Overview

• Republican-led committees have begun public hearings in Austin, Houston and Arlington on new congressional maps designed to net the GOP up to five additional seats in 2026
• Texas Democrats threaten to deny quorum through walkouts and filibusters to stall or block the redistricting effort they say will disenfranchise their voters
• A July 7 Justice Department Civil Rights Division letter found four Houston and Dallas-area coalition districts unconstitutionally race-based and urged Texas to rectify those lines
• Voting-rights groups such as MALDEF have vowed litigation under the Voting Rights Act if the special session’s proposals dilute minority representation
• Governors in blue states led by California’s Gavin Newsom are exploring their own mid-cycle redraws in retaliation, raising the prospect of a nationwide redistricting arms race