Texas GOP Passes Partisan Map As Obama Backs Newsom’s “Responsible” Redistricting Plan

Texas Republicans, backed by President Donald Trump, have succeeded in approving new Congressional maps after fleeing House Democrats returned to the state.

The new maps will create five Republican-leaning seats ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.

A vote on Wednesday passed the measures 88-52, and the Senate is expected to quickly pass the plans in a bid to close the GOP’s narrow control of the House.

It comes after Democratic lawmakers fled the state two weeks ago to prevent the House from reaching the quorum needed to pass the vote.

Governor Greg Abbott called for their arrest, and Senator John Cornyn later confirmed that the FBI had granted his request for assistance.

It is not clear what, if any, involvement the FBI had.

The fleeing Democrats returned to the state this week, and they faced tighter security measures to ensure they could not boycott the vote for a second time.

Several lawmakers spent Monday and Tuesday night sleeping in the Texas Capitol to protest a rule requiring them to sign consent forms for police monitoring.

Nicole Collier was one of the lawmakers to tear up a “permission slip” that agreed to police surveillance until Wednesday’s vote, and instead decided to sleep in the chamber.

Collier had earlier been forced to end a call with California Governor Gavin Newsom and Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin. The lawmaker had taken the call in the bathroom while the House debated the redistricting bill.

She told colleagues on the call that the new maps violate the Voting Rights Act and “will prevent black and brown individuals from selecting the candidates of their choice because they’re cracking and packing these districts,” Fox News reported.

But around 30 minutes into the meeting, Collier was interrupted and told she was committing a felony.

“Sorry, I have to leave,” she said. “They said it’s a felony for me to do this.”

It sparked outrage from those in the meeting, including from Newsom and Senator Cory Booker, who described it as an “outrageous” attempt to silence a black woman.

Since Texas announced its new redistricting plans, several Democratic-leaning states, including California, New York, and Illinois, have signaled they may consider redrawing their own maps in response.

Republican-leaning states, such as Florida, Indiana and Ohio, are also considering or moving forward with redistricting proposals.

In California, Newsom has introduced Proposition 50 on the November 2025 ballot.

The measure would temporarily override California’s independent redistricting commission and allow the Democratic-controlled legislature to redraw the state’s congressional lines, but only if a state like Texas enacts partisan redistricting first.

If approved by voters, those plans would give Democrats advantages in five districts, effectively canceling out the Republican gains in Texas.

With redistricting plans passing in the Texas House, Newsom looks ready to fight Trump’s “power grab,” writing on X, “It’s on, Texas.”

Former President Barack Obama has also backed the plans, telling the National Democratic Redistricting Committee at an event on Tuesday that Newsom’s proposal was a “responsible approach,” CNN reported.

“Given that Texas is taking direction from a partisan White House that is effectively saying, ‘Gerrymander for partisan purposes so we can maintain the House despite our unpopular policies, redistrict right in the middle of a decade between censuses,’ which is not how the system was designed, I have tremendous respect for how Governor Newsom has approached this,” Obama said.

The Texas plans have sparked intense debate over gerrymandering, which is the practice of manipulating electoral district boundaries to favor one political party or group.

Partisan gerrymandering is legal under federal law, but not if it is ruled to be racially motivated.

Opponents of the Texas maps, including civil rights groups and Democratic lawmakers, have accused Republicans of intentionally diluting the political influence of Black, Latino, and other minority communities who tend to vote Democrat.

Texas Democratic Representative Ron Reynolds described the Texas vote as a “dark day in history.”

“This map weakens the political power of Black and brown Texans and sets a dangerous precedent,” he said in a statement on X.

“I joined my Democratic colleagues in voting no and will do everything that I can to continue fighting against Trump’s Texas Takeover!”

Republicans have denied any racial motivation behind their plans, which were celebrated by Trump on social media.

“Big WIN for the Great State of Texas!!! Everything Passed, on our way to FIVE more Congressional seats and saving your Rights, your Freedoms, and your Country, itself,” he posted on Truth Social.

“Texas never lets us down. Florida, Indiana, and others are looking to do the same thing. More seats equals less Crime, a great Economy, and a STRONG SECOND AMENDMENT.

“It means Happiness and Peace. But Republicans, there is one thing even better - STOP MAIL-IN VOTING, a total fraud that has no bounds.

“Also, go to PAPER BALLOTS before it is too late - At one tenth the cost, faster, and more reliable. If we do these TWO things, we will pick up 100 more seats, and the CROOKED game of politics is over.”

Typically, states redraw their Congressional maps every 10 years after the U.S. census is released.