Texas and California endorse gerrymandering before the 2026 midterm elections seeking a House majority
As President Donald Trump finishes his first nine months in office, the statistics tell a drastically different story compared to the platform on which the Republican Party campaigned. His hopes of reforming the job market and creating a “manufacturing renaissance” are dwindling as a concerning August jobs report illustrates significant decreases in job openings. The effects of these unrealized promises are seeping into his approval ratings, which have dropped fourteen percentage points since the start of the term in January. The Republican Party faces a new problem: amid a lack of general support, how can the party maintain its majority in Congress? As Republicans use unethical redistricting practices to gain seats in the House, the Democratic Party must recognize that Republican gerrymandering is not an act of aggression; rather, it is a last resort.
Regardless of political beliefs, it is clear that there is a lack of public trust in the U.S. government, which is eroding democracy. Amid this distrust, politicians on both sides of the aisle have resorted to gerrymandering as an exploitative tool to maintain their power. In August, Texas signed into law a new map that would amplify Republican votes, largely targeting majority Black districts. They did so with hopes of gaining five seats in the House. In response to Texas’ law, California Governor Gavin Newsom created Proposition 50, a map that, if approved by the constituents, will minimize the Congressional votes of Republicans. Rallying politicians from across the country, Newsom has prioritized this in a special election to be held in November. Typically, redistricting occurs after a national census every ten years. However, the purpose of these mid-decade gerrymandering efforts is to secure a majority in the House of Representatives. In both Texas and California, politicians have found themselves using their power in the upcoming election not by speaking to their constituents’ needs or implementing favorable legislation, but by choosing whose vote should be prioritized and whose should be silenced.
The puppeteering of democracy from politicians representing both parties is driven by desperation as the country begins to face the consequences of the single-party rule over Congress. Since the beginning of the year, the GOP majority has pushed through the Big Beautiful Bill, which cut one trillion dollars in healthcare spending, as well as two hundred thirty billion dollars from Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, despite claims from the White House that they “will not cut Social Security, Medicare, or Medicaid benefits.” Similarly, in early October, the government shut down over a disagreement on whether to add one trillion dollars to health care programs. However, with midterm elections on the horizon, once-ardent Trump supporters and MAGA conservatives, like Marjorie Taylor Greene, are distancing themselves from Trump’s governance, as the White House cracks down on free speech. Gerrymandering is the Republican Party’s last Hail Mary as a schism emerges between members of the party and their president.
In redistricting their state, Texas GOP leaders have undermined their constituents, but that is not a mandate for Democratic leaders to do the same. Regardless of the actions of either party, gerrymandering is unconstitutional. Gerrymandering allows legislatures to choose their constituents, which creates a government that does not reflect the will of the people but rather rewards the politician who is most successful in cherry-picking their voters. In this moment of an ethical failure on democracy’s foundational principles on the part of the Republican Party, Democrats have an opportunity to show a clear distinction between the two parties. The responsibility of a representative is to serve their constituents. For Governor Newsom, that includes the constituents in the Republican areas he aims to redistrict. True leadership in this moment of political uncertainty is listening to constituents, campaigning for democratic principles, and extending ethical standards to all Americans. Any state that gerrymanders, whether it be Texas, California, or those that follow, has set a precedent that, above all else, including their constituents, they prioritize their own political disputes. That message will loom far past this midterm.
This decision to redraw the maps will affect the 2028 presidential election, as voters will look for a party that adheres to constitutional values and prioritizes the voice of the American people over their party. In past election cycles, tit-for-tat politics has consistently overshadowed reasoned policymaking. Both parties have used the prior actions of their opponents to justify their own wrongdoings. Under this practice, the country will always be pushed toward division. Moreover, under this practice, the constituents will never win. If there is one lesson Democrats should carry from the 2024 election, it is that trust is the cornerstone of any winning campaign. Gerrymandering does not just distort districts; it distorts faith in democracy.
As Republicans choose to swindle their constituents and cheat democracy, perhaps they will win their five seats in the midterm, but undoubtedly, it sends a message: they are scared. In this fear, Democrats have the opportunity to restore trust in a system that has been deemed broken.
Gavin Newsom responds to Greg Abbott’s redistricting maps by signing a plan that, if approved by voters, will redistrict California.
