Changes to the First District due to Redistricting

The boundaries of Virginia’s First Congressional District, or “America’s First District,” will soon shift due to a process known as “redistricting.”

While congressional redistricting is constitutionally mandated, the decision-making on how the districts are changed is a state function. New district boundary lines were drawn by the Virginia General Assembly and signed into law by Governor Bob McDonnell.

These changes in representation will be reflected in the federal election in November 2012, and will take effect when the new Congress is sworn in January 2013.

Find out if you currently reside in the First District here. 

See the new First District boundaries below.

Why does the district change?

The population of our great nation was assessed by the Census Bureau in 2010. 

According to the Constitution, the census has one fundamental purpose: to ensure that the representation of each state in the U.S. House of Representatives reflects the relative size of its population as compared with other states and districts.

There are 435 representatives divided up among the 50 states. Each one of these representatives is elected by the voters of a congressional district. Populous states have more representatives than less populous states.

Virginia has eleven Representatives in the U.S. House; that has not changed.  However, populations have shifted and along with that, congressional districts shift to ensure each district contains nearly the same number of Commonwealth residents to ensure equal representation.

If I am in a new area of the First District, can I contact Rob Wittman?

Yes. You can always contact my office with questions.

Find out if you currently reside in the First District here.

*Information provided here contains passages of text compiled from the House Committee on Ethics, Committee on House Administration and the Census Bureau (www.census.gov).