The latest redistricting news from The Texas Tribune.
When lawmakers find something in the law that they don’t like — or that their voters don’t like — they can always say they didn’t know what they were voting on. It happens more than you’d think. Full Story
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The draft, which will need a stamp of approval from the full chamber before it can head to the Senate for consideration, is likely to continue to change before the Legislature sends it to Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk for a signature. Full Story
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Democrats criticized Republicans for “targeting” a North Texas district that had been trending Democratic and for not drawing any new districts where people of color would represent a majority of eligible voters. Full Story
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Despite the objections of U.S. Reps. Sheila Jackson Lee and Al Green, the Senate committee voted out the redrawn congressional map Monday without addressing the district overlap. The map heads next to the full Senate for a vote. Full Story
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Sen. Joan Huffman, R-Houston, said the maps were drawn “race-blind.” But Democratic Sen. Beverly Powell, whose district would be turned into a majority-Republican district, said they’re an attempt to deny voters of color their voice in elections. Full Story
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With proposed maps out, U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, D-McAllen, says he might switch to a neighboring district where U.S. Rep. Filemon Vela, D-Brownsville, is retiring. The initial maps are also sure to impact decisions in regional legislative races. Full Story
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The Texas Legislature is drawing new political maps to reflect the growth of the state recorded in the 2020 census. But their initial proposals don't look like the state demographically or politically. Full Story
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Adam Foltz, now on the Texas payroll, played a key role in Wisconsin's redistricting last decade. A federal court threw out some of the maps and called the effort Foltz was involved in "an all but shameful attempt to hide the redistricting process from public scrutiny." Full Story
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Wesley Hunt, an Army combat veteran who ran a close congressional contest last year in the Houston area, announced Tuesday he plans to run for the state's new 38th Congressional District in the same region. Full Story
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The initial drafts of both maps have so far attempted to strengthen Republican majorities by protecting incumbents and creating more GOP-friendly districts. Full Story
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Within half an hour of declaring his bid, King got the endorsement of the Senate's presiding officer, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick. Full Story
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The proposed congressional map also increases the number of districts where Trump would have had a majority of voters over Biden in 2020 and protects Republican incumbents who might have been vulnerable by packing their districts with more Trump voters. Full Story
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The two-term Houston representative holds a congressional seat with a storied Republican lineage. With the GOP-controlled Legislature about to release new district maps, some expect they will try to wrest the seat back into their column. Full Story
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Israel’s decision creates a vacancy in Austin-area House District 50 with redistricting underway at the Legislature. Full Story
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Within hours, Flores got the endorsement of Sen. Dawn Buckingham, R-Lakeway, who is vacating the seat to run for land commissioner, and then Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who presides over the Senate. Full Story
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Lawmakers must redraw the state’s political maps to account for a decade’s worth of growth, but the process leaves enough room for political manipulation. Here’s how it’ll work. Full Story
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The first draft of the Senate map was authored by a Republican who chairs the Senate Redistricting Committee. It immediately drew fire from a Democratic member who said her district was being redrawn to dilute voting power of people of color. Full Story
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Facing demographic changes that work against their political dominance, Republicans will be able to redraw politically advantageous maps — and shield themselves from the change — without federal oversight for the first time in decades. Full Story
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Not every change in the state’s political maps starts with party affiliation. Geography and population are giving Republican mapmakers new headaches. Full Story
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In this week’s episode, Matthew speaks with Ross, Alexa and James about the coming legislative session and legal fights over redistricting in Texas. Full Story
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