‘Don’t Fairfax Me’ and the fight for local self-government
An article from Cardinal News on “Don’t Fairfax Me” signs popping up in rural Virginia caught my attention. Political signs may seem small, but they so often reveal deeper tensions over a community’s political identity and direction.
Back in 2016, I was one of those people that thought Donald Trump likely had little chance at a presidential victory over Democrat nominee Hillary Clinton. All the experts seemed to agree. However, a couple of signals gave me pause as the campaign was coming to a close. One of them was the number of homemade pro-Trump signs I saw popping up in a lot of rural places in North Carolina and particularly Southwest Virginia. Who makes homemade political signs out of cardboard? People that are highly motivated, that’s who.
The “Don’t Fairfax Me” rallying cry is specifically related to who gets to shape the state’s political map. The map is controversial in large part because five Congressional districts converge in Northern Virginia, raising broader concerns about political overreach and local self-government.
Virginians will vote on a proposed amendment on the April 21 ballot that would allow lawmakers to redraw congressional districts for 2026. I expect there to be blowback to some of the overreach by Democrats in Virginia and I’ve already written about it. But it will be interesting to see how soon it materializes after the November election.
I can see “Don’t Fairfax Me” resonating. It is a simple way of saying: don’t sideline local communities, and don’t undermine self-government in the name of politicized mapmaking.
—Ray Nothstine
— The Federalism Beat