Feb. 13, 2026 Editor, The News-Gazette:
Last week’s editorial about redistricting has been concerning me. The piece made it sound as if we are still living in a normal democracy, and that we should be grateful for relatively fair districts. If that were true, I would agree wholeheartedly.
However, we are not. All signs from our current administration point to our descent into fascism, or a dictatorship. Free and fair elections have been targeted, Congress is being ignored by the president and his administration, that administration is tying up the courts with frivolous court cases that delay decisions until it’s too late for people to care, or the issue has passed relevance. People are being shot in the streets, rounded up into concentration camps (currently called “detention centers”) without legal recourse, Trump is threatening to take election oversight away from states, federal agents wear masks (like the KKK) and are above the law, Trump actively welcomes and takes bribes from foreign leaders in exchange for things like not imposing ridiculously high tariffs.
Trump is bullying his way to a dictatorship. This is whatAmerica fought against in WWII. And this is what we need to be fighting against now. The difference is that this time, the enemy is taking over our country. The enemy is taking away our healthcare. The enemy is taking away our neighbors. The enemy is driving a wedge through our communities. The enemy is Trump and the ultrarich people who own mega yachts and five houses and still want more and the corporations that control our politicians.
So I will be voting in favor of this temporary redistricting ballot measure in April because I love our democracy and I want to be able to vote for a different president in 2028.
SHANNON SPENCER Rockbridge County
