The Republican-controlled Texas Legislature is poised to vote soon on a redistricting plan that resulted from prodding by President Donald Trump, eager to stave off a midterm defeat that would deprive his party of control of the House of Representatives.
Texas Democrat lawmakers delayed the vote for 15 days by leaving the state in protest, depriving the House of enough members to do business.
House approval of the map Wednesday would send it to the Senate for a vote as early as Thursday.
The new map is expected to set off a national redistricting battle, with California’s Legislature poised to approve new maps adding more Democratic-friendly seats later this week.
As the House debated the redistricting bill, families of girls killed at Camp Mystic in flooding last month in Texas were giving tearful testimony in the same building to senators considering summer camp safety reforms.
Democrats have criticized House Republicans for putting the redistricting bill ahead of flood relief and response efforts. Twenty-seven girls were killed when the camp was flooded.
In another form of response, California is moving forward with a controversial plan to counter Texas’ Republican-led redistricting efforts.
Gov. Gavin Newsom has proposed a constitutional amendment, dubbed the “Election Rigging Response Act,” that would appear on the Nov. 4 ballot as Proposition 50.
If approved, the measure will temporarily bypass California’s independent Citizens Redistricting Commission and hand map-drawing power back to the state legislature for the 2026 through 2030 elections.
The move is designed as a retaliatory step against Texas, where GOP lawmakers have advanced new congressional maps that could yield as many as five additional Republican seats. Under California’s plan, Democrats could similarly secure up to five new seats, potentially boosting their delegation to 48 of the state’s 52 House districts.
The proposal is structured with a trigger: it would only take effect if another state enacts mid-decade redistricting, a clause aimed squarely at Texas.
Several states beyond Texas are now weighing mid‑decade redistricting measures, sparking a national scramble over how to redraw congressional maps ahead of the 2026 midterms. Republican-controlled states like Missouri and Indiana are exploring opportunities to gain additional GOP seats through special legislative sessions. Florida, too, is considering similar moves — though it faces constitutional and legal constraints, especially regarding protections for minority voters.
Ohio already faces a mid‑cycle redraw by law, opening the door to potential partisan advantage.
On the Democrat side, blue states such as California, New York, Illinois, and Maryland are openly discussing retaliatory redistricting to counterbalance Republican moves. Some, like New York, are even proposing constitutional amendments to permit mid-decade adjustments.
Still, these efforts face significant procedural, legal, and political hurdles that vary from state to state.
Newsmax contributed to this report.