The two largest U.S. states have launched a congressional mid-decade redistricting war, and several other states are joining the fray ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, which Democrats hope will mark the end of Republicans’ control of the federal government.

California’s redistricting measure, which Gov. Newsom signed into law last Thursday, is an “emergency defensive tactic,” says a former Santa Barbara County redistricting committee member.

Texas lawmakers approved a new congressional map this week at the behest of President Donald Trump, seeking to preserve his Republican Party's slim majority in the U.S. House of Representatives in the November 2026 midterm elections.