AUSTIN, Texas – On Tuesday, a three-judge panel ruled against the use of a new Texas congressional map for the 2026 midterm election.
Through the redistricting effort, the GOP hoped to pick up five more U.S. House seats. Abbott signed the congressional map into law in August and celebrated on social media that “Texas will be more RED in Congress.”
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A judge ordered that the 2026 congressional election will “proceed under the map that the Texas Legislature enacted in 2021.”
In a news release, Abbott responded to the decision, “The Legislature redrew our congressional maps to better reflect Texans’ conservative voting preferences – and for no other reason. Any claim that these maps are discriminatory is absurd and unsupported by the testimony offered during ten days of hearings."
“This ruling is clearly erroneous and undermines the authority the U.S. Constitution assigns to the Texas Legislature by imposing a different map by judicial edict. The State of Texas will swiftly appeal to the United States Supreme Court,” he said.
In a separate news release from the Office of the Attorney General, Ken Paxton said he will also file an appeal to the Supreme Court.
“The radical left is once again trying to undermine the will of the people,” Paxton said. “The Big Beautiful Map was entirely legal and passed for partisan purposes to better represent the political affiliations of Texas.”
He continued, “For years, Democrats have engaged in partisan redistricting intended to eliminate Republican representation. Democratic states across the country, from California to Illinois to New York, have systematically reduced representation of Republican voters in their congressional delegations.”
He said, “But when Republicans respond in kind, Democrats rely on false accusations of racism to secure a partisan advantage. I will be appealing this decision to the Supreme Court of the United States, and I fully expect the Court to uphold Texas’s sovereign right to engage in partisan redistricting.”
Already, the ruling has had an effect on the candidates seeking election in 2026.
Democratic Congressman Lloyd Doggett announced that because of the ruling, he will now run for reelection in Texas’ 37th congressional district. Initially, the longtime congressman said he would not run against Rep. Greg Casar with the Republican-drawn map in effect.
“A U.S. district court order means that I have a renewed opportunity to continue serving the only town I have ever called home, as democracy faces greater challenges than at any point in my lifetime. While this decision, led by a Trump-appointed judge, will be appealed, I am hopeful about the final outcome to stop this illegal, racial gerrymander,” he said in a social post.
Congressman Joaquin Castro also celebrated the decision and added that the blocked congressional map undermined the voting power of Latino and Black communities.
In a news release, former Dallas congressman and U.S. Senate candidate Colin Allred said, “As a voting rights lawyer, I’ve spent my career fighting to make sure every Texan has an equal voice. This is a major victory for Texans — especially Black and Brown communities whose voices were targeted for political gain."
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