While Democratic lawmakers from California to New York have threatened to redistrict in response to Texas’ redistricting efforts, state Rep. David Spiller, R-Jacksboro, says three states with Democratic majorities – California, New York and Illinois – already have unfair advantages.
Any redistricting efforts made in these states would need to factor in population losses and better represent Republican voters to be legal, critics argue.
In California, 62% of voters vote Democrat, yet the state’s congressional delegation is comprised of 43 Democrats and only 9 Republicans, Spiller said. This gives California congressional Democrats an 82% advantage when Democrats have a 62% majority in the state, he said.
In New York, 58% of voters vote Democrat, yet New York’s congressional delegation is comprised of 19 Democrats and 7 Republicans, giving Democrats a 73% advantage, he said.
In Illinois, 56% of voters vote Democrat. Illinois’ congressional delegation includes 14 Democrats and only three Republicans, he said, giving Democrats an 82% advantage.
By contrast, in Texas, 58% of voters vote Republican. Texas’ congressional delegation is currently comprised of 25 Republicans and 13 Democrats, with one Democrat seat remaining vacant, a 65% advantage.
Spiller said Texas needs to create new districts to better represent majority Hispanic districts that lean Republican based on 2024 election trends. There’s no guarantee voters in these districts will vote Republican, but HB 4 gives them a better chance of electing a Republican than they had before, Hunter and Spiller argued.
State Rep. Todd Hunter has explained that the 2021 maps were drawn based on partisan performance, which is legal, according to a 2019 U.S. Supreme Court ruling.
In 2019, groups sued over a North Carolina redistricting map. In Common Cause v. Rucho, the court held that it would not arbitrate disputes over political maps. Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for the majority that claims about partisan gerrymandering fell outside the scope of the court and electoral maps are to be determined by state legislatures and voters. The ruling effectively dismissed the case.
Hunter and Spiller also said that under the new plan, for example, CD 18 in Harris County, will be one of two new Black majority districts. Other districts will become majority Hispanic districts. Some districts, like CD 7 in Houston, will remain Democrat majority, or will become more heavily Democrat majority like CD 29, they said.
While U.S. Rep. Lizzie Fletcher, a Democrat who represents the current CD 7, argues the new maps are racially discriminatory, Spiller said the new plan makes CD 7 a greater Democrat majority and the “racial factors are basically the same.” CD 7 is one of the most diverse districts in the state where residents speak more than 40 languages and one area has a high illegal foreign national population.
Critics have also argued that in Illinois, where Texas House Democrats are hiding out, Gov. J.B. Pritzker in 2021 signed into law redistricting maps that are considered among the most gerrymandered maps in the country, The Center Square reported.
Of the four states Spiller cited, only Texas is leading the U.S. in population increases every year. California, Illinois and New York continue to lose businesses and residents, with many relocating to Texas, citing high taxes and high cost of living as their reasons for leaving.
By the next census in 2030, Texas is expected to gain multiple seats in Congress; California, Illinois and New York are expected to lose more seats.
However, Texas could redistrict again before that – in 2027 in the next legislative session, depending on increased population gains and voter trends from the 2026 election.
In elections when Trump ran for president, Hispanic Texans increasingly voted Republican, with record numbers voting Republican in 2024. Polls showed last year that Hispanic Texans support border security and deportations, The Center Square reported. Nearly all Texas border counties flipped red in 2024 – for the first time in Texas history, The Center Square reported.
Life-long Democrats endorsed and voted for U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and President Donald Trump, they said, citing the economic and border policies of the Biden administration. Lifelong Democrats continue to flip Republican, including judges, county attorneys and state lawmakers, The Center Square reported.
Despite this, House Democrats argue the new proposal is illegal and are fighting against it by remaining out of state to prevent the House from reaching a quorum, halting votes on all legislation. House Speaker Dustin Burrows signed civil warrants for their arrest. Gov. Greg Abbott filed an emergency petition with the Texas Supreme Court to remove their leader from office and ordered state law enforcement to arrest “delinquent Democrats” and investigate potential bribery charges. On Thursday, U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, said the FBI would assist with finding and investigating Democrats. Funding sources of their abscondment are also being investigated, The Center Square reported.
