Virginia not likely to see much difference in this redistricting cycle

FALLS CHURCH, Va. (AP)- A leading member of Virginia’s new redistricting commission says the state’s legislative maps will be less affected by redistricting than any time since World War II.

State Sen. George Barker told commission members at their first meeting Thursday evening that preliminary data show northern Virginia in line for a modest increase in representation.

Communities on the North Carolina border will likely lose some representation. But the changes will be nothing like the upheaval from past decades, when northern Virginia was home to some of the fastest growing suburbs in the country.

The newly formed commission will try to draw new boundaries in time for state legislative races later this year but it’s unclear whether the job can be done in time.