On Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court temporarily blocked a lower court ruling that found Texas’ 2026 congressional redistricting plan, supported by former President Donald Trump, likely discriminates based on race.
The order, signed by Justice Samuel Alito, will remain in effect for at least several days while the Court decides whether the new, Republican-favored map can be used in the upcoming midterm elections.
The Supreme Court’s conservative majority has previously blocked similar lower court decisions when they were issued close to elections.
A copy of Texas’ redrawn congressional map was displayed during a debate at the state capitol on August 22, 2025.
The Supreme Court’s order came about an hour after Texas requested the high court’s intervention to prevent confusion ahead of the congressional primary elections in March.
In past cases, the justices have blocked lower-court rulings on congressional redistricting, including in Alabama and Louisiana, when the decisions came just months before elections. Justice Samuel Alito signed the order, as he handles emergency appeals from Texas.
Texas redrew its congressional map over the summer as part of former President Donald Trump’s efforts to maintain a slim Republican majority in the House for next year’s elections, sparking a nationwide redistricting battle.
The new map was designed to give Republicans five additional House seats. However, a federal judge panel in El Paso ruled 2-1 on Tuesday that civil rights groups representing Black and Hispanic voters challenging the map were likely to succeed in their case.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott spoke during a bill signing on August 22, 2025, amid debate over the state’s congressional map redrawing.
If the lower court ruling is ultimately upheld, Texas could be required to hold next year’s elections using the map drawn by the GOP-controlled Legislature in 2021, based on the 2020 census.
Texas was the first state to meet former President Donald Trump’s demands in what has become a growing national battle over redistricting.
Republicans crafted the new Texas map to secure five additional House seats, with Missouri and North Carolina following suit, each adding one Republican seat. In response, California voters approved a ballot initiative granting Democrats an additional five seats.
Protesters gathered inside the Texas State Capitol on August 20, 2025, to oppose the proposed congressional map redrawing.
Similar redrawn maps are facing legal challenges in California, Missouri, and North Carolina.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court is also considering a separate case from Louisiana that could further restrict race-based districts under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act.
It remains unclear how the outcome of the Louisiana case might affect the current round of redistricting.
