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President Donald Trump and Republicans are hailing the blockbuster ruling by the Virginia Supreme Courtroom to strike down the state’s congressional redistricting poll measure, which was a serious setback for Democrats within the battle for the U.S. Home majority.
“Large win for the Republican Get together,” the president proclaimed in a social media publish on Friday minutes after Virginia’s highest courtroom struck down the referendum handed by voters final month.
The brand new map drawn by the Virginia legislature would have given Democrats 4 extra left-leaning Home districts within the Commonwealth forward of this 12 months’s midterm elections, when Republicans will likely be defending their razor-thin majority within the chamber.
The Virginia ruling, together with the latest opinion by the conservative majority on the Supreme Courtroom to slash a key Voting Rights Act safety, is giving Trump and the GOP a serious increase of their ongoing political struggle with Democrats to redraw congressional district maps forward of the midterms. At stake on this nationwide redistricting showdown is which occasion will management the Home in the course of the remaining two years of Trump’s second time period within the White Home.
BLOCKBUSTER RULING: VIRGINIA SUPREME COURT STRIKES DOWN DEMOCRAT-BACKED CONGRESSIONAL MAP
The Virginia redistricting map that was authorized narrowly by voters in a particular election final month was struck down on Friday by the Virginia Supreme Courtroom (Virginia Legislative Data System)
In Virginia, the choice means the map used within the 2024 elections will keep in place for the 2026 poll field showdowns. Democrats at present management the state’s U.S. Home delegation by a 6-5 margin. The now overturned map may have resulted in a 10-1 benefit for Democrats within the blue-leaning however aggressive state.
Within the wake of their newest authorized setback, Home Democratic Chief Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York stated, “We’re exploring all choices to overturn this stunning choice.”
And the Home minority chief vowed, “It doesn’t matter what it takes, Home Democrats will win in November so we can assist rescue this nation from the extremism being unleashed by Donald Trump and Republicans.”
However the 2026 redistricting wars are removed from over, and the political panorama could get even rougher for Democrats going ahead.
Here is the place issues stand.
Louisiana
The Supreme Courtroom’s choice reshaped the landmark 1965 Voting Rights Act by ruling that race mustn’t dictate the redrawing of legislative district maps. And the opinion particularly dominated that Louisiana’s congressional district map was unconstitutional.
Final week, the Supreme Courtroom stated that its choice declaring Louisiana’s map unconstitutional ought to go into impact instantly, breaking with its normal process of ready roughly a month earlier than its opinions change into official.
That cleared the best way for the GOP-controlled state legislature to start the method of redrawing the map, and hearings acquired underway on Friday.
Republican Gov. Jeff Landry of Louisiana, proper, a serious ally of President Donald Trump, delayed his state’s U.S. Home primaries because the GOP-dominated legislature redraws Louisiana’s congressional district map (Scott Olson/Getty Photographs)
Republican Gov. Jeff Landry, a prime Trump ally, took swift motion within the instant aftermath of the excessive courtroom’s ruling, when he delayed the Might 16 U.S. Home major elections in Louisiana.
Louisiana Republicans are aiming to erase one or each of the 2 Black-majority Home seats, that are represented by Democrats.
Tennessee
Republicans in Tennessee moved even quicker.
The GOP-dominated Tennessee legislature on Thursday rapidly adopted a brand new map that will remove the one Democrat-controlled congressional district within the state, and would seemingly give Republicans management of all 9 districts.
TENN GOV LEE CALLS SPECIAL SESSION TO REDRAW HOUSE MAP IN GOP’S FAVOR 9-0
Rep. Justin J. Pearson, D-Memphis, middle, marches with protesters earlier than a particular session of the state legislature to redraw U.S. Congressional voting maps, in Nashville, Tenn., Tuesday, Might 5, 2026. (George Walker IV/AP Picture)
GOP Gov. Invoice Lee rapidly signed the brand new maps into regulation.
