On Wednesday evening (Aug. 20), Republicans in the Texas state legislature voted to advance a highly controversial redistricting plan to boost the thin majority the GOP has in Congress. Shortly afterward, California Governor Gavin Newsom and New York Governor Kathy Hochul released brief statements addressing the move, potentially setting the stage for their own redistricting efforts.
Newsom, whose office has been busy skewering President Donald Trump on social media, responded to the vote in a post on X, formerly Twitter, simply writing: “It’s on, Texas.”
Hochul, who has been vocal about seeking redrawing district maps in New York to combat GOP efforts, was also brief in her initial response to the vote on social media. In her post on X, formerly Twitter, she wrote “Game on” while sharing a link from the New York Times breaking the news.
The vote was 88-52 along party lines, advancing the map to the state Senate who is expected to approve it. The plan for redistricting in Texas has captured the attention of the nation after it was initiated by the state’s governor, Greg Abbott, at the behest of Trump. Redistricting normally takes place every 10 years after the census is completed, and Republican efforts in Texas midway through the normal period signal a desperation from the GOP to hold onto its majority in the House of Representatives ahead of the midterm elections next year.
Currently, there are 219 Republican seats to 212 Democratic seats, with four vacancies due to retirement and two deaths. Those two seats in Arizona and Texas will be up for grabs in special elections in the fall and are in heavily blue districts, which could help Democrats gain a majority next year.
The situation became highly explosive after Democratic state politicians walked out en masse to prevent the redistricting vote from going through in Austin, and Newsom and Hochul were among the Democratic governors who promised redistricting efforts of their own if the GOP was successful. Indeed, on Thursday (Aug. 21), the California state legislature convened to work on a special referendum for voters in the fall to consider approving the state redrawing maps before 2030. The move, if approved, would give Democrats five more seats in the House of Representatives.
