Democrats gain up to five seats in redistricting battles as courts challenge Trump’s mid-decade map redrawing strategy ahead of 2026 midterms
WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump’s unprecedented mid-decade redistricting push appears to be faltering as Democrats gain unexpected ground.
The president broke with political tradition by pressing conservative states to redraw congressional maps years before the next census.
Trump argued Republicans were “entitled” to grow their thin 219-213 majority in the US House of Representatives.
However, the strategy has encountered significant legal and political obstacles across multiple states.
Democrats now hope to net around five seats or more as courts and state officials intervene in the redistricting process.
A federal court last week struck down Texas’s new map that would have created up to five additional Republican-friendly seats.
The conservative-majority US Supreme Court later allowed Texas to temporarily reinstate its disputed map while justices review the case.
Republican political writer Patrick Payton criticized the approach as counterproductive governance.
“No one is going to win the redistricting battle,” Payton said.
California Governor Gavin Newsom declared “democracy won” as the Texas map faced legal challenges.
Democrats secured voter approval for a new California map that could add up to five US House seats.
Virginia Democratic leaders are pushing a plan that could yield two or three additional seats.
Analysts believe Democrats could gain nine seats total if Texas ultimately goes their way.
Republicans achieved some successes in North Carolina and Missouri, though both face legal challenges.
Florida’s legislature meets December 4 to consider whether to begin redistricting proceedings.
House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries vowed to finish the redistricting fight Republicans started.
The Supreme Court is also weighing a major Voting Rights Act challenge from Louisiana.
That case could shrink Black and Latino majority districts nationwide, potentially giving Republicans a dozen seats.
Tensions escalated in Indiana where state Senator Greg Goode was “swatted” after Trump attacked local officials.
Political analyst Michael Ashley Schulman warned that aggressive redistricting invites years of litigation.
“Once you cross it you invite years of litigation that can boomerang into less favorable redistricting,” Schulman said.
Filing deadlines begin December 8 with primaries starting in March, creating time pressure for final maps. – AFP
