Two prominent right-wing commentators are peddling a new plan to flip Virginia red: change its borders.
Sean Davis, founder of The Federalist, presented the concept as “a rather simple solution” during an appearance on The Charlie Kirk Show on Monday.
“It would mean taking away northern Virginia from Virginia and putting it back into the District [of Columbia] where it belongs,” Davis said. “If you want to get rid of Virginia as a blue state forever... take it back. Put it back in D.C. and, overnight, Virginia is a red state again.”
Davis specifically called for a return to the District of Columbia’s old borders, which included the city of Alexandria and Arlington County.
Both places host large Democratic constituencies that have proven crucial in delivering the state to Democrats in the last five presidential elections and the latest gubernatorial contest.
“I’ve seen this theory floated and I actually think it’s great,” Andrew Kolvet, who hosts The Charlie Kirk Show, said in approval. “The original map included northern Virginia... but you could take it back legally.”
The original borders of the District of Columbia, which formed a 10-mile-by-10-mile diamond, were established by Congress in the Residence Act of 1790. The law gave the federal government 10 years to move the capital from Philadelphia to the banks of “the river Potomack [sic.].”
Though the capital did move, its boundaries didn’t stay put for long. In 1846, Congress passed, and President James K. Polk signed, an act to return Virginia land that had been given to D.C. to its original owner.
The legislation followed approval of a companion bill in the Virginia State Assembly.
According to the final law, the border change occurred because the government didn’t need all the land it had.
In the end, 31 square miles were returned to Virginia, giving its people political representation they lacked as a part of D.C.
Davis argues that reverting to old lines “puts [Democrats] on the defense.”
But this GOP idea of taking land by force is sure to face legal and political headwinds, as the Constitution requires the consent of the legislature for any boundary change between states that alters the balance of power.
Democrats hold advantages in both chambers of the Virginia General Assembly and would be unlikely to comply.
The push by Davis and Kolvet to change the makeup of the Old Dominion comes on the eve of a referendum that, if passed, would allow Virginia to redraw its congressional map and potentially give Democrats an advantage going into the 2026 midterm elections.
The effort is part of a broader political arms race over gerrymandering congressional maps for partisan gain.
California voters in November passed Proposition 50, which paved the way for Democratic-friendly redistricting.
The effort came in response to the successful push by Texas Republicans to tilt the state’s congressional map toward the GOP.
