Early Voting Open in Northern Virginia This Week

Early voting is open across Northern Virginia for Virginia’s April 21 redistricting referendum, with counties adding satellite sites and extended evening and weekend hours in the final stretch. (wtop.com) Virginia began in-person early voting on March 6, and the last day to vote early is Saturday, April 18, before Election Day on Tuesday, April 21. The ballot has one statewide question on whether to amend the Virginia Constitution to let the General Assembly temporarily redraw congressional districts. (elections.virginia.gov) WTOP reported that early voting in Northern Virginia had lagged other parts of the state until more polling locations opened during a Democratic “Super Saturday” push last weekend. Roughly 40,000 votes were cast Saturday in Northern Virginia counties, according to data collected by the Virginia Public Access Project. (wtop.com) In Fairfax County, 17,000 ballots were cast at early voting locations on that Saturday alone, WTOP reported. Fairfax’s elections office now says early in-person voting for the referendum has ended, and voters must cast ballots at their precincts from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. on April 21. (wtop.com) (fairfaxcounty.gov) Arlington ran early voting at Courthouse Plaza from March 6 through April 17 on weekdays, then added Saturday hours on April 11 and April 18 plus evening hours on April 14 and April 16. It also opened Walter Reed Community Center and Madison Community Center for the final week, with curbside voting available for voters with disabilities and those 65 and older. (vote.arlingtonva.gov) Loudoun County opened early voting March 6 at its Leesburg elections office and expanded to additional locations starting April 11. County officials said all registered voters could cast ballots in the special election, and voters could still register through Election Day and vote a provisional ballot. (loudoun.gov 1) (loudoun.gov 2) Alexandria offered early voting at 132 North Royal Street starting March 6, with extended hours from April 11 through April 18, including four straight evenings until 7 p.m. from April 13 to April 16. The city also accepted mailed ballots postmarked by April 21 if they arrived by noon on the following Friday. (alexandriava.gov) The referendum grew out of a Democratic effort to redraw Virginia’s 2021 congressional map before the 2026 midterms, after Republican-led redistricting moves in other states. WTOP’s voter guide says Democrats argue the plan would “restore fairness,” while Republicans have challenged both the ballot language and the legality of a mid-decade redraw. (wtop.com) Virginia’s Supreme Court ruled March 4 that voting could proceed while it reviews those legal challenges. WTOP reported that even if voters approve the amendment, the court will still have the final say on whether the redistricting can take effect. (wtop.com 1) (wtop.com 2) Statewide, the stakes reach beyond one ballot question: the proposal could reshape Virginia’s 11 U.S. House districts ahead of this year’s elections. On April 21, Northern Virginia’s added sites and longer hours became one of the clearest signs of how both parties were treating a low-turnout spring referendum like a national fight. (apnews.com) (wtop.com)