Despite Recent Wins for Democrats, Gerrymanders Dim Hopes for 2018

Eric H. Holder Jr., the former attorney general who is leading a Democratic effort to challenge Republican-drawn maps, said he believed Democrats would be poised for monumental gains “if the lines were drawn in a fair way.” As it is, he said, Democrats might need not merely a friendly tide, but a political rip current to win power in Washington.

“It’s almost going to take a historic wave to overcome the gerrymandered map in a handful of states,” Mr. Holder said. “When you have a massive Democratic wave in Virginia and the question of who has the majority in the House of Delegates is still up in the air, I think that shows how daunting the task is going to be.”

Still, Mr. Holder added firmly, “The House of Representatives is certainly in play.”

An analysis by Mr. Holder’s group, the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, found that Democratic candidates for the House of Delegates in Virginia received about 224,000 more votes than Republicans, out of about 2.4 million cast. Several races are still undecided and headed for recounts, but for now Republicans have a 51-49 advantage.

Read more: The New York Times, November 12, 2017