Authorities advise against travel as blizzard warnings continue.

MPR News helps you turn down the noise and build shared understanding. Turn up your support for this public resource and keep trusted journalism accessible to all. 

Turn Up Your Support

The Texas Legislature has passed a plan for redrawing the state's congressional districts that could help Republicans win five more seats in the U.S. House, as called for last month by President Donald Trump. It goes next for expected signing by Gov. Greg Abbott.

The after-midnight vote of 18 to 11 was the latest major development in what's shaping up as a competition set off by Trump between Texas, California and possibly several other 

Texas State Sen. Phil King, who led the defense of the plan in the Senate, noted the political motivation for the rare mid-decade redistricting. "For the map to be legal in all respects, that was the first goal," King said. "And the second one was that it would perform better for Republican congressional candidates in Texas." 

 the Texas plan earlier, saying "Texas never lets us down" and noted the importance that control of Congress holds for his agenda. "More seats equals less Crime, a great Economy, and a STRONG SECOND AMENDMENT," he wrote.

Democrats have threatened to challenge the new map in court. They argued that it dilutes the voting strength of Black and Latino voters and creates vast districts that broke off urban areas and connected them to suburban and rural areas.

Democratic State Sen. Judith Zaffirini said she opposed the plan "not only because it disregards the growth and diversity of our state but also because it further erodes the strength of minority districts, diminishing our ability to elect candidates of our choice and silencing voices that deserve to be heard."

The final approval from the Senate came after questions and debate that went throughout Friday.

The weeks of redistricting debate in Texas — initiated by a call from the governor and President Trump last month — had prompted Democratic leaders in California to counter with their own redistricting in that state.

Thursday night, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a plan for a new voting map there that could help give Democrats five additional seats in Congress. Lawmakers have also approved sending a measure to voters in a special election in November asking to allow the state to implement the map, bypassing its independent citizen redistricting commission. 

Redistricting is usually done after the national census at the start of each decade, and how voters are grouped into congressional districts can be 

critical in determining who wins the seats

Abbott put a proposed redraw on the Legislature's agenda last month when Trump called for more Republican-leaning districts in Texas. The state currently has 38 seats in the House — 25 held by Republicans, 13 by Democrats.

Newsom has argued that California, where Democrats hold 43 of 52 House seats, must "fight fire with fire."  He and other Democrats said that if Texas is going to try to tilt its map to aid President Trump's agenda, California has to respond. 

"This isn't politics as usual," said Democratic Assemblymember Anamarie Avila Farias during a debate on the map. "This is an emergency for our state. This is an emergency for our country. This is an emergency for democracy."

Republicans countered that only the state's redistricting commission should change the maps. "You move forward fighting fire with fire, what happens? You burn it all down. In this case, it affects our most fundamental American principle. Representation," Republican Minority Leader James Gallagher said during that same debate. "Now he's pushing this redistricting plan, this Gavinmander, illegally, against the constitution."

Democrats in the legislature have said that by sending the final decision to voters, they've made their proposal more transparent.

The White House has asked Republicans in 

In Texas, Democrats broke quorum to disrupt Republicans' plans

Passage of the new Texas map would come after 

 who had left the state to block the presence of a quorum that would permit a vote. Abbott and other Texas leaders had threatened them with removal from office and arrest.

After two weeks, enough Democrats returned to allow a quorum on Monday. Democratic leaders said they were coming back because California had taken up the fight and they had run the clock out on one special session — only to see Abbott immediately start another.

"We're returning to Texas more dangerous to Republicans' plans than when we left," House Democratic Caucus Leader Gene Wu said Monday. "Our return allows us to build the legal record necessary to defeat this racist map in court, take our message to communities across the state and country, and inspire legislators across the country how to fight these undemocratic redistricting schemes in their own statehouses."

Opponents of the new map say it weakens the votes of Black and Latino elected Democrats by putting them in new districts or moving more conservative white voters into theirs. It could lead to some Democratic members of Congress running against each other.

Republicans note the map increases the Latino voting presence in a couple districts and say more of them are voting Republican. Supporters of the redistricting acknowledge it was based on "political performance" in previous elections.

Some states ban partisan gerrymandering, the process of drawing districts to favor a political party. Texas does not. But gerrymandering for partisan benefit can sometimes overlap with illegal racial gerrymandering, which could soon be an issue in court for Texas.

With reporting by NPR's Acacia Squires and Larry Kaplow.

Politics and Government News

Homepage

Andrew Schneider

Author

Laura Fitzgerald

The Texas Legislature passed a plan called for by President Trump to give Republicans an edge. And California lawmakers are sending theirs to the voters as the two most populous states compete to shape the midterm elections for Congress. 

Texas passes midterm redistricting sought by Trump as California plans to counter

Go Deeper.

Like this?

News you can use in your inbox