Texas Republicans Eye Picking Up 5 Seats in Redistricting Effort

Texas Republicans could pick up five seats in the U.S. House of Representatives by adjusting Congressional Districts in the state. Redistricting is a top priority for state Republicans and something that the U.S. Department of Justice recommended in a July 7 letter to Gov. Greg Abbott. A special session on the issue is scheduled for July 21. The letter to Abbott from Assistant U.S. Attorneys General Harmeet Dhillon and Michael Gates of the Civil Rights Division said that Texas Congressional Districts 9, 18, 29, and 33 constitute unconstitutional “coalition districts.” Coalition districts are districts that are drawn to combine different minority groups into one majority within a district. This “minority-majority” can then combine to support one party over the other....