We've also updated our relevant early voting explainer with details on what a yes vote or a no vote actually votes for regarding this amendment.
We updated our early voting explainer to be redistricting amendment specific!
The Department of Elections (ELECT) has its own explainer.
A No vote would leave Virginia's 11 congressional districts in their current shapes for the 2026, 2028 and 2030 elections. The maps were last redrawn in 2023 by the Supreme Court of Virginia after a bipartisan redistricting commission failed to agree on maps.
A Yes vote would significantly reshape most congressional districts in the commonwealth and remain in place through the 2030 election, after which the redistricting commission would again draw congressional maps.
The congressional map is designed to give Democrats an edge in 10 of the 11 districts, as part of an effort to counteract partisan gerrymanders Republican legislatures elsewhere undertook after pressure from President Donald Trump.
General Assembly districts are not affected.
Ethylene oxide, also known as EtO, is used across a wide range of industries. It’s used in antifreeze and various chemical processes, and as a sterilization agent in medical technology.
It’s also highly toxic — and there are two sterilization plants in the Greater Richmond region.
Sterilization Services of Virginia, located in eastern Henrico County near Richmond International Airport, was identified by the EPA’s Air Toxics Screening Assessment tool in 2022 as a major contributor to elevated cancer risks in the area.
The other facility, Central Virginia Health Network/Bon Secours Mercy Health, did not receive that designation. It’s located in Lakeside, less than 10 miles from the Sterilization Services plant.
