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Fairfax County election workers could face another countywide vote this spring if Virginia advances a constitutional amendment allowing congressional districts to be redrawn before the 2026 midterm elections.
The potential April election would add to an unusually demanding stretch for the county’s elections office, which has spent the past six months managing a general election and a succession of special elections.
“We’re doing okay,” Fairfax County Electoral Board Chair Kate Hanley told the Board of Supervisors on Feb. 3, before Virginia Democrats unveiled their proposed congressional map.
Hanley said staff members have been “working around the clock and around the calendar” to keep pace.
Since last November’s general election, Fairfax has conducted special elections involving Virginia’s 11th Congressional District, the Braddock District supervisor’s seat and two House of Delegates seats.
More voting is already scheduled. Seven of Fairfax County’s 256 precincts will participate in a Feb. 10 special election for the 39th Senate District seat, prompted by the pending resignation of Sen. Adam Ebbin. The district is based primarily in Alexandria.
A March 3 special election will then decide who fills the vacant Braddock District School Board seat. Saundra Davis and Tom Dannan II are competing for the position.
The vacancy arose after Rachna Sizemore Heizer won a December election to the Board of Supervisors. She replaced James Walkinshaw, who left the Braddock supervisor’s seat in September following the death of Rep. Gerry Connolly.
“This has been an incredible year — an unprecedented year,” Sizemore Heizer said.
Countywide Vote Would Require Major Staffing
The recent special elections have covered only parts of Fairfax County, sometimes involving very few precincts. A statewide redistricting vote would be a much larger undertaking because all county precincts would need election workers.
Virginia lawmakers are pursuing a constitutional amendment that would permit the state’s 11 congressional districts to be redrawn in time for the midterms. If legislation signed by Gov. Abigail Spanberger on Feb. 6 survives pending court challenges, officials currently expect the special election to take place April 21. Early voting would begin March 16.
Although the operation would be smaller than a major general election, it would still require substantial county resources. During the Nov. 4, 2025, gubernatorial election, Fairfax deployed 2,365 election officers and 35 roving workers on Election Day. Early voting required another 222 officers and six rovers.
Hanley said the county has not encountered one possible obstacle: a shortage of residents willing to work at polling places.
“There are a lot of people in Fairfax County willing to be election officers,” said Hanley, who was reelected in January to lead the three-member Electoral Board.
More Election Changes Could Follow
An April election would leave staff with little downtime before preparations normally begin for June primaries.
“In May, we start again,” Hanley said.
The redistricting process could also cause congressional primaries—and potentially all primaries, including the U.S. Senate contest—to be delayed until late summer.
Hanley said the registrar’s office is working to keep voters informed as election dates and requirements continue to shift.
“It’s up to us to work to alleviate confusion — and there was and is, a lot of confusion,” she said.
Fairfax is among more than 130 Virginia localities preparing for the possibility of a spring special election. Arlington County officials expressed similar uncertainty during their Electoral Board meeting on Feb. 3.
“There are still a lot of unknowns,” Arlington Registrar Gretchen Reinemeyer said. Officials there said they were following the Scouts’ motto, “be prepared,” while awaiting more guidance.
“We are waiting on further information,” Arlington Electoral Board Chair Kim Phillip said.
Hanley, a former school board member, district supervisor and Fairfax County Board of Supervisors chair, ended her report with a personal observation about elections held outside the usual November calendar.
“Having won two of them, I appreciate the importance of special elections,” she said.