Democratic Rep. Steve Cohen, who represents the bulk Black district that is being carved up, vowed authorized motion.
“Trump is aware of he HAS TO rig the sport to maintain his majority in November. And the TN GOP was keen to associate with it. It’s shameful,” Cohen wrote on social media. “Subsequent cease is the courts.”
Alabama
Lawmakers within the Alabama legislature, the place the GOP holds a supermajority in each chambers, are advancing laws as they met this previous week in a particular session targeted on redistricting. The brand new maps could end in eliminating one or each of the state’s two blue-leaning U.S. Home districts.
The particular session was known as by Republican Gov. Kay Ivey.
However any new map handed by Alabama lawmakers will must be greenlit by the Supreme Courtroom. That is as a result of Alabama is at present prohibited by the excessive courtroom from redistricting till 2030. It is unclear if the courtroom will carry its injunction.
Protests rocked each the Alabama and Tennessee legislatures as Republican lawmakers pushed ahead the brand new maps.
South Carolina
In South Carolina, the GOP-controlled legislature returns in particular session on Monday, as Republican lawmakers take into account a brand new map that would put longtime Rep. Jim Clyburn, the one Democrat within the state’s seven-person Home delegation, out of a job.
Georgia
Republicans in Georgia are divided over GOP Gov. Brian Kemp of Georgia’s choice to not name state lawmakers again right into a particular session on redistricting.
The state’s major is on Might 19 and early voting is already underway in Georgia.
Florida
In the meantime, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday signed a invoice handed final week by the GOP-dominated state legislature that redraws the red-leaning state’s congressional districts, including 4 extra right-leaning seats by eliminating districts at present managed by Democrats.
Republicans at present management Florida’s U.S. Home delegation by a 20-8 margin.
How we acquired right here
The battle over the maps ignited final spring when Trump, aiming to stop what occurred throughout his first time period within the White Home when Democrats reclaimed the Home majority within the 2018 midterms, first floated the concept of uncommon, however not unprecedented, mid-decade congressional redistricting.
The mission was easy: redraw congressional district maps in pink states to pad the GOP’s fragile Home majority to maintain management of the chamber within the midterms, when the occasion in energy historically faces political headwinds and loses seats.
When requested by reporters final summer season about his plan so as to add Republican-leaning Home seats throughout the nation, the president stated, “Texas would be the largest one. And that’ll be 5.”
Republican Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas known as a particular session of the GOP-dominated state legislature to go the brand new map.
However Democratic state lawmakers, who broke quorum for 2 weeks as they fled Texas in a bid to delay the passage of the redistricting invoice, energized Democrats throughout the nation. Amongst these main the struggle towards Trump’s redistricting was Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom of California.
California voters in November overwhelmingly handed Proposition 50, a poll initiative that briefly sidetracked the left-leaning state’s nonpartisan redistricting fee and returned the ability to attract the congressional maps to the Democratic-dominated legislature.
That led to 5 extra Democratic-leaning congressional districts in California, which aimed to counter the transfer by Texas to redraw their maps.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks throughout an election evening press convention at a California Democratic Get together workplace in Sacramento on Nov. 4, 2025. (Godofredo A. Vásquez/AP Picture)
However the struggle rapidly unfold past Texas and California.
Republican-controlled Missouri and Ohio and swing state North Carolina, the place the GOP dominates the legislature, drew new maps as a part of the president’s push.
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However in blows to Republicans, a Utah district decide late final 12 months rejected a congressional district map drawn by the state’s GOP-dominated legislature and as a substitute authorized an alternate that may create a Democratic-leaning district forward of the midterms.
And Republicans in Indiana’s Senate in December defied Trump, taking pictures down a redistricting invoice that had handed the state Home.
Going through the president’s wrath, 5 of these Republican state senators in Indiana had been ousted by Trump-backed challengers in final week’s GOP major.
