Are there any rules against gerrymandering?

A redistricting effort that began in Texas has opened a new front for Democrats and Republicans to explore previously untapped partisan advantages. In Texas, where Republicans hold a governing trifecta, the Legislature in August redesigned the U.S. congressional districts of five Democrats, spreading their representation over areas that historically voted Republican. Alarmed, Democrats in California announced their own plan to eliminate five Republican districts. The efforts ­highlight the practice of gerrymandering, in which politicians redraw district boundaries—often in convoluted ways—to favor their own party.

Why do states have to draw new districts, anyway? States redraw their congressional maps regularly to adjust for changes in population. The Supreme Court has ruled that each congressional district must represent roughly the same number of people. But aside from that requirement and from prohibitions against drawing district lines on the basis of race, the U.S. Constitution leaves the process largely up to individual states.

What’s different about this redistricting effort? States normally redraw their congressional districts only once per U.S. census, which occurs every 10 years. The next census is set to take place in 2030. Even so, Texas and California have each advanced maps designed to unseat members of their political opposition in the U.S. House of Representatives in time for the 2026 midterm elections.

Is that legal? California’s constitution forbids midcycle redistricting and puts redistricting in the hands of an independent commission. So voters will have to consider a statewide referendum in November that, if successful, would temporarily suspend that process and implement heavily partisan maps. Texas has no such restrictions on redistricting.

Do any states forbid midcycle redistricting? Tennessee has a statute forbidding the practice, and at least 10 state constitutions also rule it out. But it is not explicitly banned elsewhere.

Will other states follow Texas and California’s lead, then? Missouri on Sept. 3 launched a special legislative session to consider a midcycle redistricting of its own. Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Florida, Ohio, Kansas, Maryland,  and New York had also floated similar plans.

Do any states prohibit gerrymandering outright? About two-fifths of the states have constitutional or statutory language prohibiting partisan redistricting. A handful of states have also tasked nonpartisan commissions with redrawing district boundaries. In Virginia, for example, former Delegate Mark Cole, a Republican, sponsored reforms in 2019 that set up an independent redistricting commission making it nearly impossible to gerrymander. In the absence of meaningful restrictions, Cole told WORLD, he’s surprised states like Texas haven’t tried a midcycle redistricting effort sooner. “Gerrymandering will always be a factor to some degree or another as long as politicians are involved with drawing their own districts,” Cole said.

What does the current redistricting fight mean for Congress? Control of the U.S. House hangs in the balance, with Republicans presently holding a slim three-seat majority. If Republicans grow their majority by even one seat, it would make it easier to advance GOP priorities. On the other hand, if Democrats gained seats in the House, it would allow them to slow or block President Donald Trump’s agenda.