From EPEC Team Newsletter:
Lynchburg court says it will issue new injunction by Monday if Supreme Court of VA doesn’t weigh in soon on a Tazewell Court’s restraining order.
A temporary restraining order by Tazewell District Court on Feb. 19, and appeal by the Commissioner of Elections notwithstanding, localities across the Commonwealth are prepping for an April 21 special vote on redistricting, according to Dept. of Elections advisories.
Despite a recent ruling issued by Tazewell Judge Jack Henry a week ago ordering preparations to halt on the special election, ELECT sent out an advisory on the same day as the ruling with key dates and schedules.
See the advisory about the April 21 election here (including details on early voting to start on March 6):
Timing of the Advisory
The advisories from ELECT are dated Feb. 19, 2026 — the same day a Tazewell District Court issued a second ruling enjoining the Dept. of Elections from preparing for the election, and a day before the Elections Commissioner appealed to the Supreme Court of Virginia.
See the latest Tazewell District Court Ruling here:
See the Commissioner of Elections’ appeal (Koski v. RNC) here:
More Judicial Hearings to Clarify
In another related development, former House of Delegates member and attorney Tim Anderson was in Lynchburg County Circuit Court Thursday for a hearing asking a judge to clarify the recent Tazewell ruling.
The essential question among many issues the court heard:
Does the Feb. 19 Tazewell County court ruling apply to localities as well? Other localities are said to be asking similar questions.
Judge F. Patrick Yeatts took the case under advisement, saying he would rule by Monday on whether to issue a new injunction if the Supreme Court of Virginia doesn’t act by Monday [on the latest appeals]. Pleadings in Anderson’s Lynchburg case are here: https://lynchburg.win
In an update on his X account, Anderson noted:
Judge [Yeatts] to rule Monday in the Lynchburg redistricting case. I stepped into this case pro bono because the Constitution isn’t optional and election laws aren’t suggestions. When localities are put in impossible positions by conflicting directives, somebody has to ask the court for clarity. This case is about whether the redistricting referendum is being handled in compliance with Virginia law — and whether constitutional requirements can be brushed aside for political convenience. Early voting is scheduled to begin soon. The court’s ruling will determine whether the process moves forward as planned or whether legal defects have to be addressed first.
Per Cardinal News: Anderson said after the hearing that the rushed and “completely illegal constitutional process of passing this redistricting amendment” has “caused chaos” throughout Virginia, and localities are in the dark without court opinions to guide them.
“The city of Lynchburg doesn’t know what to do, nobody knows what to do. Everybody’s winging it. And we need the courts to step up and tell us what to do. And that’s why we’re here,” he said.
In the meantime, EPEC Team is publishing Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) details on ELECT’s election advisory dated Feb. 19.
They include a schedule for Logic & Accuracy testing, ballot prep, and deadlines for coordinating absentee by-mail ballots with the third-party ballot-tracking outfit “Ballot Scout.” See the April 21 advisory here:
, and an advisory addressing the assembly’s date change for congressional election primaries from June 16 to Aug. 4.
Localities, including Fairfax County, are sending out email notices of the April 21, 2026 election on a proposed Virginia constitutional amendment.
The notices are collecting availability from active election officers.
Advisories about the primary elections date change from June 16th to August 4th, also issued by ELECT and procured via FOIA requests, can be viewed here.
(We redacted email and phone information contained in the advisories.)
All About the Maps
EPEC Team mapped out by red or blue how each of the localities voted in the governor race in 2025 using official Dept. of Elections data to show voting preferences of Virginia’s population.
We then added another layer on the map showing the outline of the latest proposed new maps released by the Virginia assembly as of Feb. 17. The dual-map view shows the Republican-voting districts and the Democrat-voting districts that are being re-drawn to achieve a 10-1 (D-R) congressional map ahead of the midterm elections.
More maps in our next report. For more information about upcoming elections, see the Dept. of Elections’ website here: https://www.elections.virginia.gov/casting-a-ballot/upcoming-elections.html. #