05/13/2002 Archived Entry: "VA:4th-CD"

I had a blast covering this race last year, in the special election on June 19th. And I predicted then, that if Forbes won, the VA legislature would attempt to gerrymander blacks out of the district, diluting their power, and they did. Virginia Republicans drew the heavily black city of Portsmouth out of the 4th district, cutting the blacks in the 4th from 39.4% to 33.6% of the population, which would add a cushion to Forbes 52-48 total of Lucas, from Portsmouth.

The VA courts have already ruled that the General Assembly redistricting is unconstitutional, having 19 districts racially gerrymandered, resulting with Republicans packing blacks into districts with heavily black majorities, so that the surrounding districts were largely white and Republican. The State Supreme court is set to hear, later this month, Kilgore's appeal. Kaine, who is the likely Dem nominee against Kilgore in 2005, is asking to be dismissed from defending the 4th CD case that is being brought forward by nine black residents of the former 4th District.