Virginia abandons Equal Rights Amendment

Two years ago, the Democratically controlled Virginia General Assembly ratified the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). In doing so, Virginia became not only the 38th state to endorse the amendment but also the final one to satisfy the required two-thirds majority needed to amend the U.S. Constitution. Virginia’s ratification, however, didn’t necessarily mean the amendment was effective. That’s because Congress established a 1982 deadline for the ERA’s ratification to occur.

Virginia joins ERA lawsuit

To clarify the matter, Virginia joined two other states (Nevada and Illinois) in filing suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, contending the deadline set by Congress wasn’t binding and seeking to compel the U.S. Archivist to certify the ERA as the 28th Amendment to the Constitution. The district court dismissed the lawsuit last year, but the states appealed the dismissal to the District of Columbia Circuit, where it presently is pending.

Last fall, however, a sea change occurred in Virginia’s political landscape when Republican Glenn Youngkin won the Governor’s race along with Republican Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears and Republican Attorney General Jason Miyares. Significantly, in 2020, Attorney General Miyares had a been a member of the Virginia House of Delegates, and he had voted against ratification of the ERA.

Virginia bales out