Texas hopes to gerrymander Democrats out of 5 seats

By Mary Ellen Klas / Bloomberg Opinion

President Donald Trump is attempting a massive power grab in Texas and most Americans aren’t aware of it. That’s a very bad sign.

If, by the end of August, most Americans don’t know that the president is trying to use Texas to manipulate the results of the 2026 midterm elections by changing three to five congressional seats in his favor, it’s a loud signal that the decline of democracy isn’t capturing public attention; and that Democrats are failing, again.

This week, the Texas Legislature convened a 30-day special session to take up a host of issues; including Trump’s exhortation to redraw the state’s congressional districts to help the GOP retain its narrow majority in Congress next year.

It’s a risky gambit. Texas is one of the few states where Republicans can put their thumb on the scale to try to pick up more red seats. To do it, they’ll have to spread reliably Democratic voters across safe red districts. With Trump’s approval rating underwater, Texas’ Republican congressional delegation could lose more seats to Democrats in 2026 than they would have before the changes. Trump is gambling that won’t happen. He won Texas by 14 percentage points in 2024 and now thinks he can tell Republicans there what to do.

https://www.heraldnet.com/opinion/comment-texas-hopes-to-gerrymander-democrats-out-of-5-seats/