Democrats Flip Control Of Both Houses Of Virginia State Legislature

Democrats swept to historic victories in both house of the Virginia state legislature on Tuesday night. Democrats flipped three seats in the state senate to win control from the Republicans who had previously had a 20-19 majority. In the House of Delegates, the Democrats changed at least three seats to win control of the upper chamber. The shift gives Democrats “trifecta” control of the state – the governorship, state Senate and House of Delegates. The state had been solidly Republican until 2008 when Barack Obama won it for the first time in decades.

In 2017, Democrats won 15 seats in the House of Delegates despite heavily gerrymandered districts. Court-ordered redistricting helped create districts more favorable to Democrats this year.