The Supreme Court handed Texas a major win on Friday, and it could reshape the fight for control of the House in a very big way. In a move that had Democrats clutching their pearls before the ink was even dry, the Court stepped in and paused a lower court ruling that tried to block the state’s new congressional map. That map is expected to give Texas five more Republican seats, which is exactly why the usual suspects have been screaming about it for months.
Earlier in the week, a panel of three federal judges ruled 2 to 1 against the new map, calling it an illegal race based gerrymander. That label gets thrown around every time Republicans draw a map the left doesn’t like. Texas has been growing fast, especially in areas that lean right, and naturally the legislature is reflecting that. But the panel decided it knew better and ordered the state to dust off the old 2021 map instead.
Enter Justice Samuel Alito, who issued a temporary pause on the ruling. It was short and to the point, but it bought Texas the time it needed for the full Court to consider the appeal. Texas filed that appeal immediately, and Alito told the challengers they need to respond by Monday. Translation, the Supreme Court is taking this seriously and the clock is ticking.
And the clock really is the issue here. Candidates must file by December 8, and the state has to notify voters of any changes long before the March primaries. Every day counts. With Republicans holding a narrow 219 to 214 majority in the House, even a few seats can tilt the entire balance of power. Five new Republican leaning districts in Texas is not a small deal. It is potentially game changing.
What makes all this even more interesting is what is happening out west. While Texas is being dragged through federal court for adding Republican seats based on actual population shifts, California is busy trying to redraw its own map in ways that conveniently dilute the power of more than six million Trump voters. Funny how that works. When Democrats do it, it is called fairness. When Republicans do it, it is called gerrymandering. You almost have to laugh.
Texas fought back, and the Supreme Court so far seems willing to let the state make its case. The left was counting on the courts to block what voters themselves already decided. Instead, the map that reflects Texas reality may be the one that stands.
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