Virginia’s gerrymander was justified by toddler logic

Since becoming a parent 12 years ago, I’ve come to appreciate how thin the line can be between a toddler meltdown and a political fist-fight. Once you’ve spent enough time around small children, you start to recognize that the outbursts from toddlers and politicians have a familiar throughline. 

We saw that dynamic in Virginia this week, where in the wake of a high-stakes redistricting fight, Democrats justified redrawing the map in a way that felt less like a defense of institutional choices and more like something overheard in a playroom argument. 

The maps, we were told, had to be redrawn — aggressively, and in ways that combine heavily Democratic suburbs of Washington with rural stretches of the state — in pursuit of fairness. The mention of “fairness” wasn’t just a political talking point; it was baked into the text itself. The ballot initiative asked, “Should the Constitution of Virginia be amended to