The Lobster Triumphs
Plus: Tit-for-tat gerrymandering, D.C.'s flowing fountains, more war in the Strait of Hormuz, and more...
The lobster triumphs. In a special election yesterday, 51 percent of Virginia voters approved a heavily gerrymandered congressional map that will likely give Democrats control of all but one House seat in the purple state.
The state's delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives is currently comprised of six Democrats and four Republicans. Under the new map approved by voters, that will likely become 10 Democrats and one Republican, come the November midterms.
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Virginia's congressional map is normally drawn by an independent redistricting commission and then approved by the state's General Assembly. Voters approved this commission-led system in 2020 as a solution to the past Assembly-controlled redistricting process that critics argued had produced maps gerrymandered in favor of Republicans.
Yesterday's vote was required to amend the Virginia Constitution so as to again allow lawmakers to directly draw districts for partisan advantage. Individual voters might not realize that, however, if they were only relying on the ballot language describing the measure.
The wording of this question is so absurdly biased that it should be rejected without even considering the substance, frankly. (Not my ballot, I live in DC. Stolen from @CorieWhalen.) pic.twitter.com/iQxBRFpqkQ
— Robby Soave (@robbysoave) April 21, 2026
The new map itself includes some interestingly shaped districts (including one that everyone says looks like a lobster) that lump a minority of Republicans in the western portion of the state with heavily Democratic areas in the D.C. suburbs.
This is what Democrats call "fair." pic.twitter.com/k4xGGBQLEZ
— Virginia GOP (@VA_GOP) February 6, 2026
Democrats argue their gerrymander in Virginia produces "fairness" because of Republicans' own gerrymandering efforts in places like Texas, where the GOP is likely to pick up five new congressional seats under a new map.
Most states redraw congressional maps every 10 years. President Donald Trump has aggressively lobbied Republican states to redistrict mid-cycle in an effort to hold onto the GOP's narrow House majority.
Like Virginia, California voters passed a ballot initiative last year scrapping the map produced by that state's redistricting commission in favor of a new map that creates another five Democratic-leaning districts.
Both the Texas and California maps have survived court challenges for the moment.
Following the Virginia vote, Democrats will likely net one seat from the pre-midterm back-and-forth gerrymanders, according to NPR's tally. That advantage might tip to Republicans should Florida follow through on a redistricting plan.
Gerrymandering is not a new phenomenon. Read Reason's Eric Boehm's 2018 deep dive on how bad the practice had gotten then and what can be done to fix it.
Per Boehm's article, the technical fixes to prevent partisan gerrymandering are not that complicated. States could use computers to create contiguous, compact maps that don't "pack" and "crack" voters into animal-shaped districts for partisan advantage.
The real obstacle to fixing gerrymandering, as this year's redistricting efforts show, is political. Ultimately, lawmakers and voters will decide what system their state will use to draw legislative districts. In one cycle, they might opt for a fairer map drawn by an independent commission. When partisan emotions are running high (like this year), they might scrap those systems in the desperate search for partisan advantage.
Solutions like nationalizing election rules or turning it all over to the courts seem suboptimal for anyone who values federalism.
Hopefully, if the two parties continue to gerrymander in equal proportions, at least there will be some meta-fairness to all the new lobster maps being created.
Anti-hate group charged with fraud for funding hate groups. The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) used fake entities to pay members of hate groups millions of dollars to act as informants, alleges the Department of Justice (DOJ) in a new indictment.
"The SPLC is manufacturing racism to justify its existence," said Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche in a press release. "Using donor money to allegedly profit off Klansmen cannot go unchecked."
According to the DOJ, the SPLC paid $3 million from 2014 to 2023 to members of racist and neo-Nazi groups it was surveilling as part of its cataloging of hate groups. One member of the neo-Nazi National Alliance was paid $1,000,000 over that period. Another informant, who is described as an organizer of the infamous Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, was paid $270,000 over that period.
The DOJ's 11-count indictment alleges that these payments to informants, which were often made via fake, unincorporated groups, violate various federal wire fraud and money laundering laws.
The SPLC's interim chief executive, Bryan Fair, described the DOJ's accusations as false and politically motivated.
Scenes from Washington, D.C.: One can hardly believe their eyes. The long dry fountains in D.C.'s Meridian Hill Park are once again flowing, following restoration efforts by the National Park Service.
A watchful D.C. resident sent me a photo of something we haven't seen in years; water flowing down the cascading fountain at Meridian Hill/Malcolm X Park. NPS started work on the long-dry fountain late last year, as part of a broader project to refurbish the park. pic.twitter.com/FRnsK97LwJ
— Martin Austermuhle (@maustermuhle) April 21, 2026
Under the Trump administration, NPS has made a concerted effort to spruce up and refurbish D.C.'s federally operated parks. On that front, they appear to be doing a good job.
This has all naturally set off some social media discourse about whether Trump is actually a great president for D.C.
It is true we won't admit this. But mostly because DC residents aren't fucking idiots. https://t.co/8TPf7vjOxX
— PoPville (@PoPville) April 21, 2026
To this D.C. resident, it would be great if control of the city's parks were localized, or better yet privatized, so that decisions about whether water is flowing in park fountains needn't depend on the goodwill of the president.
QUICK HITS
- A federal appeals court saves Alligator Alcatraz.
- Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz signs legislation allowing alcohol in nursing homes.
Living in a nursing home shouldn't mean giving up everyday freedoms.
I just signed a bill allowing seniors living in nursing homes to consume alcohol - so that everyone can enjoy happy hour!
— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) April 21, 2026
- Iran has attacked three ships in the Strait of Hormuz, even as Trump says the U.S. is indefinitely extending the two-week ceasefire that expired today.
- The Los Angeles reservoir that was empty during the Palisades fire is dry again, reports the Los Angeles Times.
- The United Kingdom approves a generational ban on smoking.
