The Maryland Redistricting Advisory Commission appointed by Gov. Wes Moore has approved a proposed map that would give Democrats all eight of the state’s congressional seats, Punchbowl News reports.
The concept map will now be sent to the legislature for approval. State Senate President Bill Ferguson, who is on the commission, voted no and is opposed to redistricting.
“The Virginia state Senate on Friday approved a constitutional amendment that paves the way for a special election in which voters will decide whether to approve congressional maps favoring Democrats ahead of the midterms,” NOTUS reports.
“If voters approve the referendum, Democrats could end up with lines that could net their party up to four seats, though the exact makeup of the final map is still unclear.”
NBC News: Virginia lawmakers pass redistricting amendment, sending it to voters for approval.
“In a major victory for Gov. Gavin Newsom and the Democratic Party, a federal court in Los Angeles ruled Wednesday that California can use its newly configured congressional district boundaries for the 2026 midterm elections, increasing Democrats’ odds of winning five additional U.S. House seats and seizing control of the chamber,” the Los Angeles Times reports.
“Virginia Democrats are launching their last big campaign in the redistricting wars this week — but big questions loom about whether they can agree on how to maximize benefits to their party and whether they can convince voters to support their power grab,” Politico reports.
New York Times: “As the clock runs out and primary elections approach in the spring, leaders on both sides are looking to squeeze out any advantage and pressuring reluctant lawmakers who worry that maximalist gerrymandering could threaten their seats, hurt their party strategically or erode principles of democratic representation.”
“So far, Republicans have picked up roughly nine seats across the country and Democrats have flipped about six, but legal challenges or a wave election could alter the math.”
“Hovering over all the cartographic scribbling is a pending Supreme Court decision that could blow up the political map and give Republicans a major advantage.”
“Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday called a special legislative session on mid-decade redistricting that would take place in late April, a preemptive move coming amid state GOP tensions and national debates on the issue,” Politico reports.
“Florida could be the crown jewel for Republicans’ national redistricting ambitions. Some backers believe the state could yield three to five additional GOP House seats ahead of the 2026 midterms — a big enough number to possibly swing control of the House.”
“During legislative sessions in Frankfort, no bill or idea is ever 100% dead,” the Lexington Herald-Leader reports.
“But, according to a Republican legislative leader who has spoken with White House representatives, the prospect of gerrymandering Kentucky’s congressional map to draw out its only Democrat in Washington is not going anywhere.”
“Republicans want a big Supreme Court redistricting win. They’re losing hope it will help them in the 2026 midterms,” Politico reports.
“The Supreme Court’s decision in Louisiana v. Callais could weaken the Voting Rights Act and open the door to redrawing congressional maps, particularly across the South. Court watchers expect at least a partial win for conservatives that could let the GOP draw more seats for themselves by erasing Black- and Hispanic-majority districts.”
Playbook: “Though the justices still could rule quickly, the typical June window for high-profile decisions would be too late for many states to pass new maps. Early primaries in many Southern states may have already taken place by then. Louisiana has given up on the prospect, and Alabama and South Carolina face a ticking clock.”
Politico: “In Utah, Republicans are attempting to repeal an anti-gerrymandering measure that would allow them to redraw a new map ahead of the 2028 cycle. If they succeed, the GOP-controlled legislature will be poised to again redraw favorably after the 2030 census — when Utah, the country’s fastest-growing state, will likely be apportioned an additional seat.”
“That means, should Republicans make good on their effort, the state could have different maps in 2024, 2026, 2028 and 2032 — four times in an eight-year span, a near-unprecedented streak.”
The Economist: “One could argue that Republican state senators in Indiana were just being smart politicians earlier this month when they rejected a bill to redraw their state’s congressional districts to benefit their party. Polls showed more of their constituents opposed the measure than supported it.”
“Yet these state senators set a heartening example of courage in public life for a country in need of one. That they had the people and common sense on their side does not diminish their demonstration of character; instead, it supplies a gauge of just how debased American politics have otherwise become.”
“Republicans are frantically searching for more ways to keep the House next Congress after Indiana legislators decided not to redraw their state’s congressional districts,” Semafor reports.
“The decision could deter parallel pushes in other states.”
CNN: “Democrats beat Trump’s 2024 results in five US House districts with special elections this year by at least 13 points. Over-performance at that level next year would flip three of the five new Texas seats to the Democratic column, though it’s unlikely that performance will be replicated in every district around the country, and recent polling suggests that Democrats currently have a more modest national advantage.”
Russell Berman: “Over the past few days, I’ve asked both Republicans and Democrats here to explain why Indiana has become the new hotbed of GOP resistance to Trump…”
“I received several answers. Most, however, said that the push for mid-decade redistricting simply ran afoul of the small-c conservatism on which many Indiana Republican legislators still pride themselves… Republicans told me that state Senate opponents of redrawing the maps tended to be more institutionalist than MAGA, echoing a divide that still crops up among the party’s lawmakers in Washington.”
Jonathan Chait: “In rejecting yesterday a redistricting plan backed by President Donald Trump, Indiana’s Republican-controlled senate did not merely deny Republicans two new U.S. House seats in next year’s midterm elections. They also engaged in a mass revolt against the president. The stakes of their defiance reach far beyond the midterms. This vote was possibly the most significant blow yet against the authoritarian ambitions that have defined Trump’s second term.”
“The significance of Indiana’s noncompliance lies not in the specifics of what was refused—attempts to gerrymander electoral maps are hardly unprecedented, even though a mid-decade battle violates norms—but in the act of refusal itself. Trump’s authoritarian project relies on the cultlike hold he has over his party.”
Playbook: “The White House is waking up this morning to some brutal headlines and questions about whether President Donald Trump’s power over the GOP is waning after Indiana state lawmakers summarily rejected his redistricting push in the Hoosier State.”
“The president’s political team long set up what turned into the failed, blowout of a 19-31 vote against his proposed map that would have gerrymandered two more safe red seats as a loyalty test. The answer they got is not the one they wanted. The results imperil the party’s chances of holding control of Congress next November.”
Punchbowl News: “At this point, Trump’s redistricting war is a wash at best. Right now, Republicans may net two or three seats, but even that outcome is uncertain.”
“A couple of key states — Florida and Virginia — won’t draw new maps until next year. And that’s only if state legislators in both states overcome some significant obstacles.”
“The Supreme Court also hasn’t ruled in a major Louisiana Voting Rights Act case, although the full ramifications of that decision may not be felt until 2028.”
“In a monumental rebuke of President Donald Trump’s wishes, Indiana’s supermajority Republican state legislature became the first to formally reject his push for mid-decade redistricting,” the Indianapolis Star reports.
“The Senate’s 19-31 vote caps months of anticipation and pressure from the White House and its allies, placing Indiana at the center of national intrigue and ire.”
“A congressional redistricting proposal that has split Indiana’s Senate Republicans advanced to its final stage Wednesday after lawmakers quickly dispatched three Democratic amendments and positioned the high-stakes bill for a decisive vote on Thursday,” the Indiana Capital Chronicle reports.
“But it remains unclear whether the Senate GOP caucus has enough support to pass the measure.”
Playbook notes President Trump applied pressure his own special way — with an epic 414-word Truth Social post demanding a GOP gerrymander, issuing primary threats and calling Senate President Rodric Bray, a redistricting opponent, “either a bad guy, or a very stupid one!”
Taegan Goddard
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire -- which for more than two decades has been one of the nation's most influential political news sites.
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