Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said Texas could redraw its map to get rid of as many as 10 Democrat districts.
Abbott was issuing a threat to Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has threatened to redraw California's congressional map to blunt Texas' redistricting plans.
"Listen, all those big blue states, they've already gerrymandered," Abbott said on CNN. "Look at the map of Illinois. Look at the map of California, New York, and Massachusetts, and so many other blue states they gerrymandered a long time ago. They got nothing left with regard to what they can do. And know this: If California tries to gerrymander, find more districts, listen, Texas has the ability to eliminate 10 Democrats in our state."
Texas Republican's attempt to approve new congressional districts remains stalled after Democrat lawmakers left the state to deny their GOP colleagues the quorum necessary to vote on their aggressive redistricting play and push the stalemate into its second week.
Newsom is one of several Democrat governors who have pledged retaliatory redistricting efforts in their states — setting up the possibility of an extended standoff that could upend the 2026 midterm elections.
Texas Democrats intend to run out the clock on their current special session, which cannot extend beyond Aug. 19. But Abbott said he'll call lawmakers back to the Capitol again and again until enough Democrats show up to reach the attendance threshold required to vote on the bill.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker have promised similar efforts in their Democrat-run legislature.
Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.
Sam Barron ✉
Sam Barron has almost two decades of experience covering a wide range of topics including politics, crime and business.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.