Texas Republicans unveiled a proposed congressional redistricting map Wednesday, aiming to flip five Democratic-held seats and solidify GOP control after explicit urging from President Donald Trump. The draft, released during a special legislative session called by Governor Greg Abbott, would increase Republican-held House seats from 25 to potentially 30, drawing new boundaries primarily in the Houston, Dallas, Austin, and South Texas regions.
Notably, Houston's 9th District, currently majority-minority and represented by Al Green (D), would be redrawn into a seat won by Trump by 15 points in 2024. The plan also forces Democratic members in Austin and Dallas, including Reps. Greg Casar, Lloyd Doggett, Julie Johnson, and Marc Veasey, into more competitive or even primary battles. In South Texas, current Democratic districts would be tilted toward Republicans by adding more GOP voter pockets while shifting Democratic areas to current more Republican-leaning districts.
Democrats have denounced the mid-cycle redistricting as an overtly partisan attempt to capture seats and to circumvent ongoing legal challenges to the state’s 2021 map. State Rep. Gene Wu (D) called the proposal a “corrupt, racially-motivated gerrymander,” and Democrats are contemplating a quorum break, potentially fleeing the state to stall the vote, despite updated House rules allowing $500-per-day fines for absences. National Democratic groups are mobilizing resources and volunteers to fight the changes and prepare for legal battles, and Democratic-controlled state legislatures may take up their mid-cycle redistricting in hopes of capturing GOP-held seats in their states.
