Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott called a special session of the state legislature on Wednesday to demand the GOP-controlled body redraw the state’s congressional districts, an effort to gerrymander the state to try to squeeze out more seats for Republicans in the 2026 midterms.
Abbott called the special session because President Donald Trump wants Texas Republicans to rig the map for the GOP to try to offset potential Republican losses next November, when Republicans could lose control of their three-seat House majority. Political analysts say that under the current congressional maps, Democrats are favored to win control of the House in 2026.
Knowing that Democratic House control would end Trump’s legislative agenda and allow Democrats to investigate his corrupt business dealings and administration, Trump is desperately trying to prevent that from happening by getting Texas and Ohio to be “ruthless” and make their state congressional districts even more heavily Republican gerrymanders.
Texas was the first state to bite, after Abbott called the special session. Abbott cited a letter Trump’s Department of Justice sent purporting to say that several Democratic-held Texas congressional districts “constitute unconstitutional racial gerrymanders” and should be redrawn. But that’s obviously just a ruse to give Republicans an excuse to redraw the congressional districts to give Republicans an edge.
The New York Times reported, however, that Republicans in the Texas congressional delegation are wary about redrawing districts, worried that they could inadvertently make GOP lawmakers more vulnerable if the 2026 midterms turn out to be a Democratic wave. By spreading out GOP voters in more districts, it could make Republicans more vulnerable if independents break Democrats’ way next November.
“The only way you make the state more competitive congressionally is you do it at their expense,” Democratic state Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer told the Times, referring to congressional Republicans. “I think the Republicans have already maximized their map, given the demographic changes in the state.”
Abbott called the special session as his state is reeling from a horrible natural disaster in which at least 120 people—many of them children attending summer camps—were swept away and killed by flash flooding. Nearly 200 more are still missing and likely presumed dead, as it has been days since the flooding.
Reports said that Texas state did not have adequate warning systems to prevent the tragedy, and that Trump’s cuts to federal disaster preparedness funding could make things even worse in future flood situations.
Democrats, for their part, are slamming Abbott’s special session announcement, saying it is a craven political move that shows he is putting politics over saving lives.
“Hundreds of people have died or are missing as a result of the deadly flooding in the Texas Hill country. There are real questions about Governor Greg Abbott’s failed leadership, lack of preparation and the reckless decision not to bolster the early warning infrastructure in flood prone communities,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said in a statement. “Instead of aggressively addressing the failures of his administration, Governor Abbott and shameless extremists are conspiring with Donald Trump and House Republicans to try to rig the election and disenfranchise millions of voters.”
Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chair Suzan DelBene echoed those sentiments.
“It’s shameful that while Texans are still responding to the deadly and tragic floods, Governor Abbott, House Republicans, and Donald Trump are focusing their time and resources trying to push through new, rigged Congressional maps,” she said in a statement. “Republicans are running scared because they know the American people will reject them next year for their broken promises and failed agenda. They also know they cannot win fair and square, so they are trying once again to rig the maps.”