Supreme Court Lets Texas Proceed With GOP-Favoring Map

The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that Texas can proceed with its new congressional district map for the 2026 midterm elections, a redistricting plan designed to strengthen Republican representation in the U.S. House by up to five seats at the request of President Trump. The decision, reportedly on a 6-3 vote, granted an emergency request from Gov. Greg Abbott and put on hold a lower court ruling that had struck down the map, finding it likely relied on race in its design. The Court’s unsigned order stated that Texas is “likely to succeed on the merits of its claim,” citing what the majority saw as the lower court’s failure to presume that lawmakers act in good faith, according to NBC News.

The three justices appointed by Democratic presidents dissented. Justice Elena Kagan, in a 17-page dissent, argued the ruling undermines the district court’s work and harms Texans who were, according to the lower court, assigned to districts based on race. She criticized her colleagues, saying the Supreme Court made its decision “based on its perusal, over a holiday weekend, of a cold paper record,” per the New York Times. “We are a higher court than the district court, but we are not a better one when it comes to making such a fact-based decision,” Kagan wrote.

Justice Samuel Alito, in a concurring opinion, said challengers had not provided sufficient evidence that race, rather than partisanship, drove the district lines, according to NBC News. Alito had previously paused the lower court’s ruling in November while the Supreme Court reviewed the case.

The lawsuit challenging the map was filed by groups including the League of United Latin American Citizens, the Texas NAACP, and two Democratic members of Congress. Candidates hoping to run in Texas next year must file by Dec. 8, but the ongoing legal battle has created uncertainty about which districts candidates from both parties will target.

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