Overview
- Rep. Lloyd Doggett said he will retire at the end of his term, finalizing a decision he tied to the court fight over Texas’ new congressional lines.
- The Supreme Court allowed Texas to use the GOP-drawn map for 2026, reversing a three-judge panel that had blocked it over racial gerrymandering concerns.
- The map targets five Democratic-held seats and combines Austin’s two districts, a change that would have set up a primary between Doggett and Rep. Greg Casar.
- Doggett condemned the redistricting push as driven by President Trump and characterized it as racial gerrymandering, while vowing to stay active outside elected office.
- His departure caps more than three decades in the House and makes him the first Texas Democrat in a recent wave of announced exits, with the ruling seen as improving Republicans’ odds of holding the chamber.