Augusta County VA Removed “NO” Option From Referendum Ballot
If you care about constitutional rights, self-governance, and basic freedom, what happened in Augusta County, Virginia, should alarm you to your core.
This isn’t about partisan politics. It’s about a fundamental truth: Our freedom does not matter if we do not protect our elections. And right now, local governments are figuring out that if the citizens vote the “wrong” way, they can simply change the rules, erase your voice, and bypass the law to get what they want.
Here is the breakdown of how Augusta County completely sidestepped the will of the people, nullified over 23,000 “no” votes, and allegedly violated a court order in the process.
Step 1: The People Speak Loud and Clear (2016)
Back in 2016, a referendum was held in Augusta County regarding a massive government project: moving the county courthouse to Verona, Virginia, and spending $45 million of taxpayer money.
Under Virginia law (specifically Virginia Code § 24.2-684), a referendum is supposed to be a straightforward question on a ballot, giving citizens a simple opportunity to answer Yes or No. The law dictates that a court order—called a writ of election—must be issued to define how the referendum wording appears and how the votes must be tallied and certified.
The people of Augusta County reviewed the proposal and made their voices heard loud and clear. When the dust settled:
- 23,985 citizens voted “No.”
- That accounted for 67% of the vote.
Translation? The community looked at the price tag, looked at the project, and said: We do not give you permission to spend this money. Case closed, right?
Not quite.
Step 2: When the Government Doesn’t Like the Answer, They Change the Rules
Six years later, the county decided to have another go at it. They didn’t like the fact that citizens had slammed the door on their spending plans. But instead of respecting the outcome of a democratic election, they used the machinery of the state to circumvent the public.
Local officials lobbied the state General Assembly, resulting in House Bill 9002 in 2022. The primary function of this bill? To remove the option for citizens to vote “No” on a referendum.
Even worse, the bill reportedly passed unanimously by both Democrats and Republicans—proving once again that when it comes to expanding government power and spending your hard-earned tax dollars, the political establishment often closes ranks against the individual.
By the time the subsequent special election rolled around, the ballot presented questions with no option to oppose the spending or vote “no” on increasing taxes. Citizens were boxed into a corner, forced to choose between an $110 million courthouse or an $80 million courthouse, with zero legal avenue to say “none of the above.”
The message from local government was clear: If you won’t give us the answer we want, we will take away your right to object.
Step 3: Violating a Court Order
To make matters even more egregious, this maneuver wasn’t just a betrayal of public trust—it may have crossed into actual criminality.
Remember that a referendum requires a writ of election—a binding court order signed by a judge that dictates exactly how the vote must happen, how it must be structured, and how the results must be tallied and certified.
According to the legal framework governing these elections, that court order must be strictly followed. Yet, during this process, the writ of election was ignored, and the votes were not handled as the court mandated.
When you disobey the instructions of a court order, you can be held in contempt. And under the law, there is no statute of limitations on contempt. Someone within the Augusta County government reportedly broke a court order, bypassed the legal instructions of a judge, and failed to certify the results per the law.
Defending Our Freedom Starts Locally
We often look toward Washington, D.C., when we think about government overreach, but tyranny and erosion of rights often begin right in our own backyards. When local bureaucrats realize they can bypass the Constitution, rig ballots, and silence thousands of taxpayers, your sovereign rights as a free citizen are directly threatened.
Election integrity isn’t a talking point—it is the bedrock of a free republic. If local governments can unilaterally delete 23,000 “no” votes, no citizen’s property, taxes, or freedoms are safe.
Stay vigilant, keep asking the hard questions, and hold your local officials accountable.
Stay tuned for the next deep-dive, where we look closely at the writ of election, the exact court order, and how Augusta County officials allegedly violated it.
