to counter the GOP efforts to gerrymander themselves in a victory at the behest of Donald Trump.

[00:00:24]In a statement, Virginia's Attorney General Jay Jones said this quote, "Today, the Supreme Court of Virginia has chosen to put politics over the rule of law. This decision silences the voices of the millions of Virginiaians who cast their ballots in every corner of the Commonwealth, and it fuels the growing fears across our nation about the state of our democracy. My team is carefully reviewing this unprecedented order and we are evaluating every legal pathway forward to defend the will of the people and protect the integrity of Virginia's elections. It's Ken Harbaugh with the Midas Touch Network. You've heard by now about the Virginia Supreme Court ruling.

[00:01:03]It was pure partisanship. Four conservative judges voting to throw out the results of the recent referendum.

[00:01:09]That majority decision made it a point to describe the narrowness of the popular vote approving the new district maps, writing, "The majority will of the people was secured by yes voters representing 1.69% of the total votes cast." Yeah, it was a close vote, but that's how democracy sometimes works.

[00:01:27]And in that entire majority opinion, not one of those judges voting against the will of Virginiaians saw the irony in their opinion nullifying millions of votes. Their 4 to3 partisan ruling meant that the fate of Virginia's popular referendum came down to a single unelected judge. The cynicism in calling the narrowness of a popular vote then overruling it with one vote is astounding. Contrast how Democrats approached redistricting with how Republicans are doing it. Not a single referendum, just partisan legislators ramming through new maps against the will of the people. They're doing it in Tennessee, Florida, Missouri, North Carolina, Texas. Meanwhile, the will of Virginiaians, actual voters, is nullified by four unelected partisan judges. I spoke with Dan Helmer about this. He's an Army vet, a delegate in the Virginia House, and one of the lead architects of the redistricting effort.

[00:02:20]And while Democrats and democracy may have lost this battle in Virginia, the larger fight to save democracy in America is far from over. Here's me and Dan Helmer. Dan Helmer, thanks so much for joining us. I wish it were under better circumstances, but the Virginia Supreme Court just overruled the will of the people. I mean, this decision in Virginia wasn't like what the Republican states are doing where they are cramming it through their legislatures. This was a popular vote that redistricted the the state uh to provide these new districts and the Supreme Court said, "No, we're going to do it our way." Bring us up to speed.

[00:02:58]>> Yeah. I mean, Ken, you got it exactly right. The difference between us and the MAGA movement is we believe in democracy and the will of the people. And unlike in Texas and Ohio and Florida, we actually put this to the voters. We followed the process laid out in our constitution. Voters said, "Yes, we need to fight back. We need to level the playing field." And once again, MAGA went to the courts and they got from extreme unelected justices exactly the type of ruling that they've sought again and again. You know, it's just insane.

[00:03:31]We have a president of the United States who is trying to go forward with unpopular policies like the war in Iran, like the big bill that he put forward that's gutting our rural health care. They're challenging abortion rights. You know, the Supreme Court uh we literally had a federal court that just took away the ability to send uh pills in the mail that would allow people have abortion. And what do they do when these things are unpopular?

[00:03:55]Well, we think you should go to the people and we've gone to the people and the people have said exactly what they want. And Maggot isn't good with that.

[00:04:03]And so they use these extreme justices to overturn.

[00:04:05]>> Now, it was a close call. It was 43, I believe, in the Virginia Supreme Court.

[00:04:12]What was the rationale of the majority in this case? Slim majority.

[00:04:18]>> Well, contrary, yeah, contrary to Virginia law, it's very clear when elections take place in Virginia, elections happen on election day. Uh that is the way in which everything about our election laws is crafted. So you file reports based on when election day happens. And our constitution says if you pass a constitutional amendment prior to election day, you pass it again, it goes to the people. It's actually pretty simple. It gets added.

[00:04:46]We reviewed this, of course, before we went forward. Had a thorough legal review. And they decided that contrary to the will of the people, they would overturn this. And frankly, there were lots of opportunities if they wanted to go this pathway to not have the people vote. And it is just insane. And it is just part of this ongoing pattern of Republicans not okay with the will of the people doing whatever it takes to hold on to power.

[00:05:12]>> Is there any recourse at this point? I mean, this was the Supreme Court of Virginia that delivered this ruling.

[00:05:20]>> Yeah, there is the extreme US Supreme Court, so I imagine we're going to take it there. But uh given that the extreme US Supreme Court expedited its ruling in the Louisiana Voting Rights Act case to make sure that Louisiana could redistrict showing their true colors.

[00:05:36]I'm not particularly optimistic that the US Supreme Court would do the right thing and respect the will of Virginia voters. But yes, there is recourse. We can go up there. We should go up there. I believe uh it is all hands on deck to protect our democracy at this very challenging time.

