Texas Redistricting Showdown: Trump Targets Five New GOP House Seats as Special Session Looms

President Donald Trump is actively pushing for a significant redrawing of Texas’s congressional map, aiming to secure an additional three to five Republican seats in the U.S. House. This aggressive move comes as the Republican-controlled Texas Legislature is set to convene a special session next week to consider new district lines, a decision recently formalized by Gov. Greg Abbott.

Trump conveyed his strategy to Texas congressional Republicans on Tuesday, July 15, emphasizing a ‘very simple redrawing’ that could net the GOP crucial gains, particularly in Texas, which he described as the ‘biggest one’ for potential pickups. His political team is reportedly focused on shifting GOP voters from safe Republican districts into adjacent Democratic-held areas to flip seats and bolster the party’s narrow House majority.

Democrats, however, are sharply criticizing the proposed mid-decade redistricting, labeling it a direct threat to democracy and a continuation of Texas’s history of violating the federal Voting Rights Act by diluting minority votes. U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Dallas) expressed strong anticipation of an aggressive gerrymander designed to ‘mute our voices.’

With limited options in the Republican-dominated state Legislature, Democrats are exploring countermeasures, including encouraging blue states to undertake their own redistricting efforts to offset potential GOP gains in Texas. Some lawmakers have also alluded to the possibility of a quorum break, a tactic previously used in 2021 to delay a voting bill, though Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has warned against such actions.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-New York) suggested that Republicans risk creating a ‘dummymander’—a gerrymander so extreme it could inadvertently benefit Democrats—given the current map already secures GOP incumbents. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) has signaled its intent to heavily target vulnerable Texas Republicans under any new map. The proposed changes would significantly increase Republican control, potentially giving them nearly 80% of Texas’s 38 congressional districts, despite recent Democratic presidential candidates securing over 40% of the state’s vote.

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