Democrat lawsuits are the only way the Texas Legislature will be prevented from moving forward after passing a new redistricting plan for the state, Rep. Beth Van Duyne, R-Texas, told Newsmax on Thursday.
The Texas House on Wednesday approved a redistricting plan projected to give Republicans as many as five additional U.S. House seats in the 2026 midterms. The measure passed on Wednesday by an 88-52 vote.
The measure now moves to the Texas Senate.
"You're going to see the Senate hopefully pass it today or tomorrow, and I would love Gov. [Greg] Abbott to be able to sign it and get this done with this week," Van Duyne told Newsmax's "Wake Up America Early" host Alex Kraemer.
"So, moving forward, this is going to affect congressional districts. We're going to, we're going to have our same elections that we're going to have next year, next November. The lines will be drawn. People will start filing for those seats."
Van Duyne said "people have more than enough time" to campaign for seats in 2026.
"This should be able to go unless you see lawsuit after lawsuit, which is what the Democrats have threatened to do," Van Duyne said. "[Otherwise,] they should be able to proceed in a very formal and very organized fashion."
California is preparing a direct response to Texas. Gov. Gavin Newsom, D-Calif., has proposed suspending the state's independent redistricting commission and allowing the Democrat-controlled California Legislature to redraw congressional maps if Texas' plan takes effect.
"California is ... so gerrymandered already. Almost 40% of their votes are Republican, and yet only nine out of 52 of their seats are Republican seats. The state has already done it," Van Duyne told Kraemer. "So, all you're doing is threatening to do worse of what you've done. Good luck when you've already lost over 1.2 million Democrat voters.
"So, they're saying they're going to do it. They still have to have the constitutional change to be able to do it. He's got an uphill battle. But again, Democrats are going to complain when Republicans start following their rules."
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
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Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.