[00:05:52]We all saw what happened with the Louisiana case. Uh, have you been following the the cascade of proposals in the aftermath of the Voting Rights Act being gutted? And what do you make of the Republican tactics to in almost every case to not actually go to the people to find out what they want, but to cram these things through? But, you know, we're looking at Alabama, we're looking at Mississippi, we're looking at Tennessee, right? Do you have a good sense of where the Republicans are trying to do this?

[00:06:22]>> Yeah, they're trying to draw them all over the place. You know, we they've already gerrymandered it to a very narrow set of competitive districts in August and September when I was one of the people who laid out the blueprints in Virginia. The reason we did that is because we knew that this extreme attack on the Voting Rights Act was going to happen. And I have no regrets about us doing it here in Virginia. The real challenge is is that we're seeing time and again that NAGO will stop at nothing on this front. And so, yes, we're seeing a cascading effect and it is a real gut punch to America's demand. Hey everyone, it's Ken. Super quick break to remind you that I've got a Substack page.

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[00:07:16]Is there potential for a backlash? Uh we might see that in Texas where the gerrymander might turn into a dummy mander. Is it possible that in states, and I say this as a a kid who graduated from high school in Alabama, is it possible that in states like that that are trying to create not just a Republican supermajority, but disenfranchise every black voter by not creating majority black districts? Is there a possibility that the, you know, the nine point margin that they're engineering in these supposedly safe Republican seats will turn into liabilities or is that wishful thinking?

[00:07:53]>> I was campaign chair for the House Democratic Caucus and I expanded the map. We picked up 13 seats including a number that Trump won this year and that was in state legislative races which are really tough. I'm personally going to be invested in making sure all of these cowards who refuse to stand up to Trump lose their offices wherever it is in the country. And so we should be looking at every single one of those districts and making them pay because voters in Virginia, I'll tell you what, right now are real upset that their voices were just turned down by MAGA. I expect that we're going to go and use that energy to push back in Virginia. And maybe, you know, we won't get to 10 one, but maybe we can get to eight or n even nine uh seats in this unique moment. We're going to fight for every single one of them.

[00:08:33]I'm personally going to be out there fighting for it. We're going to fight all over the country for it. And yeah, like we need to make sure that they pay.

[00:08:39]Every single American now knows their true colors. They will stop at nothing to enable this president to enact these deeply unpopular policies, all meant to help his billionaire buddies and at deep cost to the average American as gas prices hit uh you know extreme highs as we all struggle to we got farmers who are changing the crops they're planting because of the war in Iran. It's insane.

[00:09:02]>> Yeah. Is that the silver lining we should be looking for in this? The idea that the veil is off, that we now know the lengths that MAGA will go to, and we use that as as rocket fuel to motivate Democratic voters because it's hard in this moment in the in the days after this court ruling to see any silver lining. But I want to find at least one.

[00:09:29]Look, I think it's more important than ever that we elect fighting Democrats who care about delivering and let's elect a new generation of leaders across America going to stand up for our democracy in our country. I think it's more important than ever.

[00:09:42]>> Are there specific leaders you're thinking of? Are you going to be out campaigning? I mean, the map is going to be totally different in Virginia now.

[00:09:50]You you've got a race that is now a giant question mark. Where do you go from here?

[00:09:54]>> I have, you know, I'm the son of an immigrant. the grandson of Holocaust survivors. I have always stood up and served our country. Whether that was at West Point, serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, whether that was unseating a 17-year Republican incumbent, whether that was helping us achieve the largest Democratic majority in many in many of our lifetimes in Virginia, I'm never going to stop fighting for our country.

[00:10:17]And that right now means fighting to elect fighting Democrats who are going to deliver everywhere in America. And that's what I'm going to be focused on.

[00:10:25]What would you advise other blue states in this moment as the Republicans put the pedal to the metal on disenfranchising black voters and gerrymandering to the extreme? What should Illinois be doing? What should, you know, New Jersey and other states be doing right now?

[00:10:44]>> I mean, take note. They have taken the gloves off and they are determined to ensure that the will of the people does not need to be respected. And Virginia has done all it can to do its duty.

[00:10:56]We're not going to stop. We're going to fight till there is nothing left to fight for. And I hope that every single person takes that to heart and makes the changes needed so that we can ensure we put a check on this extreme president and make sure that we deliver for the American people. I think it's both of those things.

[00:11:13]>> Thanks, Dan. Great having you. Man, I feel like we're going to have this conversation uh again soon because this has become this has become the chessboard. this redistricting fight and you know, hats off to Virginia for for giving it your best shot, but it's going to be other states that carry the torch from here. I appreciate you coming on with us.

[00:11:33]>> We're going to keep lighting the torch all we can keep the fight. Appreciate you having me, Ken.

[00:11:36]>> Thanks, Dan.

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