California next as Texas advances GOP redistricting plan

The Texas legislature’s lower chamber on Wednesday evening approved a hotly contested Republican plan to redraw congressional maps. The redistricting measure advanced in an 88-52 vote and headed to the Senate for approval. If passed there, the new districts could hand Republicans five more U.S. House seats in the November 2026 midterm elections. The maps would preserve Texas’ 38 total districts. Of those seats, Republicans currently hold 25. The Texas Senate, where Republicans hold a majority, is expected to consider the maps on Thursday. If passed, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott is expected to sign them.

The passage of the Texas redistricting plan followed a weeks-long standoff in which the majority of the Texas House’s Democratic representatives left the state to stop their chamber from advancing the measure. Most of the absent legislators returned on Monday for a new special session after legal action, FBI investigations, and the end of the first session. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Wednesday added a bill to the special session’s agenda that would create new penalties for willfully absent legislators.

What about California’s plan to redistrict in favor of Democrats? According to California lawmakers who spoke to WORLD, the California legislature may begin its own redistricting effort on Thursday, although its plans are far from implementation. Those designs would need to pass a statewide referendum in November before they can become law.

California Gov. Newsom on Wednesday said plans to redraw his state’s congressional maps would go forward as a response to Texas’ redistricting. An amendment to the state constitution that temporarily changes California’s congressional districts and sets rules for redistricting could go to voters in November, he said earlier. Former President Barack Obama on Wednesday threw his support behind California’s plan, calling it a smart and measured response to Texas. A handful of other states—Florida, Kansas, Maryland, Missouri, New York, Ohio, and Wisconsin—are reportedly considering similar redistricting plans.

How have other leaders responded to the advancement of the Texas redistricting plan? Rep. Gene Wu, chairman of the Texas House’s Democratic caucus, characterized the redistricting plan as cheating. He and other Democrats would fight the measure in court, he said.

President Donald Trump, who backed the measure, on Wednesday called its House passage a big win. Texas never lets him down, he said. Trump added that Florida and Indiana, among other states, were planning to pass similar plans.

What are Texas Republicans trying to do? Republicans currently hold a narrow, three-seat majority in the U.S. House of Representatives. At one point in the year, the GOP controlled the chamber by just one seat. If Republicans can flip even just one or two seats held by Democrats, it would potentially double the GOP’s margin of control in the House.

With a contentious road towards the 2026 Congressional elections, Republicans worry Democrats may take back control of the lower chamber. That would make it harder for Republicans to pursue longstanding goals like cutting spending and passing deregulatory measures.

Dig deeper: Read Leo Briceno’s report on the practice of gerrymandering in the states and why there aren’t as many restrictions against the practice at the state level.